European CEOs hope sense will prevail as Trump ramps up tariff threats

European business leaders have largely sought to downplay concerns about the prospect of a transatlantic trade war at this week’s World Economic Forum in Davos.

The President of the United States Donald Trump has repeatedly promised to impose tariffs on goods imported from the European Union, incitement the block to warn that it is ready to respond to additional functions “proportionately”.

Speaking to reporters earlier in the week, the newly inaugurated US president said the EU has been “very, very bad for us. So, they’re going to be for tariffs. That’s the only way … you have to achieve equity.”

His comments came as the Trump administration is also considering imposing an additional 10% tariff on goods imported from China, potentially starting next month.

For business leaders attending the WEF’s annual meeting in Switzerland, the reaction to Trump’s tariff threats was decidedly mixed.

JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon on Wednesday he said that the duties that Trump is expected to slap on the commercial partners of the United States can be seen positively, indicating that people must “get over it”.

Sergio Ermotti, CEO of UBS, meanwhile, warned that interest rates are not likely to fall as fast if US tariffs stimulate inflation.

Siemens CEO Roland Busch has described the German industrial giant as “tariff proof”, amid fears of a US-EU trade war.

Asked about concerns about how the tariffs could impact his business, Busch said Siemens was a “global company” that already has a relatively large presence in the United States.

“We are a lot [serving] local to local, same for other regions, for China [and] for Europe,” Busch said.

The CEO of Siemens barely mentioned the company $10 billion acquisition of American engineering software firm Altair, saying the company recently expanded its US footprint.

“On the other hand, tariffs normally increase inflation by definition, so it doesn’t really help. So, I think the idea would be what can we do, what kind of deal to do to really reduce the tariffs trading at the lowest level,” Busch told CNBC.

“Free trade and low tariffs, I think, is really a driver of growth,” he added.

The chief executive of the Danish wind turbine manufacturer Vests on Thursday said the idea that tariffs will make the world a better place is “at least a new theory for many of us.”

Vestas’ Henrik Andersen also warned that additional duties on imported goods would likely create an inflationary risk.

Asked about the prospect of trade tariffs in Europe and the the favorable regulatory environment for green energy in the US, the CEO of Vestas told CNBC: “I think about both, I would say, let common sense prevail.”

SAP CEO Christian Klein on Thursday said the US tariffs would not be helpful, underscoring the importance for technology companies to do business with global trading partners.

“I would say that the tariffs are not helping global trade. And when you see it [at] the dependencies between Europe and the United States, or the United States and China, I don’t think this is good,” Klein told CNBC.

SAP’s Klein said he had spoken with several executives in Davos about how SAP can support them with its supply chain and financial software.

“Because, you know, everybody’s doing business in China. China, of course, also wants to continue doing business in the U.S. So for technology, it’s now even more important to build these bridges, to build these resilient supply chains .” he added.