They are one of the cornerstones of US President Donald Trump’s second term and have left other countries scrambling to respond on an almost daily basis.

That uncertainty was underlined when 25% tariffs on steel and aluminium coming into the US went into effect overnight – with the EU responding by saying it will impose counter-measures on €26bn (£21.9bn, $28.3bn) worth of US goods.

The UK has said the tariffs are disappointing and Westminster will push for a trade deal – but, in the meantime, what of Northern Ireland?

It is somewhere that could be uniquely affected by the impact of both EU and UK tariffs – but businesses say they are trying to stay positive.

Politicians and businesspeople are in Washington DC this week in the run-up to St Patrick’s Day, making the case for US investment and trade in Northern Ireland.

For Bloc Blinds the potential of a changed trading relationship with the US brings different challenges.

The company has its headquarters in Magherafelt in County Londonderry but recently also opened a manufacturing site in Texas.

Blinds produced there and sold to the US market would not be subject to tariffs, but managing director Cormac Diamond said this did not mean he could take his eye off the ball.

“We have to be cognisant of the challenges of tariffs because in spite of doing our production in Dallas we are still serviced by a supply chain that is affected by tariffs,” he said.

“That said, since we are doing most of the added value within the Dallas plant itself we certainly have reduced exposure to tariffs.

“We’re pretty confident that we are in a secure position regarding tariffs, but tariffs can affect things both directly and indirectly. There may be some unforeseen events that we have not planned for.”

Mr Diamond said he was positive about the future of doing business in the US.

“The size of the market certainly excited us when we decided to embark on the US journey.

“There is a very positive approach to business in the US and you can see it in evidence of buildings, infrastructure, development etcetera.”

“Because it is so uncertain we are almost having to plough ahead regardless and just take that into consideration, when we have a bit more concrete information,” he said.

“It is very much about trying to keep the business going as normal, plan as much as we can for the future but not make anything too concreted because there is that level of uncertainty.”

The United States is a big market for Belfast watchmakers Nomadic, accounting for 22% of its sales.

Peter McAuley, the company’s founder, said there was huge potential for it to continue to grow there.

“It feels like we’ve barely scratched the surface of the potential, there is a really strong market,” he said.

“It’s not necessarily concentrated around the traditional Irish hubs that you might expect, it’s quite spread out across the entire country.”

Mr McAuley said that while he hoped Nomadic would be “a little bit protected” because of the luxury nature of the company’s products, he believed any tariffs would have an impact on sales.

Mr McAuley added that the business environment in the US still felt positive and he remained confident about the future of the trading relationship.

In 2022, Northern Ireland companies exported goods to the US with a value of £1.9bn.

That was the third biggest external market for goods behind GB (£11bn) and Ireland (£4.6bn).

Unlike the rest of the UK, Northern Ireland will be hitting the US with tariffs.

That is because of its unique – and complicated – post-Brexit trading status.

Northern Ireland is part of the UK’s customs territory and its exports are covered by the UK’s trade agreements.

Therefore exports from Northern Ireland are subject to the tariffs imposed on the UK by the US or any other country.

However, Northern Ireland is also effectively part of the European Union’s single market for goods and enforces EU customs rules at its ports.

That arrangement, called the Windsor Framework, was agreed by the UK and EU as a way of maintaining an open trade border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland after Brexit.

It has implications for how imports are treated as they arrive at Northern Ireland’s ports from outside the EU.

A key concept of the framework is whether goods arriving in NI are “at risk” of entering the EU.

Goods not at risk are covered by UK tariff rules; goods at risk are covered by EU tariff rules

All goods subject to EU “trade defence measures”, such as the retaliatory tariffs on the US, are always considered at risk.

Therefore when the EU’s tariffs apply next month Northern Ireland businesses will have to pay them.

The charges include sexual communication with children and blackmail.Cameron Mullen, of Claragh Hill Drive, Kilrea, appeared at Dungannon Magistrates’ Court on Saturday, via video link from Antrim custody suite.

