Italy warned of the consequences of retaliatory duties against the United States

Italian Economy and Finance Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti warned of the consequences of imposing retaliatory duties on the United States and called for a policy of "fiscal freedom," Reuters reports.

"We must avoid starting a retaliatory tariff policy that could harm everyone, and especially us," Giorgetti said, speaking at a business forum near Milan.

According to him, Italy seeks to de-escalate with the United States. The minister stressed that regarding the duties of President Donald Trump, countries "should try to keep their cool."

The European Union (EU) should allow member states to increase spending without violating the fiscal rules of the bloc in order to offset the negative impact of duties on the economy, the minister said.

"There has been talk of helping companies in recent days, but helping companies is a government intervention that should be allowed by EU rules," Giorgetti said.

According to EU rules, commitments agreed with the European Commission to reduce government spending can be suspended in the event of a "severe economic downturn" in the eurozone.

A dangerous dilemma: what will Europe and Asia do against the US tariffs

The EU is belligerent, and ASEAN is seeking concessions.

On April 2, Trump announced large-scale measures: base tariffs of 10% are being introduced for all products supplied to the United States. For Europe, this figure has been raised to 20%, and for China — to 34%. In his speech, the president called April 2 the day when Americans will become rich again.

Yuri Ichkitidze, an analyst at Freedom Finance Global, said on April 3 that the introduction of new duties could lead to a slowdown in US economic growth in 2025, as well as provoke an increase in inflation. According to him, the negative effect for the United States is associated with the "boomerang effect" — retaliatory measures and rising prices. Inflation may increase by 1-1.5% this year.