French finance minister Eric Lombard called U.S. President Donald Trump's trade war "stupid" after the threat of 200 percent tariffs on alcohol imports from the European Union. Lombard said the Europeans would have to respond in kind.
"It's a stupid war, but if we want to be able to negotiate, we have to put ourselves on equal terms, so we're also going to raise tariffs," Lombard said on Telematin Friday morning.
The emerging trade war is escalating by the week.
On Thursday, Trump accused the EU of having "one of the most hostile and abusive taxing and tariffing authorities in the World, which was formed for the sole purpose of taking advantage of the United States."
He was responding to the EU's newly announced tariffs on $28 billion of American imports: steel, aluminum, textiles, home appliances, and agricultural products—including poultry, beef, seafood, nuts, sugar, and vegetables.
Trump cited a 50 percent tariff on American whiskey in particular, and said the U.S. would "shortly" place a 200 percent tariff on all alcoholic products coming out of the EU, including wines and champagne—a levy that would hit French exporters hard.
The EU was retaliating against Trump's 25 percent tariff on its steel and aluminum that came in this week.
More turbulence is to come. Trump said reciprocal tariffs are coming all around the world on April 2 as he seeks to equalize terms with all of America's trading partners.
This is a developing story and more information will be added shortly.
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This story was originally published March 14, 2025 at 3:37 AM.