Trump threatens substantial tariffs on EU over tech fines
President Donald Trump announced that his administration will launch a trade investigation under Section 301 into the European Union in response to recent fines levied against U.S. technology firms, saying the probe will likely lead to a "substantial" tariff on the 27-member bloc. Trump specifically criticized a recent fine on Google and referenced prior European penalties against Apple, Meta and Amazon. The European Commission said the fines against Google totaled 890 million euros for alleged noncompliance with the Digital Markets Act. The announcement follows U.S. duties of 10%–12.5% imposed earlier on goods from more than 80 countries; a lawsuit challenging those duties was filed in the U.S. Court of International Trade by the Liberty Justice Center.
- •President Donald Trump said the U.S. will launch a trade investigation under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 into the European Union.
- •Trump said the probe will likely result in a "substantial" tariff on the EU's 27-member bloc.
- •Trump criticized recent EU fines on U.S. tech companies, including a reported $1 billion fine on Google.
