Heard and McDonald Islands hit by Trump tariffs despite no trade activity

Remote volcanic islands face unlikely spotlight amid US-Australia tariff drama.

A handout photo released by the Australian Antarctic Division on October 8, 2024, and taken on November 21, 2012, shows a waddle of king penguins gathered along the shores of Corinthian Bay on Heard Island, an Australian territory in the Southern Ocean. Photo by Matt Curnock/AFP

By Anna Fadiah and Hayu Andini

In a turn of global trade policy that borders on the surreal, Heard and McDonald Islands hit by Trump tariffs have unexpectedly become the subject of online satire and scientific bewilderment. These icy, uninhabited volcanic islands—home to penguins, moss, and gale-force winds—were swept up in U.S. President Donald Trump’s wide-reaching trade levies, despite having no commercial industry, infrastructure, or even human population.

When the United States imposed tariffs on a new list of goods and trading partners, Australia's most remote outposts weren’t spared. The result? A flurry of internet memes showing king penguins—perhaps the islands’ most photogenic residents—clad in business suits, briefcases in flipper, “angry” about the economic burden suddenly placed on their nonexistent exports.

But beyond the memes lies a real question: why target a place where trade is not only improbable but practically impossible?

An unlikely target in the global trade war

The Heard and McDonald Islands, located approximately 4,000 kilometers southwest of mainland Australia in the sub-Antarctic zone, are among the most isolated landmasses on Earth. Surrounded by tumultuous seas, pounded by unforgiving weather, and blanketed in snow and ash from volcanic activity, the islands are a protected Australian territory and part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

No one lives there. There are no ports, no airstrips, and no regular shipping routes. The only humans who’ve visited in recent years are a select few scientists conducting environmental research with special government permission.

So when these islands were lumped into Trump-era tariffs aimed at curbing foreign re-exports and manufacturing loopholes, eyebrows were raised.

“There is no infrastructure or commercial industry of any sort on land,” said Dr. Justine Shaw, a researcher who spent two months camped on Heard Island in 2003. “You can’t even land a boat most days. The weather is too rough, and the terrain is too unstable.”

Penguins, not products

Despite their remoteness, Heard and McDonald Islands are not barren. Their residents include colonies of king penguins, elephant seals, and rare bird species that thrive in the harsh conditions. These animals, however, are not part of any global trade circuit. Nor are the patches of moss and fragile herbs that survive the volcanic soil.

“There’s no commercial harvesting of anything. You’d have to be insane to even try,” laughed marine biologist Tom Langley, who has worked in Antarctica and the Southern Ocean. “The penguins don’t have a trade union.”

The internet had a field day. Social media exploded with fake news bulletins claiming “Penguin Trade Blocked by Trump” and “Elephant Seal Economy in Crisis.” One widely shared tweet featured a king penguin photoshopped onto Wall Street’s famous bull statue.

But jokes aside, trade analysts found themselves poring over the legal language of the tariffs to understand how such a strange inclusion occurred.

How could this happen?

One explanation is bureaucratic overreach. In the rush to implement blanket tariffs against countries suspected of facilitating third-party exports to the U.S., American trade policy may have included Australia in full—without regard for its external territories.

“In large bureaucratic documents, it’s common to apply tariffs at the country level,” explained global trade expert Mei Lin Wang. “What likely happened is that all Australian territories were treated the same, whether or not they actually participate in trade.”

Heard and McDonald, technically under Australian sovereignty, got caught in the web. But the absurdity of the situation highlights a deeper issue: the risks of sweeping policy applied without geographic nuance.

A place where science, not commerce, reigns

The islands serve as a living laboratory for environmental and climate research. Their untouched ecosystems provide a rare glimpse into how life adapts in extreme conditions. Volcanic activity, including from Big Ben volcano on Heard Island, continues to shape the islands’ topography, offering valuable data for geologists and climatologists.

“Every year that passes without human interference makes Heard and McDonald more important scientifically,” said Dr. Shaw. “They’re a benchmark for natural evolution and biodiversity.”

Australia enforces strict conservation laws in the area. Entry is highly restricted, and no commercial ventures are permitted. The idea of any goods being produced there for export to the United States is not only laughable—it’s legally impossible.

Political symbolism or simple error?

Whether the tariffs were a mistake or a gesture of political symbolism remains unclear. During Trump’s presidency, trade policy was often wielded as a tool of power projection, with symbolic gestures carrying as much weight as practical outcomes.

“Trump’s team may not have known or cared what the islands were,” said Professor Greg Harper, a political analyst at the University of Melbourne. “What mattered was putting pressure on countries perceived to be trade enablers, and if that meant penalizing penguins, so be it.”

Despite the lack of economic consequence, the incident has stirred diplomatic confusion and amusement in equal measure. Australia has not formally protested the move, perhaps seeing no point in challenging tariffs on a location with zero exports.

A reminder of how policy can go adrift

The story of Heard and McDonald Islands hit by Trump tariffs serves as a cautionary tale. In a world of interconnected economies and vast bureaucracies, even the most inhospitable places can become pawns in geopolitical strategy.

While the penguins are unlikely to notice their newfound tax liability, the episode raises broader questions about how global trade policy is crafted, reviewed, and enforced.

“If you’re going to wield tariffs like a sword, you better check you’re not swinging at ghost ships,” Professor Harper quipped.

Still no humans, just memes

To this day, no one has returned to the islands since the last scientific expedition in 2016. And unless climate change or global policy dramatically shifts, it’s unlikely that the islands will become any more hospitable to humans—or international commerce.

But for now, they remain an unlikely symbol of the excesses of trade war logic, a frozen speck on the map that briefly became a viral punchline—and a reminder that in politics, even a place without people can get caught in the storm.