BACKING DOWN

Trump Chickens Out on Tariff Threat After Phone Call With Europe

The president of the European Commission said she’d had a “good call” with Trump.

A phone call with the European Commission’s leader seems to have deescalated tensions with Donald Trump after the president went scorched earth with a new tariff threat on Friday.

Trump confirmed Sunday that has agreed to a five-and-a-half-week extension on the timeline to implement a 50 percent tariff on the European Union after speaking with Ursula von der Leyen.

“I received a call today from Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, requesting an extension on the June 1st deadline on the 50% Tariff with respect to Trade and the European Union. I agreed to the extension — July 9, 2025 — It was my privilege to do so," Trump wrote on Truth Social Sunday.

“The Commission President said that talks will begin rapidly. Thank you for your attention to this matter!”

HERE WE GO AGAIN!

Trump Hammers the Markets with New Scorched Earth Trade War

Isabel van Brugen

Trump included a screengrab of a post from von der Leyen, who’d said several hours earlier that she had a “good call” with Trump.

“The EU and US share the world’s most consequential and close trade relationship,” she posted. “Europe is ready to advance talks swiftly and decisively.”

“To reach a good deal, we would need the time until July 9,” she added.

Trump roiled markets again on Friday after he said he was recommending a 50 percent tariff on the European Union from June 1. He complained that the bloc, which he said was “formed for the primary purpose of taking advantage of the United States on TRADE,” had been “very difficult to deal with.”

He told reporters later in the day that he was not looking to cut a deal with the EU before the deadline.

“I mean, we’ve set the deal. It’s at 50 percent,” he said at the White House.

Trump has long railed against what he sees as an unfair trade relationship with the EU, one of America’s largest trading partners.

The EU’s biggest exports to the U.S. include pharmaceuticals and medical products, vehicles and industrial equipment.

The proposed tariffs could shrink EU exports and drive up prices of European goods in the U.S.

Earlier this year, the Trump administration imposed a 20 percent tariff on most EU imports before dropping it to 10 percent a week later. That rate was set to return to 20 percent in early July if a deal was not brokered within Trump’s original 90-day deadline.

The U.S. has also enacted 25 percent tariffs on EU steel, aluminium and cars.

Trump’s latest threats revived his trade war drama after weeks of relative calm. In his first months in office, he launched tariffs against nearly all major U.S. trade partners, triggering global market volatility and diplomatic backlash.

On Friday, he also targeted Apple, threatening the company with a 25 percent tariff unless it moves iPhone manufacturing to the U.S. — a move that some analysts predicted could double iPhone prices.

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Josephine HarveySenior News Reporter

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