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After European Union leaders said they would keep negotiating instead of immediately retaliating against President Trump’s latest threat, businesses remain unable to develop long-term plans.
By Liz Alderman and Melissa Eddy
Liz Alderman is the chief European business correspondent and is based in Paris. Melissa Eddy covers the German economy and auto industry and is based in Berlin.
July 14, 2025Updated 9:09 a.m. ET
Even as European Union negotiators redoubled efforts to secure a trade deal with the United States, businesses in Europe face prolonged uncertainty that makes it difficult — and costly — for them to come up with plans.
The threat on Saturday from President Trump of a 30 percent tax on goods imported from the European Union leaves businesses facing tariff levels not seen since the end of the 19th century. Worse, many say, is that they find themselves in limbo, unable to make decisions on strategy, hiring and investments.
“Let’s be honest, an idea of 30 percent tariff rate is effectively prohibitive to the mutual trade,” Maros Sefcovic, the European Union’s trade commissioner, told reporters in Brussels on Monday. “The current uncertainty caused by unjustified tariffs cannot persist indefinitely,” he added.
The European Union is the biggest exporter to the United States, accounting for $600 billion of $3.2 trillion in annual U.S. imports.
Mr. Trump’s latest threat is more severe than what European businesses expected. Many had been operating on the assumption that European negotiators would cement a deal that included Mr. Trump’s initial 10 percent tariff, while working to win concessions for crucial sectors including cars, steel and aluminum. Since April, he has threatened to raise the tariff on European goods to 20 percent, then 50 percent, before pulling back, confounding executives.
Companies ultimately expect a better deal, but the costs of the zigzag tariff policy are mounting with each day that passes ahead of the new Aug. 1 deadline set by Mr. Trump.
