President Trump’s tariffs will rattle countries across the world, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Tuesday at the European People’s Party annual congress in Valencia.
Over the past month, she’s heavily criticized the Republican for his stark shift in trade policies while touting the European Union’s (EU) openness to strengthening alliances.
“For decades, free trade has been a driver of global prosperity. It has lifted billions out of poverty, and sustained the livelihood of millions of European families. Now, global markets are shaken by the unpredictable tariff policy of the US administration,” von der Leyen said in her Tuesday address.
“U.S. tariffs on the rest of the world are at their highest in a century. The IMF [International Monetary Fund] issued a stark warning last week. And that is no surprise, because tariffs are like taxes. They hurt consumers and businesses alike. They affect Wall Street as well as Main Street,” she added.
Trump’s reciprocal tariffs were in place for seven days before he decided to grant a 90-day pause on an uptick in levies for all partner nations except China, which now faces a 145 percent tariff on almost all imports.
A 10 percent baseline tariff still remains in place for many of the U.S. trading partners, while Canada and Mexico are subject to 25 percent tariffs.
Last week, the IMF downgraded its projection for global gross domestic product (GDP) growth to 2.8 percent growth in 2025, a notable drop from the forecast of 3.3 percent in January. The United Nation’s financial agency cited century high tariffs as the cause.
However, von der Leyen said uncertainty can work in the favor of the EU’s economy, signaling the “world of trade is turning towards us.”
“We’re working with India and Indonesia, with the Emirates and Thailand, the Philippines and Malaysia and the Pacific. They all want to deal with us. Because we are fair, we are reliable, and we play by the rules,” she told the European Commission.
“So my friends, let’s stay the course, cool-headed and united, because that’s who we are and that’s the European way of trade. Let’s stick to that.”