For nations apprehensive that their commerce surpluses with America put them within the firing line for tariffs, Donald Trump has an answer: purchase American gasoline. This month Mr Trump declared that his nation’s deficit with the European Union would “disappear simply and shortly” if the bloc did solely that. He and his cupboard have pressed different allies, together with India and the Philippines, to extend their purchases of American liquefied pure gasoline (LNG). Scott Bessent, Mr Trump’s treasury secretary, has sought to steer Japan, South Korea and Taiwan to put money into an enormous LNG challenge in Alaska and commit themselves to buying a “substantial portion” of its output.