The EU and China warn they will respond to Trump: "There will be immense consequences."

Brussels/BeijingUrsula von der Leyen has raised her tone this morning against the White House after Donald Trump has detailed the global tariff increase, and has warned that the trade crisis between the United States and the European Union could have "immense consequences." "The world economy will suffer enormously, and uncertainty will soar and protectionism will increase," predicted the president of the European Commission in a press conference in Samarkand (Uzbekistan). Authorities in China, which is the power most affected by the White House tariffs, have also expressed a similar sentiment. It has already said that it does not intend to stand idly by, although it maintains open bridges of dialogue with Washington.

The president of the European Commission has also warned the Trump administration that it does not intend to stand idly by if it continues to raise import tariffs and has assured that the European Union is "prepared to respond" to attacks coming from WashingtonIn this regard, Von der Leyen recalled that they are already "finalizing the first package of countermeasures in response to the tariffs" on imports that the US applied to steel and aluminum from the European Union, and that they are "preparing future countermeasures." "We will protect the interests of our companies if negotiations fail," the German conservative added.

However, the president of the European Commission wants to keep her hand extended to the White House until the last moment to negotiate and reach an agreement that avoids the start of a trade war between the EU power and the United States. "It is not too late to address problems through negotiations," said Von der Leyen, who urges Trump to abandon "confrontation" and sit at the table. To this end, Brussels has announced that the European Commissioner for Trade, Maroš Šefčovič, will resume contacts with US authorities this Friday.

It's worth remembering that the EU has several tools to counterattack the US and try to dissuade them from raising tariffs on European products. The most important legal mechanism available to Brussels is the so-called anti-coercion instrument, which allows for a fast-track response to the White House and, for example, increases customs duties, restricts imports or exports, excludes certain countries from participating in public tenders, or, among other things, suspends international obligations regarding intellectual property, which would particularly affect large American technology companies.

In this regard, French government spokesperson Sophie Primas has stated that the EU "is prepared for a trade war" and that it will attack large American technology companies. In the same vein, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz harshly criticized the Trump administration's decision to increase tariffs and stated that European powers intend to "respond bravely, unitedly, and proportionately."

In total, EU sources estimate that 70% of their exports will be affected by US tariffs, impacting sales of products worth a total of €290 billion. They also estimate that the Trump administration could collect an additional €81 billion, compared to €7 billion previously from EU import duties. "The difference is very large," the same sources admit.

China urges Trump to sit down and negotiate.

China's strategy is similar to that of the European Union, and although it has asked the United States to cancel the tariffs and threatened them with countermeasures, it has left the door open to negotiation channels with Trump. In this regard, Beijing has not specified its retaliation in the form of new tariffs of 34% on Chinese products, which are in addition to the 20% tariffs previously adopted. In total, Trump is imposing a 54% tariff on Chinese imports, the hardest hit by the tariffs.

China called Washington's decision an "act of intimidation," and Foreign Affairs spokesperson Guo Jiakun warned that "protectionism is a dead end." He also emphasized that trade disputes are resolved through negotiation. However, China insists that its economy has room to absorb the tariff hike, but the reality is that a 54% increase will inevitably have a significant impact. Some analysts estimate that it could reduce the Asian giant's economic growth by about 2.5 percentage points.

The European Union Chamber of Commerce in China has warned that Trump's policy creates "great uncertainty" and will challenge its members' supply chains. As a result, many companies may choose to look for suppliers in other countries to alleviate tariffs.

On the other hand, the US administration has not hesitated to punish good trading partners like Vietnam with a 46% tariff increase. In Laos, for example, the rates to be applied will be 48%, and in Cambodia, 49%. All three countries have been the destinations for relocating Chinese companies trying to circumvent Washington's tariffs by exporting from third countries.

In this context, Trump's policy of punishing with its rates countries that have been traditional allies of the United States such as the EU (20%), Japan (24%), South Korea (24%) or Taiwan (32%) opens a stable window of opportunity for more commercial trade, and is presented to these markets.