LAST UPDATE | 23 May

US PRESIDENT DONALD Trump has threatened the EU with a 50% tariff from 1 June.

He has also threatened to place a 25% tariff on tech giant Apple, which has its European headquarters in Cork, in order to move iPhone production to the US.

In a post to Truth Social this afternoon, Trump repeated the claim that the EU was “formed for the primary purpose of taking advantage of the United States on trade” – a charge deeply refuted by the European Commission.

Tariff negotiations have been continuing between the EU and the US since Trump’s so-called ‘Liberation Day’ announcement in April, in which he planned to impose a 20% tariff on member states. 

But in his post, Trump said discussions are “going nowhere” and, as a result, he is “recommending a straight 50% Tariff on the European Union, starting on June 1, 2025″. 

The US President paused the implementation of tariffs on the EU over the impact it had on American trading markets last month.

Taoiseach Micheál Martin said that Trump’s threat is “enormously disappointing”. Martin said that he had welcomed the pause until late July and called for negotiations, saying that the EU has been engaging with the US on the issue “in good faith”.

He said that it was his understanding that the EU’s Trade and Economic Security Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič is due to speak to his US counterpart this afternoon.

The Taoiseach added that it was his view that tariffs are damaging to all sides.

“Tariffs at the level suggested would not only push prices up, they would grievously damage one of the world’s most dynamic and significant trading relationships, as well as disrupting wider global trade,” he said.

“We do not need to go down this road.”

As one of the largest European trading partners in the US, the imposition of tariffs could have major impacts on the Irish economy. Martin said a fallout during negotiations could “very well” impact Budget 2026.

Trump said that the trading bloc has been “very difficult to deal with” and denounced European trade and taxation policies, claiming that the ‘unacceptable’ trade deficit between the two entities amounts to $250m each year.

The US Presidential office on Trade claims this figure is $235bn (€207bn). The European Commission claims the figure is closer to €109bn.

The EU has said its response to Trump’s tariffs would see countermeasures targeting €95bn worth of goods across many different sectors in the US, including aeroplane production companies, alcohol distilleries and car manufacturers.

European Commissioner for Trade Maros Sefcovic and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen have both previously expressed confidence that the impasse over trade can be settled through negotiations.

Tánaiste and Trade minister Simon Harris has maintained that allowing the European Commission to handle tariff negotiations puts Ireland in a “position of strength”.

Trump’s early-morning social media posts from Washington DC is the first public suggestion that negotiations between the US and the EU are not progressing. A call is set to take place between Sefcovic and his US counterpart at 4pm.

Apple tariffs

The US President has also threatened to impose a 25% tariff on Apple for any iPhones sold, but not manufactured, in the US. More than 60 million phones are sold in the country annually, but it has no smartphone manufacturing.

“I have long ago informed Tim Cook of Apple that I expect their iPhone’s that will be sold in the United States of America will be manufactured and built in the United States, not India, or anyplace else [sic.],” he wrote.

“If that is not the case, a Tariff of at least 25% must be paid by Apple to the U.S. Thank your for your attention to this matter! [sic.]”

Direct tariffs on Apple’s goods could impact the company’s multifaceted facility in Cork. The tech giant has long used Ireland as a European hub and home for its intellectual property rights, generating billions of tax revenue for the Irish state.

Trump has previously said that while he has no issue with US multinationals in the tech and pharma sector moving to Ireland – calling the state “smart” for attracting the businesses – he has denounced predecessors of his for allowing it to take place.

The president has continuously said he is seeking that large American multinational companies, like Apple, redirect their manufacturing and production efforts back into the US to generate jobs for citizens.

Relocating manufacturing plants and production factories to the US could take decades, however, and does not acknowledge the relatively high employment rate that currently exists in the country.

Tariffs on Apple’s iPhones could raise prices for American consumers by 25%.