U.S. tariffs to severely harm Italian economy: scholar

Looming U.S. tariffs on the European Union (EU) would have a significant impact on the Italian economy, according to an Italian professor of European policy.

On Wednesday night, U.S. President Donald Trump announced a near-universal tariff regime on imports to the U.S., shaking global markets and prompting a sharp downturn in international stock exchanges. Most European Union exports to the U.S. will now face a 20-percent tariff, with certain sectors -- including vehicles, auto parts, steel, and aluminum -- hit with even steeper 25-percent duties.

Commenting on the looming U.S. tariffs, Valentina Meliciani, director of the Luiss Institute for European Analysis and Policy at Luiss Guido Carli University, warned that sweeping Trump tariffs would threaten both U.S. and Italian economies.

"It's true that Italy's exports to the United States are quite high. Therefore, tariffs on EU products, including those from Italy, will have a negative impact on our economy. Of course, this will also have a negative impact on the U.S. economy," she stated.

As a member state of the EU, Italy in recent years has oriented its export flows toward non-EU markets, especially the United States, said a report released by the Italian National Institute of Statistics (ISTAT), noting that nearly half of Italy's exports were sold outside the EU, with around a tenth sold in the U.S.

Between 2019 and 2024, the U.S. market has seen a growing importance in almost all Italian manufacturing sectors. Italy's main exports to the U.S. include machinery, pharmaceutical products, cars and trucks, and beverages.

In 2024, Italy's trade surplus with the U.S. reached approximately 35 billion euros (about 37.94 billion U.S. dollars). Together with Germany's 85-billion-euro (93.1-billion-U.S.-dollar) surplus, the two countries account for about 70 percent of the European Union's overall trade surplus with the U.S., according to ISTAT's data.

U.S. tariffs to severely harm Italian economy: scholar

The United States' push to revoke China's Permanent Normal Trade Relations (PNTR) status, or granting the Most Favored Nation (MFN) treatment permanently, is a clear instance of unilateralism and trade protectionism, according to a white paper released by China's State Council Information Office on Wednesday.

The white paper, titled "China's Position on Some Issues Concerning China-US Economic and Trade Relations", aims to clarify the facts about the bilateral economic and trade relations between the two countries and lay out China's position on relevant issues.

The white paper said that the PNTR status is the ballast of China-U.S. economic and trade relations.

The U.S. push to revoke this status violates the rules of the World Trade Organization's (WTO), undermines China-U.S. relations, and disrupts the global economic order, the white paper noted.

According to the white paper, WTO rules require its members to unconditionally grant MFN treatment to all other members, a requirement that has binding legal force.

Over the past two decades, the PNTR has served to stabilize China-U.S. economic and trade relations. Revoking China's PNTR status will see China-U.S. economic and trade relations returning to the uncertainty and unpredictability that preceded China's accession to the WTO in 2001.

China opposes any unilateralist and protectionist acts that sabotage the multilateral trading system and hopes that the U.S. will be clearly aware of the possible harm caused by its attempt to revoke China's MFN status, the white paper said.

The white paper called on the U.S. to work constructively with the overwhelming majority of WTO members in safeguarding a fair and reasonable global economic and trade order and environment.

Rescinding China's most favored nation status undermines foundation of China-US trade relations: white paper