Trump threatens tariffs again, targeting the EU and Apple

Donald Trump launched a renewed attack on global trade on Friday, threatening new tariffs against the European Union (EU) and also targeting a company, Apple, for the first time, after several weeks of calm in his tariff wars . These announcements, via his Truth Social network, immediately dragged down European stock markets, particularly luxury and automotive stocks in Paris, and weighed down the opening of Wall Street.

In a message, the US president expressed his impatience with the ongoing trade negotiations with the EU, which he said were "going nowhere." "The EU, which was created primarily to take advantage of the US from a trade perspective, is very difficult to deal with," he wrote. "I recommend imposing 50% tariffs on the EU, starting June 1. There are no tariffs on products made in the United States."

Donald Trump also denounced, indiscriminately, "trade barriers, VAT, ridiculous sanctions against companies, non-tariff barriers, currency manipulation, unjustified and unfair prosecutions against American companies, which have led to a trade deficit of more than $250 million per year, which is completely unacceptable." The European Commission declined to comment, with a spokesperson pointing out that a telephone conversation had been scheduled for Friday, before Donald Trump's announcement, between Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic and the White House Trade Representative (USTR), Jamieson Greer.

The US president also targeted a company for the first time, and an American one at that, threatening Apple with a "at least 25%" surcharge if the company did not manufacture its iPhones in the United States . "I have long informed Apple's Tim Cook that I expect iPhones sold in the United States to be manufactured and built in the United States, not in India or elsewhere. If this is not the case, Apple will have to pay tariffs of at least 25% in the United States," he wrote, also on his social network. During the presentation of the company's latest results in early May, Tim Cook had said that he expected "the majority of iPhones sold in the United States" during the current quarter to come from India. At the opening of Wall Street, Apple was down 2.60%.

Daniel Ives, an analyst at Wedbush, said producing iPhones in the United States is a "fairy tale that is not feasible." It would "raise the price of iPhones to around $3,500, which is not realistic, and it would take five to ten years to bring production back home," he added in a note.

The trade deficit between the United States and its main trading partners has been the subject of particular attention by Donald Trump since his return to the White House. The deficit with the EU was projected to be $235 billion in 2024, according to USTR data. But the European Commission disputes this data, citing a figure of €150 billion (around $160 billion) for goods alone, and only €50 billion when the US trade surplus in services is included.

The United States exports software and communications services to the EU, while Europe exports automobiles, machine tools, and transportation equipment, particularly aircraft.