Countries around the world fought back Friday against President Donald Trump’s decision to slap tariffs on steel and aluminum imports, announcing retaliatory countermeasures and warning that the U.S. plan will hurt U.S. consumers.
French President Emmanuel Macron said in a statement Friday that he told Trump in a phone call that the new U.S. tariffs on European, Mexican and Canadian goods are illegal and a “mistake.” Macron pledged the riposte would be “firm” and “proportionate” and in line with World Trade Organization rules.
Germany’s Volkswagen, Europe’s largest automaker, warned that the decision could start a trade war that no side would win. The European Union and China said they will deepen ties on trade and investment as a result.
“This is stupid. It’s counterproductive,” former British trade minister Francis Maude told the BBC.
“Any government that embarks on a protectionist path inflicts the most damage on itself,” he added.
Macron warned that “economic nationalism leads to war. This is exactly what happened in the 1930s.”
Trump’s move makes good on a his campaign promise to crack down on trading partners that he claims exploit poorly negotiated trade agreements to run up big trade surpluses with the United States. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross says the tariffs – 25 percent on imported steel, 10 percent on aluminum from Canada, Mexico and the European Union – take effect Friday.
