EU Plots Reciprocal Tariffs On US Big Tech Firms

The Washington Post reports:

Scrambling to respond to the Trump administration’s cascading list of tariffs, the European Union is weighing whether to hit one of the most lucrative U.S. exports: billions of dollars’ worth of digital services that American Big Tech companies sell to European consumers.

The debate over digital services risks expanding the trade war from manufactured goods such as cars, steel and whiskey to services from cloud storage and satellite internet provided by U.S. tech giants like Apple, Google, Meta and Elon Musk’s Starlink network.

The discussions underscore Europe’s frustrations with what they call Trump’s selective grievances about trade, which have largely focused on the U.S. deficit with Europe in manufactured goods. While the E.U. enjoys a trade surplus with the United States of $170 billion on goods, it shoulders a deficit of $118 billion in services, according to 2023 European trade data.

Read the full article.

Trump’s tariffs are a direct attack on Europe. We won’t let it slide. The EU is gearing up to strike back: IP rights suspension, blocking U.S. tech giants from public contracts, and more. This isn’t just a trade war—it’s a sovereignty war. Trump fired the first shot. Europe will… pic.twitter.com/wZQKm2sUaN

— Pan-European Foundation (@pef_info) March 29, 2025