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Donald Trump has threatened a 200 per cent retaliatory tariff on alcohol imports from the EU if the bloc imposes a duty on US whiskey, in the latest salvo in his escalating trade war.
Posting on his Truth Social platform on Thursday, the US president said the move was a response to the EU’s decision to impose a “nasty” 50 per cent tariff on whiskey.
“If this Tariff is not removed immediately, the U.S. will shortly place a 200% Tariff on all WINES, CHAMPAGNES, & ALCOHOLIC PRODUCTS COMING OUT OF FRANCE AND OTHER E.U. REPRESENTED COUNTRIES. This will be great for the Wine and Champagne businesses in the U.S.,” Trump wrote.
Shares of drinks companies sank following Trump’s post. Pernod Ricard tumbled 2.9 per cent, LVMH dropped 1.7 per cent and UK-listed Diageo fell 1.8 per cent.
US equities were set to open lower on Thursday, with futures tracking the blue-chip S&P 500 down 0.3 per cent and those following the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 off 0.5 per cent.
Since his inauguration in January, Trump has imposed a series of escalating tariffs on the US’s biggest trading partners. The chaotic rollout of these levies, which has been marked by several sudden U-turns, has rattled businesses and financial markets.
Earlier this week, the US imposed tariffs of 25 per cent on all imports of steel and aluminium, ripping up several country-specific agreements that had been struck by former president Joe Biden.
The EU on Wednesday announced it would retaliate against the metal tariffs by applying duties of up to 50 per cent to $28bn of US goods, including bourbon whiskey, jeans and Harley-Davidson motorbikes, from April 1.
EU officials have said they deliberately targeted products made in the states of Republican senators in a bid to boost opposition among lawmakers to Trump’s aggressive trade measures.
