By South China Morning Post | Created at 2025-03-12 07:28:25 | Updated at 2025-03-12 12:42:44
5 hours ago
The European Union and United States rekindled a years-old trade war on Wednesday, when Brussels retaliated strongly against President Donald Trump’s tariffs on steel and aluminium with sweeping duties of its own.
After the US reinstated 2018’s tariffs on the metals from around the world, increased the rate on aluminium products from 10 per cent to 25 per cent, and extended their scope to cover everything from cookware and window frames to gym equipment and part-metal furniture, Europe hit back immediately.
It unfroze duties on symbolic American goods including Harley-Davidson motorcycles, Florida orange juice, Kentucky bourbon and Levi’s jeans, which had been calibrated during Trump’s first presidency to penalise US states seen to be politically important to the Republican president.
The European Commission also announced a swathe of new duties, covering industrial and agricultural products that will be imposed mid-April after consulting the bloc’s 27 member states. In total, the retaliation will cover goods worth €26 billion (US$28.3 billion), roughly mirroring the US$26 billion covered by Trump’s duties.
The tit-for-tat tariff blitz sunk the transatlantic relationship to new lows, and comes as US allies across the world are questioning whether Washington is still a trusted partner. Other long-time allies including Australia, Canada and South Korea also stand to lose out from the duties.
After Trump declined to offer Australian steel producers an exemption to the tariffs they enjoyed during his first term, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said it was “not a friendly act”.
