French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday called for suspending investment in the United States following President Donald Trump’s announcement of new tariffs, which Macron condemned as “brutal and unfounded.”
Speaking at a meeting with industry leaders from sectors most affected—including aerospace, chemicals, healthcare, and spirits—Macron said Europe should not allow individual countries or companies to strike deals with Washington. “Future investments, investments announced in the last weeks, should be suspended for a time for as long as the situation with the United States is not clarified,” he stated, adding that Americans will be “weaker and poorer” after Trump’s tariff announcement.
Macron warned that the tariff decision would have a “massive impact” on the European economy. “If the response to the tariffs just imposed by the American administration is to make immediate concessions or announce investments in order to negotiate exemptions, that is a very bad idea,” he stated. The French President stressed that investing in the US under such conditions would send the wrong message and undermine European leverage in trade negotiations.
Joined by Prime Minister François Bayrou, Macron encouraged French businesses to fall in line with EU priorities, pushing for a coordinated European response. Yet critics note that Macron’s tough rhetoric may do little to shield French industries from economic fallout, and his call to suspend investment could ultimately harm French firms more than their American counterparts.
