Trump Floats 100% Tariff on Digital Taxers; Crypto Shrugs, Big Tech Watches 🪙

US President Donald Trump warned that any country imposing Digital Services Taxes on American technology firms would face immediate 100% tariffs, a step that would override existing trade agreements and rekindle global trade tensions. "…any Country that imposes such a Tax will immediately be met with a 100% TARIFF on any and all Goods sent to the United States of America. This TARIFF will supersede Trade Deals made with the Country, whether implemented, signed, or not," Trump wrote in a Truth Social post.

Digital Services Taxes, or DSTs, levy a percentage of revenue — not profits — that technology firms earn from local users. France introduced the model in 2019 with a 3% rate and collected about €700 million ($797 million) in 2024, almost entirely from large American technology companies. The United Kingdom, Italy, Spain and Austria operate comparable measures. During Trump's first term, the US Trade Representative determined that France's tax was discriminatory and prepared 25% duties on roughly $1.3 billion of French goods before suspending them for OECD-led talks that later stalled.

A 100% rate would hit European exporters of cars, wine and luxury goods hardest, and the threat is directed at governments that have already drawn revenue from US firms. Alphabet (GOOGL), Meta (META), Amazon (AMZN), Apple (AAPL) and Microsoft (MSFT) stand to avoid that recurring cost if jurisdictions pull back their DSTs. The exposure runs both ways: Apple recorded roughly $101 billion, about a quarter of its $391 billion in fiscal 2024 sales, in Europe, leaving it vulnerable to any retaliation from Brussels.

Equity markets on June 26 registered modest moves despite the policy backdrop. Meta climbed toward $555.69 and Microsoft recovered to levels above $370, while Alphabet held near $341.54. Amazon eased to $231.03 after establishing a higher intra-day high, and Apple ascended to levels above $280. Canada had scrapped its own 3% digital services tax in June 2025 after Trump cut off trade negotiations, underscoring how the threat has already produced concrete responses.

Crypto markets remained largely unaffected on the day of the announcement. Bitcoin ($BTC) traded near $60,073, up about 1.5% over 24 hours, holding steady on its price chart. Whether European governments retreat or retaliate will determine if that stability persists in the sessions ahead.