Trump Hits Pause on 50% Tariff Hammer—EU Buys Time With Diplomatic Jiu-Jitsu

Trade tensions take a breather as the White House delays its tariff decision—because nothing says ’global economic stability’ like eleventh-hour negotiations.

EU negotiators pull off a temporary Houdini act, dodging what could’ve been a 50% gut punch to trade flows. Meanwhile, Wall Street analysts pretend to care about macroeconomic impacts while secretly repositioning their portfolios.

Classic geopolitical theater: high stakes, last-minute reprieves, and the usual suspects scrambling to protect their bottom lines. Just another day in the casino of international trade.

The 50% tariffs are here to stay, nonetheless

Last Friday, the president warned he WOULD raise the tariffs to 50 percent if he did not see faster progress. He accused the bloc of dragging its feet on talks and of targeting U.S. firms with lawsuits and extra regulations.

The higher tariff threat would affect about $321 billion in U.S.-EU goods trade. According to calculations by Bloomberg Economics, it could shave nearly 0.6 percent off U.S. gross domestic product and lift prices by more than 0.3 percent.

In response to Trump’s warning, the EU last week put forward a fresh trade offer, and its trade chief, Maroš Šefčovič, spoke by phone on Friday with his U.S. counterpart, Jamieson Greer. That move was part of Brussels’ effort to show willingness to compromise ahead of the looming tariff deadline.

Also on Friday, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Fox News, “I would hope that this would light a fire under the EU,” referring to the higher tariff threat.

A WHITE House official, speaking on condition of anonymity, complained that the EU had not shown the same level of engagement as other trading partners. “We just haven’t seen anything material come out of the EU,” the official said. The Treasury and Commerce departments did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

“I’m not looking for a deal,” Trump said at the White House on Friday. “We’ve set the deal — it’s at 50 percent.”

If the 50 percent tariffs were to take effect on June 1, Brussels would have to decide whether to retaliate. The EU has already readied a €21 billion package of counter-tariffs on American goods such as maize, wheat, motorcycles, and clothing. It is also weighing an additional list worth €95 billion that would target items including Boeing aircraft, cars, and bourbon whiskey.

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