Latest Trump tariff updates as president says UK is 'out of line'

Donald Trump is poised to carry out his threat to impose trade tariffs on the EU, but signalled the UK could be spared for now.

President Donald Trump speaks to reporters next to Air Force One after arriving back at Joint Base Andrews, Md., Sunday, Feb. 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)
US president Donald Trump has announced trade tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China. (AP Photo)

Stocks tumbled across the UK and Europe on Monday after Donald Trump unveiled a wave of tariffs, but suggested the UK may avoid being hit with them.

Trump announced over the weekend 25% trade tariffs on goods coming from neighbours Canada and Mexico, as well as a 10% tax on products arriving from China.

Closer to home, Trump has also set his sights on the European Union, saying new trade tariffs on the bloc will "definitely happen".

He also said on Monday that while the UK was "out of line", but signalled he thinks a deal can be done with Britain that would avoid them.

Asked by the BBC on Monday if he will target the UK with tariffs, Trump said: “UK is out of line but I’m sure that one… I think that one can be worked out.”

ADVERTISEMENT

On Sunday, Starmer said his discussions with Trump have focused on a "strong trading relationship.”

Read more from our media partners below or click the headlines to skip ahead

> Britain rejects Trump's claim of 'out of line' trade

> UK and European shares slump after Trump warning

> China renews threat to retaliate against US tariffs

> Trump tariffs risk ‘really damaging impact’

> How Donald Trump's tariffs could impact consumers

> Wall Street Journal calls Trump tariffs ‘dumbest trade war in history’

Britain has rejected Donald Trump’s claim of “out of line” UK-US trade flows as he started hitting several countries with hefty tariffs.

The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said: “The US-UK trading relationship is worth over £300 billion, invest £1.2 trillion in each other’s economy.

ADVERTISEMENT

“We have got a fair and balanced trading relationship which benefits both sides of the Atlantic and we look forward to building on that with the United States.”

Asked about Trump’s tariff actions, Sir Keir said on Sunday: “It is early days. What I want to see is strong trading relations.”

Stocks have tumbled across the UK and Europe after US President Donald Trump’s weekend wave of tariffs and warnings that the European Union will be next.

European stock markets bore the brunt of the declines after Trump said tariffs on goods from the EU will “definitely” happen.

The Cac 40 in France and Germany’s Dax both opened around 2% lower in Monday morning trading, before paring back falls to stand around 1.6% lower.

ADVERTISEMENT

London’s FTSE 100 index fell sharply as Mr Trump claimed the UK is “out of line”, down 1.2% or 105.8 points down at 8568.2.

China has reiterated its threat to take "necessary countermeasures to defend its legitimate rights and interests" following President Trump's decision to impose 10% tariffs on China for allegedly doing too little to stem the production of precursor chemicals for fentanyl.

The Foreign Ministry statement issued on Sunday did not mention any specific retaliatory measures, but said "China calls on the United States to correct its wrongdoings, maintain the hard-won positive dynamics in the counternarcotics cooperation, and promote a steady, sound and sustainable development of China-US relationship."

ADVERTISEMENT
AYLESBURY, ENGLAND - FEBRUARY 2: Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer waits for the arrival of Germany's Chancellor Olaf Scholz at Chequers, the Prime Minister's country residence, on February 02, 2025 in Aylesbury, England. (Photo by Ben Stansall - WPA Pool/Getty Images)
Prime minister Sir Keir Starmer at Chequers, his country residence, on Sunday. (Getty Images)

Donald Trump risks having a “really damaging impact” on the global economy as he pursues tariffs against the US’s nearest neighbours, a senior cabinet minister has suggested.

Home secretary Yvette Cooper, the first senior British government figure to respond to the announcement, said the UK wanted to break down trade barriers, not put them up.

US President Donald Trump boards Air Force One at Palm Beach International Airport in West Palm Beach Florida on February 2, 2025, as he returns to Washington, DC. (Photo by Jim WATSON / AFP) (Photo by JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images)
US president Donald Trump boards Air Force One at Palm Beach International Airport in West Palm Beach, Florida, on Sunday. (AFP via Getty Images)

Canada also supplies a lot of the US's fruit and vegetables, which are mainly grown in greenhouses on the other side of the US border.

This means that increased tariffs will quickly be passed on to consumers in the form of higher prices.

US business leaders are offering a mixed reaction to the steep trade tariffs that Donald Trump’s administration has imposed on Canada, Mexico and China, as the editorial board of the Wall Street Journal called it “the dumbest trade war in history”.

The Journal said... that with the exception of China “Mr Trump’s justification for this economic assault on the neighbors makes no sense.”