Trump Threatens UK Tariffs Over Digital Services Tax

US President Donald Trump has threatened to impose significant tariffs on the United Kingdom unless it eliminates its digital services tax targeting large technology companies, escalating longstanding trade tensions between the two nations.

Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office on Thursday, Trump warned that the US could retaliate against the 2 percent levy, which has applied since 2020 to revenues from digital activities by firms with global earnings exceeding 500 million euros and at least 25 million euros from UK users. "We've been looking at it and we can meet that very easily by just putting a big tariff on the UK, so they better be careful," Trump said. "If they don't drop the tax, we'll probably put a big tariff on the UK." He added that any tariff would match or exceed the revenue the tax generates for the UK, framing the measure as an unfair targeting of American tech giants. "The UK did it, a couple of other people did it. They think they're going to make an easy buck, that's why they've all taken advantage of our country," he remarked.

The tax, often applied to social media platforms, search engines, and online marketplaces, raised more than 800 million pounds in...