President Donald Trump announced Sunday that he will delay the implementation of 50% tariffs on European Union products until July 9, following a phone call with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.

Trump’s trade policy has continued to stir fears of a recession and inflation spikes, with each new tariff announcement triggering volatility in financial markets. On Friday, Trump reignited the transatlantic trade dispute by announcing new tariffs set to begin June 1, but he later agreed to postpone them to allow more time for negotiations.

“She just called me (...) and asked for a postponement of the June 1 date. She said she wants to begin serious negotiations,” Trump told reporters in Morristown, New Jersey, before boarding Air Force One. “I agreed,” he added.

Von der Leyen, for her part, said on X that the call was positive and emphasized the need for more time to reach a deal. “Europe is ready to move forward quickly and decisively in the negotiations. To reach a good agreement, we will need time until July 9,” she wrote. “The EU and the United States have the most important and closest trade relationship in the world.”

European and U.S. stock markets closed lower following Trump’s initial announcement, but on Monday, European markets reacted positively to the delay. The CAC 40 in Paris rose by 1.1% and Frankfurt’s DAX gained 1.6%, on a day when London and Wall Street remained closed for a public holiday.

Analysts noted that the pattern of threats followed by retreats is characteristic of Trump’s trade tactics. “The market seems to dance to Trump’s tune: first the threat, then a step back, followed quickly by a rebound as speculative investors anticipate concessions,” said Jochen Stanzl of CMC Markets.

The EU and the United States had previously agreed to suspend retaliatory measures until July to avoid an all-out trade war, but Trump said Friday that talks with the EU were “going nowhere” and accused the bloc of taking advantage of the U.S.

In Germany, Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil called for a return to “serious negotiations,” saying he had discussed the issue with U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. “We don’t need more provocations, but serious negotiations,” Klingbeil told Bild, warning that the U.S. tariffs “endanger the U.S. economy as much as the German and European ones.”

With information from AFP