US President Donald Trump threatened to impose a 200 percent tariff on wine, champagne and other alcoholic beverages from France and elsewhere in the EU, the latest escalation in a growing transatlantic trade war.
Trump in a social media post on Thursday said that he would move forward with the import duties if Brussels follows through with a tax on US whiskey exports, a measure aimed at retaliating against Trump’s steel and aluminum tariffs that went into effect on Wednesday.
“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,” Trump said about the pending levies on bourbon. “This will be great for the Wine and Champagne businesses in the U.S.”
Photo: AFP
Trump on Thursday said he would not repeal tariffs on steel and aluminum that took effect this week, nor back off plans for sweeping reciprocal tariffs on global trading partners set to start as soon as April 2.
Trump is “escalating the trade war he chose to unleash,” French Minister Delegate for Foreign Trade and French Nationals Abroad Laurent Saint-Martin wrote on X. “We will not give in to threats and will always protect our industries.”
The US president on Thursday again aired his grievances against the EU, this time citing its treatment of US tech companies.
“They’re suing Google, they’re suing Facebook, they’re suing all of these companies, and they’re taking billions of dollars out of American companies, many more than the ones I just mentioned. And I guess they’re using it to run Europe or something. I don’t know what they’re using it for, but they treat us very badly,” Trump said.
In response to Trump’s metals tariffs, the EU is planning countermeasures with duties on as much as 26 billion euros (US$28.20 billion) worth of US products.
The EU would also immediately begin consultations with member states, with the aim of adopting the additional lists of agricultural and industrial goods subject to tariffs as high as 25 percent by mid-April.
Meanwhile, US importers, distributors and retailers selling French champagne and Italian wines said the tariffs on European alcoholic drinks would hit them hard.
Mary Taylor, owner of European wine importer Mary Taylor Wine, said that she has 16 shipping containers of wine in transit — an amount that would wipe out her entire net worth if 200 percent tariffs were applied.
Under US law, alcohol producers cannot sell directly to consumers, bars or restaurants. Instead, producers must sell to importers or distributors, who sell products to bars and restaurants.
That means European wines are mostly imported by about 4,000 small US importers and distributors, said Ben Aneff, president of the US Wine Trade Alliance, which advocates against tariffs on wine.
It is US businesses that have to pay the levies, Aneff said, adding that US retailers and restaurants would also suffer if suppliers hike prices to cover the costs.
“A 200% tariff on imported wine would... destroy US businesses,” he said. “It would do significantly more economic damage here in the US than it would in Europe.”
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