At a time when international fears about a possible trade war seemed to have deflated thanks to the new "peace" between China and the United States, Donald Trump returns to talk about tariffs. The American president, during a meeting with Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, gave a mandate to start an investigation into the car imports to the USA.
The news was communicated by the White House itself which – as the Wall Street Journal wrote on May 23 when speaking of the possible introduction of tariffs of up to 25% – explains that 'Section 232' of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962. The law in fact provides that the president can impose tariffs on all countries whose products, important to the United States, represent a danger to the American national security.
The motivation given by the president to "justify" the launch of the investigation is in fact precisely the security of the USA.
China's reaction was sudden which, through the spokesman for the Ministry of Commerce, Gao Feng, "opposes the abuse of national security clauses which will seriously damage the systems of multilateral trade and disrupt the regular order of international trade".
Beijing, continued Gao, will follow "the situation of the US investigation closely and we will make a full assessment of its possible impact, defending our legitimate interests”.
The announcement sent the index down DJ Stoxx, which dropped 1,5%, achieving the worst performance in Europe. In red the stocks of German car manufacturers: bmw (-2,8%), Porsche (-2,6%) And Volkswagen (-2,2%). Down in Milan fca (1,1%).
