Swiss companies bemoan the loss of a reliable partner, and called the 32 percent tariff “incomprehensible.”

Of all the countries that expected to be immune to President Trump’s tariffs, Switzerland was at the top of the list.

The tiny Alpine nation, famous for its political neutrality, fine chocolates and precision watches, had eliminated industrial tariffs recently on all imports, including American goods. It has kept the European Union at arm’s length to avoid entanglement in trans-Atlantic trade fights. Swiss companies generate half a million jobs in the United States.

So when Mr. Trump imposed double-digit tariffs on Wednesday, no one was more surprised than the Swiss. Compounding the situation was that no one knew the exact amount: 31 percent or 32 percent. The White House and the U.S. Trade Representative published different numbers, and even the government in Bern was not clear.

“The U.S.A. has relied on its own calculations, which Switzerland cannot comprehend,”

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