US President Donald Trump has threatened further tariffs on goods from the EU and Canada if they work together "to do economic harm to the USA."

In a post on Truth Social, Trump said: "If the European Union works with Canada in order to do economic harm to the USA, large scale Tariffs, far larger than currently planned, will be placed on them both in order to protect the best friend that each of those two countries has ever had."

On Wednesday, Trump announced a 25% tariff on imported vehicles that will take effect next Thursday (3 April), the day after Trump plans to announce reciprocal tariffs aimed at countries responsible for the bulk of the US trade deficit.

The US has already introduced tariffs on steel and aluminium, and on goods from Mexico, Canada and China.

The industry body representing European automakers warned that the tariffs would "hurt" carmakers globally and called for "dialogue" to avert a trade war.

"We urge President Trump to consider the negative impact of tariffs not only on global automakers but on US domestic manufacturing as well," said Sigrid de Vries, director general of the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association.

"Tariffs will not just impact imports into the US, a penalty that American consumers are likely to pay, but measures on automotive parts will also hurt auto makers producing cars in the US for export markets.

"European manufacturers export between 50% and 60% of the vehicles they make in the US, making a substantial positive contribution to the US trade balance."

The US imported $474bn worth of automotive products last year, including passenger cars worth $220bn, with Mexico, Japan, South Korea, Canada and Germany the biggest suppliers.

European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen said the proposed tariffs would be "bad for businesses, worse for consumers equally in the US and the European Union.

"We will now assess this announcement, together with other measures the US is envisaging in the next days. The EU will continue to seek negotiated solutions, while safeguarding its economic interests.

"As a major trading power and a strong community of 27 Member States, we will jointly protect our workers, businesses and consumers across our European Union."

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said the tariffs were a "direct attack" on Canadian workers and that retaliatory measures were being considered.

"We will defend our workers, we will defend our companies, we will defend our country, and we will defend it together," Carney told reporters in Ottawa.

In Japan, where more than a quarter of car sales are US exports, shares in Toyota and Mazda led declines. Shares in car makers in South Korea (Hyundai, Kia) and Indian automakers and parts suppliers also fell sharply.

Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said Tokyo will put "all options on the table" in responding to the new tariffs, and South Korea said it would put in place an emergency response for its auto industry by April.

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said Trump was risking damage to the US economy with additional tariffs.

"Protectionism doesn't help any country in the world," he said at a press conference in Tokyo, adding that he would lodge a complaint with the World Trade Organization over a trade levy on Brazilian steel.

While Trump is using tariffs to raise revenue to offset promised tax cuts and fulfil commitments to reversing declines in US industry, trade experts expect the levies to increase prices while curtailing demand, further hurting a struggling global auto industry.

"We're going to charge countries for doing business in our country and taking our jobs, taking our wealth, taking a lot of the things that they've been taking over the years," said at the Oval Office on Wednesday.

"They've taken so much out of our country, friend and foe and frankly, friend has been oftentimes much worse than foe."

Trump's directive included temporary exemptions for auto parts while government officials sort through the complexities of turning his proclamation into practice.

Since taking office in January, Trump has announced and delayed tariffs on Canada and Mexico for what he alleges is their role in allowing the opioid fentanyl into the US.

He also enacted tariffs on Chinese goods for the same reason, imposed duties on steel and aluminium, and warned of plans for global reciprocal tariffs on 2 April.

Trump said that the tariffs could be net neutral for Tesla, the electric car company led by Elon Musk, who is heading efforts to slash government spending as head of the Department of Government Efficiency.

Musk later wrote on X that the tariff impact on Tesla would be "significant."

Photo: President Donald J Trump speaks to reporters about auto tariffs after signing an executive order in the Oval Office at the White House on Wednesday, March 26, 2025 in Washington, DC. (Pic: Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post via Getty Images)