US President Donald Trump is threatening to impose 30% tariffs against the United States’ top two trading partners, the European Union and Mexico, demanding that Europe open its markets more to US products and that Mexico combats local drug cartels. Without new trade deals, the levies would come into effect on Aug. 1, and are higher than the previous duties that Trump had threatened. The announcement has put both Mexico and the European trading bloc on their heels: they have each now scrapped earlier plans to retaliate, favoring negotiations to smooth things over in the next two weeks. However, as Trump continues to drive an extremely hard bargain with even the US’s closest trading partners, he increases the risk that they will look elsewhere for alliances – for some, this process has already begun.
Graphic Truth: Trump increases tariff threats on top trade partners
Zac reports on global affairs, covering everything from battles between judicial branches and political leaders, to conflicts in Africa, Europe, and the Middle East. With the Trump administration keen to alter the world order, though, there’s a heavy emphasis right now on US politics – an area with which he is intimately familiar. Prior to joining GZERO, Zac was a senior national politics correspondent at National Journal, where he covered the 2024 presidential election from its inception to the dramatic finish, as well as major congressional actions during the Biden administration. Prior to journalism, Zac worked as an economic analyst for Oxford Economics, calculating the impact of various tax policies, and of Britain’s exit from the European Union. Born in London, he currently resides in New York City, where you can find him playing football (the original version) or watching it on television while attempting to cook up a storm.
