US trade partners prep $3.45B in retaliatory tariffs

America’s trading partners are preparing retaliatory tariff measures for a total of $3.45 billion in revenue in response to recent U.S. trade moves.

It is a move that could soon impact U.S. farmers and manufacturers.

Bloomberg News reports that several U.S. trade partners, including the European Union, China, Russia, Japan, Turkey and India, have all announced plans for new retaliatory duties in response to recent U.S. policy.

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The greatest response comes from the European Union, which announced $1.6 billion of additional levies this week, according to Bloomberg.

The Trump administration’s protectionist moves on trade have been met with resistance from a number of longtime U.S. trading partners, including European nations that have raised concerns about new U.S. tariffs on steel and aluminum.

French President Emmanuel Macron in March likened the U.S.’s policies to a loaded gun aimed at Europe after U.S. tariffs affecting the EU were announced. The White House went on to delay the tariffs for 30 days, putting off the confrontation until now.

“As a matter of principle, we will talk about everything with a friendly country that respects [World Trade Organization] WTO rules,” Macron said in March, according to Bloomberg. “But, by the same principle, we won’t talk about anything while there’s a gun pointed at our head.”

During a visit to the U.S. in April, Macron blasted Trump’s trade policy in a speech before a joint session of Congress.

“A commercial war is not consistent with our mission, with our history, with our current commitments for global security,” he warned.

British Prime Minister Theresa May spoke with both Macron and Germany’s Angela Merkel last month about the “vital importance of our steel and aluminum industries and their concern about the impact of U.S. tariffs.”