Key facts
- President Donald Trump threatened a 100% import tariff on European countries.
- The tariffs are a response to potential digital services taxes on American tech companies.
- Trump stated the tariffs would supersede existing trade agreements.
- The European Commission defended digital services taxes as non-discriminatory and vowed to respond to unilateral measures.
US President Donald Trump has threatened to impose a 100% import tariff on any European country that introduces a digital services tax on American technology giants. Trump stated on his Truth Social platform that numerous European countries were discussing or close to implementing such levies, and that the punitive penalties would be applied immediately.
He warned that these tariffs would completely supersede any existing bilateral trade agreements. The threat comes just days after the US and EU finalized a new trade deal. While Trump's post targeted nations planning "imminent implementation" of new levies, the precise implications for the UK, which has had a 2% Digital Services Tax in place since 2020, were not immediately clear.
The UK's DST applies to major search engines, social media platforms, and online marketplaces with global revenues exceeding £500 million and UK revenues surpassing £25 million. This tax impacts major US companies like Apple, Google, Meta, and Amazon, raising significant revenue for the UK Treasury. Trump had previously warned the UK about a "big tariff" for targeting US companies with such a tax.
France, Italy, and Spain also impose a 3% digital services tax on large companies, with several other EU nations having similar measures in place or proposed. A spokesperson for the European Commission, Olof Gill, stated that unilateral measures targeting legitimate policies are unjustified and that the EU would respond swiftly and proportionately to defend its rights and regulatory autonomy, defending the digital services tax as non-discriminatory.