 "Donald Trump walks on the day of his remarks on tariffs in the Rose Garden at the White House in Washington. Trump announces universal 10 per cent tariffs on all imports into the US will go into effect on 5 April. Reuters")
US President Donald Trump described the European Union as one of America’s worst trade partners as he slapped 20 per cent tariffs on the bloc on Wednesday. Trump unveiled high tariffs on around 60 nations to mark “Liberation Day” in the United States. Move led to the comeback of the US trade barriers that haven’t been high since the Great Depression in 1930s.
In his address, Trump said that he was declaring a national emergency to impose a 10 per cent tariff on imports from all countries. Apart from this, he imposed individualised additional tariffs on approximately 60 countries which he believes are the worst trade offenders.
“For decades, our country has been looted, pillaged, raped and plundered by nations near and far, both friend and foe alike,” the president said while standing on his podium at the White House Rose Garden. “Now we’re going to charge the European Union. They’re very tough. Very, very tough traders. You know, you think of the European Union, as very friendly. They rip us off. It’s so sad to see. It’s so pathetic,” he added.
“We are going to charge them 20 per cent,” the president said. Following the address, a White House official noted that the 10 per cent tariff would take effect early the morning of April 5 and the additional tariff on the worst offenders on April 9.
EU leaders react
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni was the first EU government leader to release a statement on Trump tariffs. She went on to call it “wrong and not in the interest of either party.”
“We will do everything we can to work on an agreement with the United States to avert a trade war that would inevitably weaken the West in favour of other global players,” Meloni, who has hitherto enjoyed friendly relations with Trump, said in a Facebook post.
The Trump administration estimated that the EU charges 39 per cent of tariffs on American goods. They argued that the president slashed the figure in half, in what Trump labelled as “kind reciprocal” tariffs. The White House also called out the EU’s nontariff barriers, such as value-added tax and its tech regulations. However, the EU flatly rejected the claims that the bloc discriminated against American businesses.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsOver 70 per cent of imports to the EU are duty-free. And, on a trade-weighted basis, EU tariffs average just 2.7 per cent, according to the World Trade Organization. Before Trump announced the tariffs, the European Commission said that it would respond in one strike to Trump’s reciprocal tariffs and auto tariffs. Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is now expected to issue first reaction in the early hours of Thursday.
With inputs from agencies.