Bernard Arnault: Blame Brussels if tariffs push LVMH to move production to US

French billionaire Bernard Arnault has warned that iconic luxury goods giant LVMH could offshore production to the United States in the event of a trade war as a result of President Donald Trump’s proposed tariffs on the European Union.

“It will be Brussels’ fault if this happens,” the LVMH head said Thursday during the conglomerate’s annual shareholder meeting.

After slapping a 10 percent universal tariff on all trading partners and 25 percent levies on cars, steel and aluminum, the White House in early April announced sweeping global tariffs that would have affected hundreds of billions of euros worth of goods — only to suspend them for 90 days after global market chaos ensued.

The EU has already paused its retaliation against Trump’s steel and aluminum tariffs in the hopes of negotiating a deal within the three-month window, even as some of the U.S. tariffs remain in place. Earlier this month, French President Emmanuel Macron called on European companies to pause investments in the United States until the situation could be “clarified.”

While most analysts attribute the investment-chilling uncertainty to the Trump administration and its nebulous trade goals, Arnault says it is the European Union that must shoulder the responsibility to find a deal that protects its interests without raising tariffs.

The U.S. is a major market for LVMH, so the firm would be uniquely exposed to a trade war between Brussels and Washington. Arnault said that if the two sides don’t reach an agreement, higher tariffs would push LVMH and other European companies to move operations to the United States.

“If Europe cannot negotiate intelligently, there will be consequences for many businesses,” Arnault said.

Arnault, who attended Trump’s inauguration in January, is an outspoken fan of the president’s plan to slash taxes and red tape to entice manufacturers to move production stateside. On Thursday he criticized the EU as a “bureaucratic power that spends its time issuing regulations that unfortunately are imposed on all member countries … and that penalize our economic sectors.”

Arnault also said he wants the EU and the U.S. to enact a “free-trade zone,” similar to a call from fellow billionaire Elon Musk earlier this month. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the bloc had proposed a zero-for-zero tariff deal on industrial goods.

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