Europe appears to be preparing for a trade war with the US following the threat of tariffs.
The recent announcements from the 47th Administration of the United States have put fear into the Continent. The threats by Trump to impose tariffs on the bloc have come weeks after new arrangements were made by Canada, Mexico, and Colombia.
Even so, while those threats may have been empty ones, it seems determinant of this administration that it is going to use all of its economic power as the world’s largest economy to attempt to browbeat its neighbours and (current) allies.
As Politico reported: “Trump did impose heavy tariffs during his first term in office, levying 25% on steel imports and 10% on aluminium from the EU, Canada, and Mexico. Now, after turning his attention away from Canada and Mexico.”
The Guardian reported that Trump has his sights on Europe.
It wrote: “Should Trump impose tariffs on the EU, some countries are likely to be hit harder than others. Germany has by far the most goods exports, worth €158bn (£131bn) in 2023. The Netherlands imports the most goods from the US, worth €76bn.”
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It added: “However, the proportion of exports to the US relative to total trade also varies significantly between EU member states. Ireland has by far the largest share, at more than 25%. Germany and Italy’s trade with the US is worth about 10% of their global totals, while east European nations have lower shares.”
If Europe is gathering its response, it seems to be doing so from a place of deferment. Reuters wrote the EU wants to ‘engage swiftly’ with the US government, with President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen saying that negotiations would be ‘tough’.
No word yet on whether any future trade deals will include the ceding of Greenland from Denmark.
Collateral damage, however, seems to be the way forwards. The Financial Times has reported that the EU is looking to target Big Tech by implementing its ‘anti-coercion’ instrument, That, the paper said, would allow the bloc to target US service industries.
The FT added: “The ACI allows the bloc to select from a wide range of retaliatory measures, such as revoking the protection of intellectual property rights or their commercial exploitation, for example, software downloads and streaming services. It also allows the EU to block foreign direct investment or restrict market access for banking, insurance and other financial services groups.”
