European stock markets opened lower on Monday as investors grappled with U.S. President Donald Trump’s announcement of steeper global trade duties in the wake of a recent Supreme Court decision.
At around 8am London time, the pan-European Stoxx 600 index had slipped 0.3 per cent. The FTSE in the UK traded marginally below flatline levels during early deals, while Germany’s DAX shed 0.6 per cent and France’s CAC 40 dipped 0.2 per cent. Italy’s FTSE MIB provided a counterpoint, edging up 0.4 per cent.
The previous week had seen European bourses close higher after the U.S. Supreme Court blocked substantial elements of Trump’s so-called “reciprocal” tariffs. Trump countered over the weekend by declaring a new across-the-board 15 per cent global levy, raised from 10 per cent, targeting nations he accuses of long exploiting American trade flows.
The new tariffs would be “effective immediately,” Trump said in a Truth Social post. He also warned on Saturday that further levies were on the horizon.
“I, as President of the United States of America, will be, effective immediately, raising the 10% Worldwide Tariff on Countries, many of which have been “ripping” the U.S. off for decades, without retribution (until I came along!), to the fully allowed, and legally tested, 15% level,” he wrote.
This development risks reigniting tensions across the Atlantic, particularly for export-heavy industries such as cars and luxury products. Market watchers anticipate volatility as European policymakers mull responses to protect their economic interests.