Trump delays 50 percent tariff threat to European Union until July 9

Donald Trump has delayed imposing 50 percent tariffs on the European Union, pushing a deadline from June 1 to July 9.

On Friday, the president said he would recommend a “straight” 50 percent tariff on EU imports starting June 1.

He claimed leaders had been “very difficult to deal with” and that discussions were “going nowhere.”

Now, the president says he moved the deadline after European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen requested an extension, adding yet another beat to the president’s volatile tariff campaign marked by distrust and economic bickering with trading partners.

“I agreed to the extension — July 9, 2025 — It was my privilege to do so,” he wrote on Truth Social on Sunday evening. “The Commission President said that talks will begin rapidly,” he added.

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Von der Leyen said she had a “good call” with Trump.

“The EU and the US share the world’s most consequential and close trade relationship,” Von der Leyen wrote on X. “Europe is ready to advance talks swiftly and decisively.”

Trump later told reporters the call was “very nice.”

“I agreed to do that, and she said, ‘We will rapidly get together and see if we could work something out,’” Trump said of Von der Leyen before boarding Air Force One on Sunday.

Markets dropped sharply after Trump announced the 50 percent tariffs this week.

The S&P 500 fell 1.1 percent in early trading, the Nasdaq fell 1.6 percent and the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1 percent.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Trump hoped the new tariff threat would “light a fire” under EU officials in trade talks with U.S. negotiators.

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Trump “believes that the EU proposals have not been of the same quality that we’ve seen from our other important trading partners,” Bessent told Fox News on Friday.

Trump announced an initial 20 percent tax on all EU goods last month as part of his “Liberation Day” tariffs, which he placed on nearly every country.

Soon afterward, he paused all reciprocal tariffs for 90 days, leaving only 10 percent blanket tariffs in place.

European manufacturers are also facing a 25 percent tariff on steel and aluminum imports to the United States.

Days after the pause, the White House then vowed to reach trade deals with 90 countries in as many days. But experts say there’s “no way” the Trump administration can hit that mark.