President Donald Trump’s tariffs clearly pose a profound challenge to the global rules-based trading system, marking a huge shift after decades of multilateral trade liberalisation that had left tariffs at near-historic lows. The economic impact on the European Union is much less clear, however. Evidence on the possible economic effects of Trump’s tariffs suggests that the macroeconomic consequences for the EU could be significant but manageable and fear of trade diversion from China is likely exaggerated.
About the Authors
Madalena Barata da Rocha is a Research Assistant at Bruegel.
Nicolas Boivin is a Research Assistant at Bruegel.
Niclas Poitiers is a Research Fellow at Bruegel.