Trump threatens EU and China with tariffs from February 1

United States President Donald Trump vowed on Tuesday to impose tariffs on the European Union and China.

He has said his administration is considering a punitive 10 percent tariff on Chinese imports because fentanyl is being shipped from China to the U.S. through Mexico and Canada.

Trump made his latest tariff threats to reporters at the White House, a day after taking office without immediately imposing tariffs, as he had promised during the election campaign, Reuters reports.

Financial markets and trade groups enjoyed a temporary lull on Tuesday, but his latest comments underscored Trump's long-held desire for broader tariffs and a new deadline — February 1 — for 25 percent tariffs on Canada and Mexico, as well as tariffs on China and the EU.

The US president has said that the EU and other countries also have unbalanced and worrying trade with the US.

"The European Union is very, very bad to us," Trump said, repeating comments he made on Monday. "There will be tariffs on them. That's the only way ... there will be equality."

Trump said on Monday he was considering imposing tariffs on Canada and Mexico unless they crack down on the trafficking of illegal immigrants and fentanyl, including the chemical ingredient from China, into the United States.

White House trade adviser Peter Navarro told CNBC on Tuesday that Trump's threat of tariffs on Canada and Mexico is to pressure the two countries.

"The reason he's considering 25, 25 and 10 [percent], or whatever it is, on Canada, Mexico and China, is because 300 Americans die every day" from fentanyl overdoses, Navarro said.

On Monday, Trump announced a crackdown on immigration, including a broad ban on asylum.

He also signed a trade memorandum and ordered federal agencies to conduct a comprehensive review of a range of trade issues by April 1.

This includes analysis of persistent US trade deficits, unfair trade practices, and currency manipulation among partner countries, including China.

Mexico and Canada have reacted in soft tones to Trump's February 1 deadline.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has said she will underline Mexico's sovereignty and independence, and that she will respond to American actions "step by step."

But she added that the US-Mexico-Canada free trade agreement cannot be renegotiated until 2026, a comment aimed at preventing ideas that Trump would seek a premature change to the pact that generates over $1.8 trillion each year./ REL