E.U. Leader Threatens to Retaliate With Tariffs on Bourbon and Bluejeans<br />Mr. Gabriel said, “Such a sweeping blow from the U. S. would reverberate around the world,<br />but our exports and jobs would be among the hardest in the world hit.”<br />Dieter Kempf, head of the Federation of German Industries, warned<br />that Mr. Trump was risking a “spiral of protectionism” that in the end would cost American jobs, as well as those in Germany and the rest of Europe.<br />Pressed for reaction to Mr. Trump’s first tweet, which was sent in the course of a regular weekly government news conference,<br />Mr. Seibert declined to comment, except to say, “The German government has not changed its position in the past 18 minutes.”<br />The White House has said that the tariff details remain to be worked out,<br />and Mr. Seibert said the German government was awaiting the exact details before assessing the scope of the impact.<br />Steffen Seibert, a spokesman for the German chancellor, Angela Merkel, said on Friday<br />that the government “rejects” the tariffs, adding that such measures could lead to a global trade war, which “can’t be in anyone’s interest.”<br />Hans Jürgen Kerkhoff, president of the German Steel Federation, said on Friday:<br />“These measures clearly violate the rules of the World Trade Organization.
