World financial leaders pleaded for an endorsement of free trade on Monday amid concerns over U.S. metals tariffs and looming trade sanctions on China, but Trump administration officials said they would not sacrifice U.S. national interests.
The Buenos Aires meeting of finance ministers and central bank governors of the world's 20 biggest economies was meant to discuss a brightening economic outlook, the future of work, cryptocurrencies like bitcoin, and corporate tax avoidance.
But trade dominated the discussions after President Donald Trump on March 8 announced global tariffs of 25 percent on steel and 10 percent on aluminum.