Donald Trump delays plans to impose 50 per cent tariffs on EU

Trump announced the decision on his Truth Social platform, stating: "I received a call today from Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, requesting an extension on the June 1 deadline on the 50 per cent tariff with respect to trade and the European Union.

"I agreed to the extension — July 9, 2025 — It was my privilege to do so. The Commission President said that talks will begin rapidly."

Von der Leyen confirmed the conversation on social media platform X, describing it as a "good call" with the US president.

She added: "The EU and the US share the world's most consequential and close trade relationship," she wrote. "Europe is ready to advance talks swiftly and decisively. To reach a good deal, we would need the time until July 9."

The sudden reversal has revived hopes in Europe's industrial heartlands that Brussels can reach a deal to avert the worst of the White House's tariffs and avoid economic catastrophe.

President Trump reiterated that he had agreed to the extension as a privilege and noted that rapid trade talks would commence.

The delay marks a significant shift from Trump's position just days earlier. On Friday, the US President had warned that talks with the EU were "going nowhere" and that he was "not looking for a deal".

He had also claimed the EU was created to "screw the United States" and take advantage of America on trade.

"The European Union, which was formed for the primary purpose of taking advantage of the United States on TRADE, has been very difficult to deal with," Trump said on Friday.

At that time, he had recommended a "straight 50 per cent tariff" on EU goods to begin on 1 June.

The core of Trump's argument against the EU is that America runs a "totally unacceptable" trade deficit with the 27 member states. According to US government figures, the EU sold £443billion in goods to the US last year whilst buying £273billion.

Brussels had indicated it stood ready to retaliate against any tariffs, threatening to lock Washington into an economically damaging feud with one of its largest trade partners.

If no deal is reached and Trump makes good on his threats in July, the impact would be particularly painful for countries like Germany and Ireland.

The EU has proposed mutually cutting tariffs to zero even as the president has publicly insisted on preserving a baseline 10 per cent tax on most imports.

The markets reacted sharply to Trump's initial tariff announcement. The S&P 500 fell 1.1 percent in early trading, whilst the tech-heavy Nasdaq dropped 1.6 percent and the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 1 percent.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent explained that the president hoped the tariff threat would "light a fire" under EU officials in trade negotiations with US representatives.

Bessent told Fox News on Friday that Trump "believes that the EU proposals have not been of the same quality that we've seen from our other important trading partners."

If implemented, the 50 per cent tariff would exceed the 30 per cent tariff on China, which was recently reduced to facilitate negotiations between Washington and Beijing.