Trump's Trade Dispute with Spain

A terrible partner.

US President Donald Trump isn't happy with European Union member Spain.

I don't want anything to do with Spain. Cut off all trade with Spain, please.

Trump said on Wednesday he'd ordered an immediate halt to all trade with Madrid.

It's over the country's refusal to commit to NATO's new defence spending target of 5% of GDP.

Here's some of the numbers behind their trading relationship.

Just over $26 billion worth of goods is how much the US exported to Spain last year.

That's according to the US Census Bureau.

The data further showed imports of around $21 billion.

The bureau shows the two countries have exchanged a total of around

$18 billion in both imports and exports already this year.

Spanish lender CaixaBank previously described the US as an important trading partner for Madrid,

but said Spain's exposure was relatively low.

It said in a piece published two years ago the US was the sixth most important

trading partner for the country. CaixaBank said the US made up just

under 5% of the total sales of Spanish goods abroad two years ago.

That's well below the weight of the US market in other EU giants like Italy, Germany and

France.

The lender showed Spain mostly exports industrial machinery, chemical products and electrical

equipment to the US.

Such goods made up around 60 per cent of exports, with food products well behind that number.

Wednesday's announcement is the second time Trump has told US Treasury Secretary Scott

Besant to stop commerce with Spain.

But trade between the two countries continued normally after his first such promise in March.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez's office said it was treating Trump's statement as

business as usual and it didn't intend to change the quote excellent relations it enjoyed

with Washington.