The company LVMH, owner of champagne brands such as Moët & Chandon and Veuve Clicquot, experienced a decrease of 2.2 percent in its value, just like the cognac producer Remy Cointreau SA, which fell by 4.5 percent, and the alcoholic beverage manufacturer Pernod Ricard, which lost 3.6 percent.
The European Union is preparing to respond to the tariffs imposed by President Trump. The EU announced measures in response to the 25 percent tariffs activated by Washington on steel and aluminum exported to the United States. It is planning countermeasures with taxes of up to 28.3 billion dollars on U.S. products, including tariffs of up to 25 percent on agricultural and industrial products.
Brussels has mentioned that it will tax imports from the United States worth up to 28.165 billion dollars, which will include customs duties on American whiskey. These measures could have negative consequences for the alcoholic beverage industry.
Industry representatives on both sides of the Atlantic have expressed their concern about the devastating effects that retaliatory tariffs between Washington and Brussels could have. A 200 percent tariff like the one Trump threatens to impose would significantly impact the European wine sector, as wine is the main alcoholic beverage that the EU exports to the United States.
Since returning to the White House, Trump has been aggressively implementing tariffs on imports from U.S. partners. On this occasion, he has threatened to impose a 200 percent tariff on EU wines and other alcoholic beverages in retaliation for the EU's plans to tax imports of American whiskey. Trump claimed that this measure would benefit the wine and champagne sector in the United States and criticized the EU for allegedly taking advantage of the country.
In response to these threats, the shares of European alcoholic beverage manufacturers have experienced a decline.
