Overview
- Eurostat data show EU exports to the United States fell 30.4% year‑on‑year to €119.4 billion in the first quarter of 2026, while shipments to all non‑EU countries dropped 8.8% to €640.5 billion.
- Despite the decline, the United States remained the EU's largest export market with an 18.6% share; the United Kingdom was second with €88.7 billion and a 13.8% share.
- Journalists and analysts covering the release point to President Trump’s intensified tariff policy in his second term as a proximate cause, noting repeated U.S. import restrictions that raise costs for EU goods.
- Last August the EU and President Trump reached a deal in which the EU temporarily removed some industrial tariffs, including on autos and machinery, while the U.S. agreed to cap most tariffs on EU products at 15% through 2029.
- Other major partners also saw falls—exports to China dropped 7.9% and to Turkey 8.2%—a pattern that could pressure EU manufacturers’ sales and push firms to reroute supply chains or adjust production in coming quarters.