SOME may dismiss criticisms of what US President Donald Trump has and hasn't done in his first 100 days in office as not particularly fair. But the 100-day benchmark has been the arbitrary standard against which the performance of modern American presidents has been gauged. And it provides an opportunity not only to judge the early successes and failures of a new White House occupant, but also to look forward to the rest of his or her term.

That exercise is even more essential when it comes to Mr Trump, who became the first president to have never served in public office before being elected, and whose stated policy agenda seemed to run contrary to the bipartisan consensus on issues such as international trade and foreign policy.

That the United States remains a global superpower and that its policies can affect the interests of other nations and, in particular, those of its military allies and trade partners, explains why what Mr Trump did or didn't do has drawn so much attention worldwide. The good news is that Mr Trump has refrained from carrying through on many of his "America First" campaign pledges and seemed to embrace a more "normal" approach on trade, immigration and national security.