Wall Street stocks tumbled early Friday after fresh tariff threats by President Donald Trump against the European Union.
Trump, in an explosive social media post, announced crippling tariffs of 50 percent on Europe starting June 1.
The president took to Truth Social to accuse the EU of being ‘very difficult to deal with’ and ‘taking advantage’ of the United States.
About 25 minutes into trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was already down 1 percent. The S&P 500 immediately dropped more than that.
Trump’s new threats revived investor concerns about his trade policies after a recent deal with Britain and a tariffs truce with China.
‘All the optimism over trade deals wiped out in minutes – seconds, even,’ said Fawad Razaqzada, market analyst at StoneX.
On social media Trump slammed estimates of a $250,000,000 trade deficit between the U.S. and Europe every year, adding it’s ‘totally unacceptable.’
‘Our discussions with them are going nowhere!’ he proclaimed before threatening to slap a ‘straight 50 percent tariff’ on the EU.
‘There is no tariff if the product is built or manufactured in the United States,’ he added, giving European countries a week to transform their manufacturing processes.
That tariff would slap EU members – which include some of the nation’s closest traditional military and economic allies – with a bigger tariff than the one Trump has imposed on China.
After initially hiking tariffs on Beijing to over 100 percent he has reduced the steepest to 30 percent.
Trump’s attack on the EU came shortly after he tore into Apple, following a White House meeting this week with the CEO of the tech giant, once again blasting its manufacturing strategy.
He wrote on Truth Social: ‘I have long ago informed Tim Cook of Apple that I expect their iPhones that will be sold in the United States of America will be manufactured and built in the United States, not India, or anyplace else.’
‘If that is not the case, a Tariff of at least 25% must be paid by Apple to the U.S. Thank your for your attention to this matter!’
Donald Trump is threatening new crippling tariffs on the European Union after trade negotiations have gone south
Trump’s stunning market-changing missives came hours after he dined with top investors in his $STRUMP meme coin during a lavish dinner at his northern Virginia golf club.
Guests were treated to filet mignon and warm lava cake after Trump arrived himself on a military helicopter.
But the White House refused to divulge the guest list amid protests and ethics watchdogs calling it a conflict of interest.
Following Trump’s morning social media messages S&P futures were down 1.5 percent before markets opened in New York. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures also tanked.
The EU declined to comment on Trump’s tariff threat, saying it would wait for a scheduled phone call between EU trade chief Maros Sefcovic and U.S. trade representative Jamieson Greer set for later Friday.
Trump’s EU attack also followed reports that Greenland had inked a deal with a Danish-French consortium, Greenland Anorthosite Mining (GAM), to extract anorthosite, which is critical to the production of aluminum.
Trump, since his election, has described the U.S. acquiring Greenland as an imperative.
The president has long stressed the revenue-raising prospects of tariffs, but such taxes, if imposed, would lead to substantial jumps in what Americans pay for European products, according to multiple studies.
Top EU exports to the U.S. include pharmaceuticals, cars, machinery, petroleum oils, medical instruments, alcohols including beer, wine and spirits, car parts, electrical appliances, and chemicals.
All could see jumps once the June tariffs take effect, even as the White House has been trumpeting a drop in inflation on food, fuel and other goods.
‘We urge the U.S. and EU to continue negotiations to get distilled spirits back to zero-zero tariffs, which will benefit the U.S. hospitality sector and American distilleries,’ said Chris Swonger, CEO of the Distilled Spirits Council Friday, in a statement that revealed concerns of potential reciprocal action.
‘U.S. distillers recently breathed a huge sigh of relief when the EU chose not to impose a 50% tariff on American Whiskey in the steel and aluminum dispute. The EU’s action gave U.S. distillers a glimmer of hope that the U.S. and EU could find common ground and avoid any additional tariff escalation.’
Top European exporters to the U.S. include Germany, Ireland, Italy, France, and the Netherlands.
Trump’s new threat to the EU comes weeks after he struck an emergency trade deal with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer to ‘save’ the car industry.
The deal, which President Trump said was only possible ‘because of Brexit’, cuts U.S. tariffs on cars imported from the UK from 25 per cent to 10 for the first 100,000 vehicles.
Ministers had feared that leading car makers were preparing to cut thousands of jobs unless the tariffs were reduced.
Trump’s new threat comes weeks after he struck an emergency trade deal with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer to ‘save’ the car industry
Guests posted photos on social media of Trump’s Thursday night dinner at his Virginia golf club
Protesters outside of Trump’s golf club
The deal was the first struck since President Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’ tariffs stunned the world last month.
Those tariffs caused massive market drops before Trump intervened with a 90-day ‘pause.’
Trump said the speed of the deal with the UK was only possible because of Britain’s status outside the EU.