Trump threatens EU goods, Apple iPhones with new tariffs

English , International - بین الاقوامی , Snippets , / Friday, May 23rd, 2025

Download this post as PDF

rki.news
U.S. President Donald Trump has sharply escalated his trade stance, announcing a proposed 50% tariff on all European Union imports starting June 1, 2025, citing stalled negotiations with Brussels. “Our discussions with them are going nowhere!” Trump posted on social media Friday.
In a further blow to global markets, Trump also threatened a 25% import tax on Apple iPhones not manufactured in the U.S. “I have long ago informed Tim Cook of Apple that iPhones sold in America must be manufactured in the United States not in India or anywhere else,” Trump said, warning that tariffs would apply otherwise.
Market reactions were immediate: the S&P 500 dropped 1%, Germany’s DAX fell 1.7%, and Apple shares slid more than 2%. Trump’s latest salvo follows a prior 25% duty on foreign-made cars introduced in April.
The threat comes just ahead of U.S.-EU trade talks. Aslak Berg, a trade expert from the Centre for European Reform, described Trump’s message as a pressure tactic. “There is no executive order yet,” he noted. “The EU is unlikely to yield under threats.”
Trump blamed the EU for the U.S. trade deficit, accusing the bloc of being “formed to take advantage” of America especially over German auto exports.
Volvo CEO Hakan Samuelsson warned that proposed tariffs would raise consumer prices and restrict U.S. access to European-made EVs like the EX30, produced in Belgium. “It cannot be in either side’s interest to shut down trade,” he said.
Meanwhile, Apple’s shift of iPhone production to India and iPad manufacturing to Vietnam has reignited tensions, despite recent tariff exemptions on electronics.