"It cannot be that, due to other products, wine and other agri-food products are subject to retaliation in the tariff war, especially with tariffs of 200% that would clearly and effectively remove Spanish and European wines from the entire US market," expresses José Luis Benítez, general director of the Spanish Wine Federation (Fev). "We cannot afford to have such an important market as the American one affected by commercial retaliations that have nothing to do with our product," insists the spokesperson and urges for negotiation between the EU and the US, as well as "the Spanish Government, the Ministry of Commerce in particular, and all ministries involved" to defend the sector: "Wine cannot be a bargaining chip."
Trump does not let up with his threats. The latest was announced Thursday morning in Washington, promising to impose 200% tariffs on wine, champagne, and other alcoholic beverages from the European Union in response to Brussels' intention to impose a 25% tax on US products such as whiskey.
"If this tariff is not immediately removed, the United States will soon impose a 200% tariff on all wines, champagnes, and alcoholic products leaving France and other countries represented by the EU," the president wrote on his Truth Social social network, adding that this measure "would greatly benefit the wine and champagne sector in the United States."
In the case of the wine sector, the United States accounts for 10% of total global exports, according to data from the Spanish Wine Market Observatory, and Spain is the fourth largest wine exporter, behind France, Italy, and New Zealand. In 2024, Spanish wine sales to the United States amounted to 334.8 million euros, an increase of almost 7% compared to 2023. This solidifies Spain as one of the main suppliers to the US market.
"Spanish wine exports to the United States have experienced significant growth, doubling their value in the last two decades," states the latest report "Trump's America First impacts the agri-food sector," prepared by the LLYC Food Office, highlighting that "the United States has become the second most relevant market, second only to Germany, accumulating a 10.77% share in a sector that exceeds 2.9 billion euros in foreign trade sales."
In 2019, during Donald Trump's first term, the Republican imposed a 25% tariff on bottled wine from some European countries, including Spain.
The European Union announced yesterday that it will impose tariffs worth up to 26 billion euros on a wide range of products from the United States starting next April in response to the "unjustified" 25% tariffs that the new Donald Trump Administration applies to European steel and aluminum imports.