US President Donald Trump yesterday threatened to ratchet up his trade war once again, pushing for a 50 per cent tariff on European Union goods starting June 1 and warning Apple he may slap a 25pc levy on all iPhones bought by US consumers.
The twin threats, delivered via social media, roiled global markets after weeks of de-escalation had provided some reprieve.
Trump’s broadside against the EU was prompted by the White House’s belief that negotiations with the bloc are not progressing fast enough. But his sabre-rattling also marked a return to Washington’s stop-and-start trade war that has shaken markets, businesses and consumers and raised fears of a global economic downturn.
The president’s attack on Apple, meanwhile, is his latest attempt to pressure a specific company to move production to the US, following carmakers, pharmaceutical companies and chipmakers. However, the US does not mass-produce smartphones – even as US consumers buy more than 60 million phones annually – and moving production would likely increase the cost of iPhones by hundreds of dollars.
Later, Trump told reporters inside the Oval Office that his proposed tariff on Apple would also apply to “Samsung and anybody that makes that product”, apparently referring to smartphones. He also said he expected the new phone levy to be in place by the end of June.
“I’m not looking for a deal,” Trump said when asked whether he expected a deal before June 1. “We’ve set the deal – it’s at 50pc. But again, there’s no tariff if they build their plant here.”
Trump reiterated his complaint the European Union treated the US badly and restricted the US from selling cars into the EU. “And I just said, ‘It’s time that we play the game the way I know how to play the game.’”
&uuid=(email))