And so it begins. After revising their schedule twice, the 27 member states are finally expected to approve, on Wednesday, April 9, the first retaliatory measures against the tariff hikes imposed by Donald Trump’s United States since March 12. They are responding to the 25% surcharges decided by Washington on European steel and aluminum imports, valued at €26 billion per year.

The European Union’s retaliation targets a wide range of American products – poultry, orange juice, rice, tobacco, soybeans, aluminum and steel, luxury yachts, motorcycles, diamonds, makeup products and clothing − but remains slightly below the new US tariffs.

While the levy rate is also 25%, the base of the affected goods (€22 billion per year) is, in fact, narrower. As they seek to “minimize the consequences for their economies,” as reiterated by Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, the Europeans are struggling to agree on a response proportionate to the aggression they are facing. Fearing that the American president might execute his threats to tax European alcohol at “200%,” France, Italy, and Ireland have ensured that Kentucky bourbon is exempt from Brussels’ counter-offensive.

You have 83.59% of this article left to read. The rest is for subscribers only.