EU prepares to hit Big Tech in retaliation for Donald Trump’s tariffs

https://www.ft.com/content/7303e57e-67ca-477a-8d00-8d5213f7120c?

by EUstrongerthanUS

31 comments

  1. The EU is planning to hit Silicon Valley with retaliatory measures if President Donald Trump follows through on threats to impose tariffs on the bloc, in the first use of a Brussels “bazooka” that could drag services into a trade war.

    The European Commission is looking to use its “anti-coercion instrument” in a potential dispute with Washington, said two officials with knowledge of the plans, which would allow the EU to target US service industries such as Big Tech.

    An official said “all options are on the table” and pointed to the ACI as the toughest response available without breaching international law.

    The tool, which was drawn up during Trump’s first term and subsequently used as a deterrent against China, allows the EU’s executive arm to impose restrictions on trade in services if it determines that a country is using tariffs on goods to force changes in policy.

    Trump’s threat to use tariffs to coerce Denmark to hand over Greenland and to press the EU to drop enforcement action against US technology companies would qualify, officials said.

    Dubbed a “bazooka” by some EU officials when it came into force in 2023, the ACI allows the bloc to select from a wide range of retaliatory measures, such as revoking the protection of intellectual property rights or their commercial exploitation, for example, software downloads and streaming services.

    It also allows the EU to block foreign direct investment or restrict market access for banking, insurance and other financial services groups.

    A second official cautioned that while the EU was proficient in handling tariffs on goods, it could still balk at expanding a dispute into new areas including services and intellectual property rights.

    Trump last week said he would “absolutely” levy tariffs on the EU, citing Brussels’ action against US tech companies and its large trade deficit in goods. He has not given details about when the measures would be adopted or whether the bloc could negotiate a reprieve, as Canada and Mexico have secured.

    EU trade ministers met on Tuesday in Warsaw to discuss the US president’s threats. Officials briefed on the closed-door discussions said the majority expressed support for punitive action if necessary.

    Trade commissioner Maroš Šefčovič said he wanted to negotiate a way to avoid tariffs but added: “If we are hit, we will react firmly.”
    Šefčovič noted the bloc had a large deficit with the US in services even though it enjoyed a surplus in goods.

    Laurent Saint-Martin, France’s trade minister, told the Financial Times that despite the ACI, the EU might need faster retaliatory measures. “Speed is one of the key issues, we have to be ready faster than last time. We have to be more united and faster.”

  2. Make sure you hit those Kentucky Bourbon as well. I want those abominations gone from European market.

  3. Problem is we need access to certain technologies we don’t have such as cutting edge LLMs te remain competititive in any field. Maybe th EU can fund a European LLM on par with the frontrunners.

  4. Sorry America that you had to become a broligarchy for EU to grow some balls but we take it

  5. BlackRock watching their investments fall apart 👁️ 👄 👁️

  6. Yes! Hit them where in hurts!

    First of all tax their revenue not profits so they won’t be able to move all their European profits to Ireland and pay 1% tax. Then ban X and Facebook. 

  7. Good, but we should not wait to ban Xitter, Meta and other autoritarian propaganda tools.

  8. I think the one thing EU doesn’t realise that with all our flows and inadequacies, economic stagnation of recent times – EU is rich – both as a society and individual wealth – compared to any other part of the world. The infrastructure is incomparable better then almost any other part of the world of comparable size.

  9. Let’s also follow Canada’s lead and ban American products from Red states in EU.

  10. I don’t think we really need to ban Tesla anymore, since it seems to be tanking nicely all by itself. I would still be for it of course, just to see Edolph Musk lose his mind on Twitter.

  11. Good Idea! And pleased try to establish own european IT companiesnwith more value than SAP.

  12. All good until Microsoft, Google and Amazon hike prices in Europe with 200% or simply are forced to stop their services in Europe. Don’t know if it’s smart to target services where migrating away from isn’t that easy when there isn’t a legit alternative. Hitting the car industry is easier as you have a direct alternative.

  16. 5 different threats to invade in 15 days… US is no longer an ally, as long as Trump is president. I just hope this nightmare ends in four years. Doubt it though.

  17. I say let’s use it preemptively.

    Tech billionaires turning conservative have already caused huge damage in Europe.

    Let’s not wait for another excuse.

  20. As soon as people understand that a lot of what’s happening now is driven by tech billionaires like Peter Thiel and Curtis Yarvin, those two will end up on a hit list. There are enough Luigis, so these people will be in serious danger

  23. As with Canada, I think he will find a lot of unity across the EU to fight back.

  24. As an American I am a guest in this space but I wanted to thank our European sisters and brothers for taking this action. We are fighting for democracy right now and the only way to hold strong is to eliminate anti-democratic forces.

    Many of you wonder how we could make this mistake again. But the level of voter suppression and misinformation we faced this last election is astounding and unfortunately, American students are not really trained in critical thinking until they reach college. Elon and Trump bragged about their voter targeting but what they were doing was dividing the left into single issue factions.

    During this time, I hope you all know there are millions of us fighting for democracy right now at home and we appreciate any help you can give us from abroad. Call or write your reps and make sure they hit the right wing in the United States with everything they’ve got.

    Decarbonize your infrastructure. Block tech companies that refuse to reign in propaganda and misinformation. Fuck Tesla.

    From:
    An American who understands that we all share in the sacrifice our parents, grandparents, and great grandparents have made to uphold democracy for each other in our darkest moments.

  25. Less talk, more action. Ban Twitter/X, Tesla, and Facebook.

  27. We should not wait for politicans!

    Lets come together and cancel all american subscriptions on the day Trump announce tariffs

    Netflix

    Prime

    Disney

    Youtube

    … whatever there is

  29. All social media should be banned… it was amazing for a few years, now it’s as dangerous as a loaded gun that we are allowing our children to play roulette with!

  30. Hello European friends, Canadian here.

    We’ve been feeling pretty freaked out in recent days living next to and being threatened by this unhinged giant. Not just by what this fascist state next to us will do to our economy but also that Trump actually means it about annexation. Still unlikely perhaps, but something that is maybe now not impossible anymore and could be the long term path for American imperialism to take control of our resources.

    I’ll be very happy to have a powerful ally in the fight from Europe so we can stand together to hold strong against this threat.

    Wishing you all the best with the “bazooka” and other measures. I hope we can build up stronger connections between Canada and the EU for trade and mutual defence.

    Thank you and solidarity from across the ocean. I hope we can be strong allies and stand together against this.

Comments are closed.