Watch: Trump says he has raised customs duties on cars coming from the European Union to 25%

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said Friday he will increase tariffs on European Union cars and trucks next week to 25%, a move that could shake the global economy at a fragile moment.

Watch Trump’s full remarks to reporters in the video player above.

Trump said in a social media post that the European Union “is not adhering to our fully agreed-upon trade agreement,” though he did not clarify his objections in the post.

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In response to a question from reporters on Friday about the increase in import taxes as he left the White House for Florida, Trump said that the European Union did not adhere “as usual” to the trade framework last year, without providing details about the source of the tension. He added that he believes the shift to higher tariffs “is forcing them to move their factory production much faster” to the United States.

Trump and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen agreed to the trade agreement last July. It set a tariff cap of 15% on most goods, although the Supreme Court ruled this year against the legal authority Trump used to impose that tax. This left Trump looking for alternative authorities, and his administration imposed a 10% tax while investigating trade imbalances and national security issues to impose new tariffs to make up for lost revenue.

The tariffs came at a time when the Iran war has crushed the global economy with expectations of slower growth and higher inflation, with oil and natural gas prices rising due to the virtual closure of the vital Strait of Hormuz after strikes by the United States and Israel that began at the end of February.

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Meanwhile, Trump is facing political pressure in the United States ahead of the midterm elections in November due to rising inflation levels. Trump, a Republican, returned to the White House last year with an explicit promise that he could quickly tame prices that had soared in the wake of the government’s response to the coronavirus pandemic, but rising energy costs pushed annual inflation in March to 3.3%, higher than what he inherited.

Only 30% of American adults approved of Trump’s handling of the economy, according to the latest poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.

Neither EU officials nor the Trump administration responded to questions about the tariff increase and whether the agreement had been violated. But Trump’s relationship with Europe has been tense, after he earlier this year threatened to seize Greenland and later criticized NATO allies for not providing more support to the United States in the Iran war.

Both the United States and the European Union have previously confirmed their commitment to maintaining the trade framework, known as the Turnberry Agreement, which is named after Trump’s golf course in Scotland.

The status of the 2025 deal was thrown into doubt for the first time after the Supreme Court ruled this year that the president lacked the legal authority to declare an economic emergency and impose tariffs on goods from EU members and other countries.

Alternative tariffs being explored by the Trump administration could ultimately put the agreement with the EU at risk of being violated, although European Trade and Economic Security Commissioner Maros Šefčović told reporters last week that the relationship with the United States had become more positive over the past year.

In order to raise tariff rates, the president would likely use Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, which allows tariffs for national security reasons, said Scott Lincecum of the Center for Trade Policy Studies at the libertarian Cato Institute.

Trump imposed 25% tariffs under Section 232 on foreign cars in March 2025, but those tariffs were then reduced as part of the EU trade framework.

Lincecum also said Trump’s threats are “just another example of why these trade deals are just shams. They’re all based on handshakes and winks and hoping Trump doesn’t get mad about something.”

He said that as much as he could tell the Europeans, “they are basically adhering to the framework.” The European Parliament is moving slowly on the agreement but is expected to finalize work on the deal next month.

The European Union said it expects the bilateral agreement to save European automakers between 500 million and 600 million euros ($585 million to $700 million) per month.

The value of trade between the European Union and the United States in goods and services will reach 1.7 trillion euros ($2 trillion) in 2024, or an average of 4.6 billion euros per day, according to the European Union statistics agency Eurostat.

“An agreement is an agreement,” the European Commission said in February after the Supreme Court ruling. “As the United States’ largest trading partner, the European Union expects the United States to respect its commitments set out in the Joint Statement – ​​just as the European Union adheres to its own. EU products should continue to benefit from more competitive treatment, with tariffs not increased beyond the clear and comprehensive ceiling previously agreed upon.”

AP Writer Paul Weissman contributed to this report.