An application for bail was made but was refused by a judge on the grounds that he considered the defendant “extremely dangerous”.

Two alleged victimsThe police arrested Mr Mullen on suspicion of a number of online child sex offences in Toome on Friday.

The alleged offences relate to two separate child victims.

Speaking at Dungannon Magistrates’ Court, on Saturday, police said they could connect the defendant to the charges.

Charges heard included intentionally communicating with a person under 16 with the communication being sexual, possessing an indecent photograph of a child, inciting a child under 18 years to engage in a sexual activity and making an unwarranted demand of money from a child.

Mr Mullen spoke only to confirm his name, his date of birth and that he understood the charges.

The court heard that the police had received a report from the mother of a boy who had been contacted by the defendant and had been sent sexual messages.

The court also heard that police were subsequently contacted by the mother of another boy that he had been sent sexually explicit images by the defendant.

While acknowledging that it was a “very serious” matter, a defence solicitor made an application for bail.

The solicitor pointed out that the Mr Mullen had provided his phone to police with the relevant passcodes and that there was no issue finding a bail address.

Police opposed the bail stating that he was a risk to public safety, particularly for “young vulnerable members of society”.

Police added that if granted bail, they believed the defendant would likely commit further offences by using the internet to contact children.

The judge said that Mr Mullen was not a suitable candidate for bail as the matters raised were “potentially devastatingly damaging for young people”.

He, therefore, rejected bail and added that “somebody like this is not fit to walk around with the rest of us, quite frankly”.

The case is due to be heard again at Dungannon Court on 22 January.

He faces a number of charges including attempted murder, false imprisonment and possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life.

The Northern Ireland Ambulance Service said it received a 999 call on Monday evening after reports of an incident in the Fairview Avenue area of Newtownabbey.

It was believed that the officer’s personal protection weapon was used, and the injuries sustained are not thought to be life threatening.

The man is due to appear before Belfast Magistrates’ Court on Saturday, police have said.

A separate warning for snow and ice comes into force from 15:00 GMT on Tuesday and expires at midday on Wednesday.

A number of schools have closed because of the weather.Much colder conditions are than expected on Tuesday night with temperatures likely to fall to around -5C or -6C in inland areas.

This will make for a widespread sharp frost as well as icy patches, possibly leading to a more difficult morning commute on Wednesday.

The PSNI urged road users to exercise caution due to icy roads throughout Northern Ireland and some bus services have been affected.

Across the UK, flooding and heavy snow have caused chaos in some areas with major incidents being declared in Lincolnshire and Leicestershire.

Despite the weather Charmaine McNally and Cahill Quinn were out walking their dog Fozzie in Claudy.

“It has to be done,” said Cahill.

Meanwhile, in the Republic of Ireland, thousands of customers are still without water and power as the wintry weather continues to grip much of the country.

A status Orange warning – the second highest level – has been issued for low temperatures and ice.

Irish weather service, Met Éireann, is expecting extremely cold conditions with lying snow.

It is warning of severe frost and ice, travel disruption, and animal welfare concerns as the cold may affect livestock and outdoor animals.

The warning, which covers much of the Republic of Ireland, runs from 20:00 local time on Tuesday tonight until 10:00 on Wednesday.

Four pedestrians were involved in the crash but no other injuries were reported.Mrs Hogg Moore was pronounced deceased at the scene on Thursday evening, while her husband’s death was announced on Friday morning.A vigil was held on Friday on Blanchardstown Road North, west Dublin at the spot where the husband and wife were killed.A Garda (Irish police officer) told the court on Monday the details of Mr Halpin’s arrest on Thursday evening at Blanchardstown Garda station, Irish broadcaster RTÉ said.He told the court that Mr Halpin made no reply when the charges were put to him.A solicitor for Mr Halpin told judge Michele Finan that no application for bail would be made at this time and his client would not be requiring any medical attention.

The judge remanded Mr Halpin into custody to appear again on Friday.