European Commission head Jean-Claude Juncker warned President Trump that Europe will respond to his tariffs with reciprocal measures, blasting the U.S. tariffs of 25 percent on steel and 10 percent on aluminum as stupid.
In a statement to The Economist, Juncker said that we can also do stupid, seemingly warning that the European Union (EU) could pass trade measures designed to hurt the U.S. economy.
Trump announced Thursday that his administration was officially implementing tariffs targeting steel and aluminum imports in an effort to save America’s faltering steel industry, a major campaign promise that drew praise from union groups such as the AFL-CIO but harsh criticism from House and Senate Republicans.
France regrets announcements of @realDonaldTrump on steel & aluminum tariffs. There are only losers in trade war, Le Maire tweeted Thursday.
With our EU partners, we will assess consequences on our industries and agree appropriate response, he added.
If they try to make an exemption for one of our member states, it means the EU as a whole, European Commission Vice President Jyrki Katainen said Thursday.