DIVISIONS AND MIXED Signs
With German shares even tumbling to the biggest weekly loss in decades, the European Union’s business director, Maros Sefcovic, said he held a “frank” two-hour contact with US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick and US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer.
” I was obvious: US tariffs are devastating, unwarranted”, Sefcovic wrote on social media. ” The EU’s committed to meaningful discussions but also prepared to defend our pursuits”.
The EU is divided on how best to reply to Trump’s taxes. Countries optimistic about retaliating and therefore raising the stakes in the conflict with the US include Ireland, Italy, Poland and the Norwegian regions.
French President Emmanuel Macron led the charge on Thursday by calling on businesses to thaw investment in the US.
However, European Finance Minister Eric Lombard after cautioned against like-for-like measures on the US taxes, warning this would also rebound on Western customers.
The US taxes may jack up the price for US buyers of everything from fruits to running boots to Apple’s iPhone. A high-end phone may cost almost US$ 2, 300 if Apple passes the expenses on to shoppers, based on estimates from Rosenblatt Securities.
China is retaliating for Trump’s tariffs on goods from the country’s No 2 market. The European Union faces a 20 per cent work.
Trump says “reciprocal” taxes are a response to restrictions put on US products, while administration authorities said the tariffs would build manufacturing jobs at home and open up trade markets worldwide, although they cautioned it may take time to see results.