‘Effective immediately’: US opens new fronts in trade war, targeting Brazil, Argentina and France
- US President Donald Trump announced plans to reimpose tariffs on steel and aluminium from Brazil and Argentina, hitting back at what he called their ‘unfair’ policies
- The Trump administration is also proposing tariffs on up to US$2.4 billion worth of French imports in retaliation for France’s tax on American tech giants
The administration said the moves were necessary because US trading partners were acting unfairly to disadvantage both the country’s traditional economic pillars as well as its best hopes for future prosperity.
In a predawn tweet, Trump said he was ordering new tariffs on steel and aluminium from Brazil and Argentina to counter what he called a “massive devaluation of their currencies” at the expense of American farmers.
The unexpected announcement upends the Latin American countries’ 2018 agreement with Trump to accept quotas on their shipments to the US in place of the import taxes.
Hours later, Robert Lighthizer, the president’s chief trade negotiator, released the results of a five-month investigation that concluded a French digital services tax discriminated against American internet companies and should be met with tariffs of up to 100 per cent on US$2.4 billion in products such as cheese, yogurt, sparkling wine and make-up.
The proposal, which awaits a presidential decision, threatens to intensify simmering transatlantic trade friction, coming with Trump already accusing European car makers of enjoying government protection from American competition.
The French tax “discriminates against US companies, is inconsistent with prevailing principles of international tax policy, and is unusually burdensome for affected US companies,” Lighthizer said in a statement.