Their intervention has come as Trump has proposed the introduction 25 per cent tariffs on steel imports and 10 per cent tariffs on aluminium on the grounds of “national security”.
The tariffs will hurt far more Americans than they will help, Chicago Booth University’s IGM Forum of 43 economists has warned.
University of Chicago professor Austan Goolsbee described the tariffs as the economic equivalent of “punching yourself in the face”.
Nobel prizewinner Richard Thaler said: “In net we want more trade, not less.
“This is unlikely to help and runs the risk of starting a trade war.”
Yale University professor Christopher Udry said: “It will improve some Americans welfare, and hurt many others.
“On balance it’s a very costly way to help those who gain.”
Harvard University professor Eric Maskin compared Trump’s tariffs to the Smoot-Hawley tariffs in 1930s which received blame for worsening the Great Depression.
He wrote: “I thought we had learned our lesson with Smoot-Hawley.”
Meanwhile, the EU is bracing itself for a vicious trade war with the US after it was warned Donald Trump’s 25 per cent levy on steel could cost Brussels an eye-watering 400million.
The European Commission has backtracked on its original belief the US President would come around on the trade dispute after he hinted Britain would be exempt from following talks with the Prime Minister.
Brussels officials also fear a lawsuit would not stand if they tried to bring a case against the tariffs before the World Trade Organisation (WTO), an internal paper of the EU Council of Ministers reads.
Despite Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmström earlier this week putting in an urgent request to meet with American Industry Minister Wilbur Ross next week to continue negotiations.
The Commission is said to be preparing for the worst.
The tariffs on steel and aluminium will increase the price of the products of German manufacturers by €400 million, according to estimates by the German Association of Chambers of Industry and Commerce (DIHK).
This means “a major competitive disadvantage for our steel and aluminium-producing companies,” DIHK boss Eric Schweitzer said before calling on the EU to stand up to Trump on his proposal.
He added: ”Together with international partners, the EU should take a stand against the US decision at the WTO and with its own measures, which includes short-term EU protection measures in the context of the resulting damage and a complaint at the WTO.”
The EU still hopes to be exempted from the decision, ”but for now we will seek a dialogue” Chancellor Angela Merkel said.