US President Donald Trump said on Thursday he would put a 200% wine tariff on all wines and other alcoholic products coming out of EU countries if the bloc did not remove its tariff on whiskey.
“The European Union, one of the most hostile and abusive taxing and tariffing authorities in the World, which was formed for the sole purpose of taking advantage of the United States, has just put a nasty 50% Tariff on Whisky,” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social.
“If this Tariff is not removed immediately, the US 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 US”
Trump has pledged to impose more tariffs after his latest move to introduce import taxes on steel and aluminium entering the US prompted retaliation from the European Union (EU) and Canada.
Trump said that “of course” he would respond to the countermeasures, repeating his warning to reveal “reciprocal” tariffs next month on countries around the world.
“Whatever they charge us with, we’re charging them,” he said.
The threat marked a further escalation of a trade war which has rattled financial markets amid concerns over the impact on the economies and consumers in many countries around the world, including the US.
On Wednesday, Trump moved forward with a plan to widen US tariffs on steel and aluminium, imposing a blanket duty of 25% and ending exemptions that the US had previously granted for shipments from some countries.
That followed an order earlier this month that raised levies on Chinese imports into the US to at least 20%.
Trump has also threatened tariffs – which are taxes applied to goods as they enter a country – on a range of more specific items, including copper, lumber and cars.
Leaders in Canada and Europe called the new metals taxes unjustified and struck back with their own tariffs on a range of US products.
Other countries that are key US suppliers of metals, including the UK, Australia, Mexico and Brazil, held off on any immediate retaliation.
“Like everybody else, I’m disappointed to see global tariffs in relation to steel and aluminium but we will take a pragmatic approach,” said UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer.
“We are…negotiating a deal which covers and includes tariffs if we succeed. But we will keep all options on the table.”