Spot on. That is why most of the non-US world uses the value added during its contribution to the production of an item as the basis for revenue collection. In Europe it is called a Value-Added Tax (VAT) and in Australia it is a flat 10% Goods and Services Tax (GST).
For example, if I assemble a product and sell it for $1,000 I have to add 10% GST ($100) and remit the GST to the government. If the parts cost say $400 I have to pay my suppliers $40 extra for GST, but I get that back when squaring up with the government. My value add is $600 and the net tax on my contribution is $60. Every contributor wherever they are located only gets slugged for their bit!
Australia’s GST applies to everything with the exception of some essentials like food. It is collected by the federal government but given to the states to spend! There is no sales tax.
Private imports are normally at a 10% advantage compared with local products, because it is not worth the hassle of collecting GST on small items - around $1,000. So we actually subsidise most US imports. And we buy much more from the US than we sell to the US.
Our economists have worked out that so-called ’tariffs’ ascribed to countries are actually the ratio of trade imbalance to total trade - not actual financial imposts at all.
I agree that the world will never be the same again. Short term we are pleased the US banned our beef because the Chinese are now taking it all to replace US beef, and paying 40% more. Unintended consequencies indeed!