Donald Trump will impose tariffs on Australian aluminium and steel imports this week, but in the lead up, the government was still hoping for an exemption. So, how should we be dealing with the US president?

The former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull, for one, isn’t holding back. His criticism of Donald Trump has landed him in the president’s firing line.

But the real casualty of Trump’s trade policies can be seen on the stock markets, which are suffering heavy falls as the president refuses to rule out a recession.

Today, chief business correspondent Ian Verrender on what’s got the markets so worried and what a Trump recession could mean for all of us.

Update: After we published this episode, the White House confirmed Australia would not be granted an exemption on aluminium and steel imports.

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Ian Verrender, chief business correspondent

Is Trump dragging the US into recession?