The Trump administration's steel and aluminum tariff policy has indeed brought new turmoil to the global trade environment. This policy is ostensibly aimed at protecting domestic industries in the United States, but in reality, it acts like a double-edged sword, affecting not only international trade relations but also having complex impacts on the U.S. economy itself. The EU initially planned to take retaliatory measures but ultimately chose to delay action, which hides complex trade-offs and strategic considerations.
Trump's use of tariffs as a negotiating tool may, in the short term, provide support for certain specific industries, such as the U.S. steel industry, which has received a certain boost. However, this approach is a disaster for downstream industries that rely on these raw materials. The automobile manufacturing industry is a typical example, where the cost of each car has increased by about $1,000 due to rising steel prices, which is a huge blow to the competitiveness of the entire industry.
At the same time, the EU chose to temporarily back down in the face of this situation, but this does not mean that the EU will turn a blind eye. Delaying retaliatory tariffs may be intended to give both sides a chance to reassess the situation, while also avoiding greater economic losses caused by an immediate escalation of the trade war. After all, large multinational companies within the EU, such as German automobile manufacturers and machinery engineering companies, could be severely impacted, and if things really escalate, the consequences would be unimaginable.
From a broader perspective, such a trade war is actually a threat to global economic stability. The ongoing high inflation pressure in the United States, combined with artificially inflated raw material costs, has significantly increased operating costs for businesses, further exacerbating the inflation issue. On the EU side, small and medium-sized enterprises, due to their smaller size and weaker risk resistance, often become the most direct victims of the trade war.
Ultimately, although both sides are trying to maintain their own interests through various means, the real losers are likely to be those enterprises and individuals that play important roles in the global supply chain. Some companies may try to evade high tariffs by rerouting through third countries, leading to intermediaries profiting from this situation. In this case, the ideal outcome is to resolve differences through dialogue and cooperation to achieve a win-win situation, rather than getting trapped in endless mutual retaliation. In other words, the current trade war is not just a contest between two super economies; it also involves the interests of countless businesses and ordinary people. Neither side should easily reveal their cards, but should instead handle this complex international relationship with greater caution.