Donald Trump has threatened a 200% tariff on wine and champagne from EU countries, in the latest threat of escalation in the global trade war started by the US president against the country’s biggest trading partners.
Trump said in a post on Thursday on his Truth Social platform that the tariffs on all alcoholic products from the bloc would be retaliation for a “nasty” 50% levy on bourbon whiskey announced by the EU.
The EU’s action against bourbon whiskey – due to come into force on 1 April – was itself part of a €26bn response to Trump’s 25% tariffs on steel and aluminium imports, which came into effect on Wednesday.
Trump claims the US’s trading partners have taken advantage of the US, and that tariffs will help him to bring back jobs – a theory that is roundly rejected by most mainstream economists.
The tariffs on the EU, Canada, Mexico, and China – and those imposed in retaliation – threaten to tip the US economy into recession, and Trump has admitted there may be a “period of transition” while businesses start producing more in the US.
The White House has so far shrugged off the concerns of investors, after his tariff announcements were greeted with heavy stock market sell-offs that have wiped out all of the share price gains since his election in November.
Despite starting the trade war, Trump appeared to be infuriated by the EU’s retaliatory measures.
He wrote: “If this Tariff is not removed immediately, the U.S. will shortly place a 200% Tariff on all WINES, CHAMPAGNES, & ALCOHOLIC PRODUCTS COMING OUT OF FRANCE AND OTHER E.U. REPRESENTED COUNTRIES.
“This will be great for the Wine and Champagne businesses in the U.S.,” he added.
The US already circumvents the protected geographical origin rules on European products – American supermarkets are full of US-made imitations of champagne and other delicacies such as parmesan and gorgonzola.
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European shares fell on Thursday, amid concerns over the impact of a trade war. France’s Cac 40 index gave up morning gains to fall by 0.3%, while Germany’s Dax index fell by 0.6%.
Trump also repeated a longstanding criticism of the EU, that the trading bloc “was formed for the sole purpose of taking advantage of the United States”, calling it “one of the most hostile and abusive taxing and tariffing authorities in the world”.
Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission, the EU’s executive, said on Wednesday that trade between Europe and the US “brought prosperity and security to millions of people, and trade has created millions of jobs on both sides of the Atlantic”.
