A large majority of western Europeans support retaliatory tariffs against the US if Donald Trump introduces sweeping import duties for major trading partners as expected this week, according to a survey. The US president is expected to unveil a range of fluctuating tariffs, varying by country, on Wednesday, dubbed “Liberation Day.” He also stated last week that a 25% levy on cars imported to the US would take effect the next day.

Many European enterprises, including Germany’s car manufacturers and France’s luxury goods and spirits producers, rely on exports to the US for a significant portion of their income and would be severely impacted. The EU has already pledged to respond “in a timely, robust, and calibrated” manner to Washington’s plans, which experts predict will lower output, raise prices, and ignite a trade war.

The survey, conducted in Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Sweden, and the UK, found that substantial majorities in each country support retaliatory tariffs on US imports if the tariffs are implemented. In all seven countries, respondents favored a tit-for-tat response despite the anticipated harm US tariffs might cause to their national economies.

In response to Trump’s claim that the EU was “established to exploit the United States,” pluralities or majorities in all six surveyed EU countries, ranging from 67% in Denmark and 53% in Germany to 41% in France and 40% in Italy, disagreed with him, compared to only 7% to 18% who believed he was correct.

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/apr/01/large-majority-of-europeans-support-retaliatory-tariffs-against-us-poll-finds