Trump's customs dictation: EU and China in economic shock!

Trump's customs dictation: EU and China in economic shock!

Vienna, Österreich - On April 9, 2025 at midnight American times, which corresponds to 6:01 a.m. CEST, US President Donald Trump put the second stage of his country-specific special tariffs into force. The new tariffs, which are 20 percent for the entire European Union, are part of a comprehensive package of measures that also hits China with an unsurpassable customs duty of 104 percent. Trump announced the plans in the Rosengarten of the White House under the motto "Day of Liberation" and confirmed the flat -rate import duties from ten percent in April 7 to goods from all countries. However, economists have expressed concerns about the calculation bases of the tariffs and criticize incorrect assumptions about the country list.

The announcement of the new tariffs was accompanied by a strong protest from the international community. Numerous countries, including China, have already announced retaliation measures. The Chinese Ministry of Commerce described Trump's measures as mistakes and announced counter-duties on US goods. While Trump China made an ultimatum to take back these counter -tariffs, the situation between the two largest economies in the world continued to come. Trump's spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt announced that the tariffs were raised to Chinese imports to over 104 percent, which should cause considerable faults in the trade relationships.

reactions from the European Union

The European Union plans to respond to US products in the form of retaliation tariffs to react to the American tariffs. According to reports, there could be about 25 percent tariffs on various European products, while some products such as bourbon whiskey and dairy products were canceled from the list. The EU has its sights on US imports worth around $ 26 billion and has also announced costly tariffs on goods worth around 22.1 billion euros.

In order to counter the economic threat that represent the new tariffs, EU countries could bundle their interests and coordinate them through possible product groups and customs sets. These retaliation duties could come into force in mid -May 2025. At the same time, the EU offers the United States' freedom of duty for cars and industrial goods, but an offer that Trump rejected while it demanded more energy purchases from the USA.

consequences for the economy

experts warn of the far -reaching negative effects that could have a customs conflict between the United States and the EU. A current analysis shows that not only the direct exporters are affected, but also companies that provide raw materials and components. Simulations of global supply chains could help to estimate the economic consequences. The forecasts indicate that a flat rate of 25 percent could reduce EU exports to the United States by about half in the USA. Key industries such as the pharmaceutical industry, transport equipment and the automotive industry would be particularly affected.

economic studies show that the real gross domestic product of the EU could drop by an average of 0.25 percent, while Germany has to expect a decline of around 0.33 percent. In order to counteract this loss, the EU could plan a strategy that includes deeper trade relationships with free trade partners such as Canada and Japan. Such steps would help to reduce the dependency on US demand and to secure long-term economic profits.

Overall, the escalation of the trade conflict between the USA and the EU is a sign of fragile international trade relationships and could have far -reaching consequences for the global economy. While the markets stabilized after initial losses, it remains to be seen how the situation will develop in the coming weeks.

For more information see: vienna.at href = "https://www.sueddeutsche.de/wirtschaft/usa-eu-zoelle-handelskonflikt-li.3233538"> sueddeutsche.de , diw.de .