Macron advised Trump to pay attention to China instead of threatening the European Union

French President Emmanuel Macron has said that U.S. leader Donald Trump needs to pay attention to priority issues, while imposing trade duties on imports from European Union (EU) countries could negatively affect the U.S. economy itself. Macron talked about this in an interview with CNN ahead of the AI Summit in Paris on Monday, February 10.

"First of all, is the EU your first problem? Your first problem is China, so you need to focus on that. Secondly, Europe is your ally, and if you want Europe to be more involved in investment and defense and security, if you hope for development, which I believe is in the interest of the United States, you don't need to harm the European economy by threatening it with tariffs," he stressed.

Macron also noted that the introduction of duties on goods from the European Union could turn into an increase in inflation in the U.S., as the spheres of production of states are strongly integrated and interconnected.

Dragon tariffs: how China's duties on US LNG will change global flows

The PRC considers its moves to be fair and reasonable

Earlier, February 9, it became known that Trump confirmed: on Monday, February 10, will be introduced duties of 25% on imported steel and aluminum in the United States. He also said he would announce reciprocal duties "probably on Tuesday or Wednesday". Such duties will be imposed on products from those countries that have previously imposed retaliatory restrictions on U.S. products.

At the time, Li Yong, a senior researcher at the China International Trade Association, told the Global Times that Trump's aggressive approach to the country's foreign economic policy could lead the United States to isolation on the global stage.

On Feb. 1, Trump signed an executive order imposing trade tariffs of 25 percent on goods from Canada, China and Mexico. Then he also promised to impose duties on goods from the EU. With this decision, Trump seeks to reduce the flow of the opioid fentanyl across the border, as well as the flow of migrants.

In response, the State Council of the People's Republic of China on February 4 reported that from February 10, China imposes duties of 15% on coal and liquefied natural gas (LNG) from the United States. In addition, it was noted that tariffs of 10% will be imposed on U.S. oil, multi-cylinder cars, pickup trucks and agricultural machinery.

Reuters reported on February 6 that retaliatory Chinese duties against the United States could lead to a reduction in U.S. oil exports in 2025 for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic began.