23 hours Ago By Núria Rius
The Spanish government is already preparing the ground to respond to the impact that Donald Trump's tariffs may have on the Spanish economy. The president of the central government, Pedro Sánchez, is scheduled to appear tomorrow, Thursday, to explain the "contingency plan" to help those sectors of the economy most exposed to the US trade war, as stated by the Secretary of State for Trade, Amparo López, in statements to the media during an institutional visit to Navarre, and confirmed by sources. Sánchez's appearance is scheduled to follow a meeting with the main business stakeholders affected by any decisions Trump may make.
The tariff policy of the new US administration, which threatens to trigger a global trade war, reaches its D-Day this Wednesday, the date on which a large part of the tariffs are due to take effect. Catalonia alone already has 3,161 companies that regularly export to the United States worth €4.35 billion, according to data from Acción.
"Concern, but at the same time caution. The first reaction to these announcements should always be one of construction and dialogue, but, without a doubt, these tariffs require a tough and proportionate response. Tomorrow [Thursday] the Spanish Prime Minister will present a contingency plan for this situation," López explained.
The Spanish Prime Minister announced last week in the Congress of Deputies that he was preparing a shock plan. These measures, which Pedro Sánchez may announce, and which the leader of the Popular Party, Alberto Núñez Feijóo, has already demanded, will come after a meeting this Wednesday afternoon with the main leaders of both major unions in Spain, the CCOO and UGT, as well as the Spanish employers' associations. The Second Vice President and Minister of Labor, Yolanda Díaz, will also participate in the meeting.
From steel to wine: the most affected sectors In any case, this Wednesday morning, Economy Minister Carlos Cuerpo was more cautious. Although he said that Spain and Brussels are prepared to respond to Donald Trump's tariff policy, he declined to go into details: "This is not the time to start speculating or anticipating what measures may be taken. Tonight we will have all the information and, from there, we can make a calm assessment of what the impact may be.
" The minister recalled that the Spanish government has already met with some of the affected sectors, such as steel, automobiles, and wine. "I want to send a message of calm and confidence," reiterated Cuerpo, who at the same time noted that the difficult balance between a response to Trump and negotiation remains on the table: "We want to reach an agreed solution." Waiting for Brussels However, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has also warned Donald Trump that the European Union is willing to use all available tools to respond to the tariff war, although she maintains her offer to the United States to negotiate until the last minute.
In fact, Brussels has postponed the entry into force of part of the tariffs it intends to apply to US products to give itself more time to reach an agreement with the White House and avoid an escalation in the trade war, reports Gerard Fageda..
