Trump Announces 25% Tariff on European Union Cars

Bangla Press Desk:   US President Donald Trump said on Friday he would increase tariffs on cars and trucks from the European Union to 25 per cent next week from the previously agreed 15 per cent, saying ​the bloc had not complied with its trade deal with Washington.

The move drew sharp rebukes from European politicians and trade groups, with one European economist calling on Brussels and the German government to "finally show some backbone" and ‌impose retaliatory tariffs.

"Based on the fact the European Union is not complying with our fully agreed to Trade Deal, next week I will be increasing Tariffs charged to the European Union for Cars and Trucks coming into the United States," Trump wrote in a social media post.

"It is fully understood and agreed that, if they produce Cars and Trucks in U.S.A. Plants, there will be NO TARIFF."

Trump told reporters the higher tariff would force European car makers to move production to the US more quickly.

"We have a trade deal with the European Union. They were not adhering to it. So I ​raised the tariffs on cars and trucks to 25%, that's billions of dollars coming into the United States, and it forces them to move their factory production much faster," he said at the White House.

The European Commission swiftly rejected Trump's ​claim that Brussels was not complying with last summer's trade deal and said it would keep its options open to protect EU interests if Washington breached the terms of the agreement.

Trump fired ⁠off the tariff post amid escalating tensions between the US and the EU over the war in Iran and European countries' refusal to send navies to open the Strait of Hormuz. Trump this week threatened to reduce US troop levels in Germany, Italy and ​Spain, after German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said the US was being "humiliated" by Iran in talks to end the conflict in the Middle East.

The news hit on the May 1 holiday celebrated across Europe, and coincided with the launch of the new EU-Mercosur trade deal, ​one of a number of pacts Brussels has accelerated over the past year to help offset Trump's tariffs and volatility.

SLOW IMPLEMENTATION

The Trump administration last year imposed a 25% tariff on global automotive imports under a national security trade law, but reached a separate deal with the EU in August to lower those duties to a net 15 per cent, inclusive of prior duties.

In exchange, the EU agreed to eliminate duties on US industrial goods, including autos, and accept US safety and emissions standards for vehicles. Those tariffs were part of a broader deal which saw the EU accept a nearly across-the-board 15 per cent ​US tariff rate and agree to zero out most of its own duties on US goods. The deal was unpopular in Europe, but EU leaders argued it would insulate firms against further hikes.

However, implementation has been slow. EU lawmakers advanced legislation in March to ​implement the tariff reductions, but the process is not expected to be completed before June, as EU governments and the European Parliament negotiate final texts.

"President Trump's behavior is unacceptable," Bernd Lange, the chair of the European Parliament's international trade committee, told Reuters after the surprise tariff post.