Agency Report –
Berlin – US President Donald Trump is shooting himself in the foot with the fresh tariffs he imposed on major trading partners, the head of a German trade association warned on Sunday.
“Trump’s decision will cost Americans dearly – tariffs always affect both sides,” said Dirk Jandura, head of the German federal trade and services association BGA.
“The losers are always the end consumers who feel the price increases at the checkout. I would hope that the tariffs can still be averted,” he said.
Trump signed an order on Saturday to impose tariffs of 25% on goods from Mexico and Canada, along with a 10% tariff on Chinese products.
The White House said the tariffs, which go into effect on Tuesday, were in response to illegal drugs entering the US.
Canada, Mexico and China quickly vowed retaliation, with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau promising 25% levies on a slew of US imports.
Jandura said he was concerned about possible US tariffs being imposed on the European Union.
When Trump was asked on Friday whether he would go after products imported from the EU, he responded: “Absolutely.”
