Donald Trump has reignited a transatlantic trade clash by scrapping part of his tariff pact with the European Union and slapping higher duties on European vehicles.

The US president said tariffs on cars and lorries imported from the EU will jump from 15% to 25% starting next week, according to reports tied to his May Day announcement. He framed the move as a response to what he called EU non-compliance and blasted Brussels for moving too slowly to ratify the agreement he struck with EU leaders in Scotland last summer.

Trump’s decision turns a negotiated truce into a fresh test of how quickly the US and EU can slide back into a full trade confrontation.

The timing sharpened the impact. Reports indicate Trump blindsided Brussels late on a holiday Friday, giving European officials little room to shape the first public response. The target also matters: cars and lorries sit at the heart of one of Europe’s most politically sensitive export relationships with the United States, and a tariff jump of this size raises the stakes fast for manufacturers, suppliers, and consumers watching prices.

Key Facts

  • Trump says he is tearing up part of the tariff deal reached with EU leaders last summer.
  • US tariffs on EU cars and lorries will rise from 15% to 25% next week.
  • He accuses the European Union of failing to comply and delaying ratification.
  • The announcement landed late on a May Day bank holiday, catching Brussels off guard.

This dispute now moves beyond the language of delay and compliance into a direct test of leverage. Trump appears to be using tariffs both as punishment and pressure, betting that economic pain will force faster movement from the EU side. But that strategy carries obvious risks. It can harden resistance in Brussels, widen uncertainty for companies on both sides of the Atlantic, and revive a cycle of retaliation that last year’s deal was supposed to calm.

What happens next will matter far beyond the auto trade. The EU must decide whether to answer with countermeasures, seek urgent talks, or try to salvage the original agreement before the new tariff rate bites. For businesses, the immediate question centers on cost and disruption. For Washington and Brussels, the bigger issue is whether this marks a tactical escalation or the collapse of a broader effort to stabilize one of the world’s most important economic relationships.