Can Trump unilaterally cut trade with Spain?

"We no longer want to do any kind of business with Spain. I would like that to stop. Spain is a terrible partner in NATO. They don’t take part, they don’t pay. I don’t want anything to do with Spain. Cut all trade with Spain, please, including visits," Donald Trump once again declared during a joint press conference after the NATO meeting in Ankara, in front of an impassive Mark Rutte.

As a former prime minister of the Netherlands, the secretary general of the Atlantic Alliance could have reminded the US president that trade competences for the European Union’s member states lie with the Commission, albeit with some nuances.

Since the creation of the single market in 1993, tariff decisions, trade agreements and other measures have been an exclusive competence of the EU. Any coercive action against one of the 27 would have a direct impact on the others and would, in all likelihood, trigger a joint response.

Trade flows between two of these countries are not even considered exports, but “intra-Community supplies”. This interdependence also means that a crop of Valencian oranges may be processed in another European country before being shipped to the US, which makes any unilateral action extremely difficult to implement.

"The US federal government knows how the EU’s trade relations are managed and is not interested in breaking off trade ties," replied Teresa Ribera, the EU’s Competition chief and a former minister under Pedro Sánchez, last March when she was asked about the issue after Trump once again threatened Spain.

The alternative – namely that Brussels failed to react to an economic attack on one of its members – would undermine the very design of the single market, as it would amount to disregarding the bloc’s treaties by treating a member state as if it did not belong to the EU.

The figures: a trade deficit currently weighing on Spain

Even if that were not the case, Trump would have more to lose if he carried out his threats. As of 2025, only 4.9% of Spain’s goods exports go to the United States, worth around €18 billion, a share that makes the country less dependent than, for example, Italy (10.7%) or Germany (9.9%).

By contrast, US exports to Spain amount to around €23 billion, which technically means the North American giant runs a trade surplus on this route. That said, exports to Spain account for only around 1.2% of total US exports.

Some sectors are more exposed than others, as we explained in this earlier analysis. Capital goods and semi-manufactures, such as industrial machinery and chemical products, account for more than half of Spanish exports to the US, while food products represent around 18%.

Within these sectors, exports of engines and construction materials are among the most sought-after Spanish goods in the US. As for foodstuffs, oils and fats, including olive oil, represent around 14% of Spanish exports crossing the Atlantic.

As for tariffs, Section 122 of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act places limits on Trump’s presidential powers: a cap of 15% and a maximum duration of 150 days for tariff measures, after which he would indeed need Congress to extend them. Sections 232 and 301 require prior formal investigations, lengthening the procedure.

Other potentially applicable unilateral measures

Beyond trade policy, Trump could impose individual sanctions on legal entities or natural persons via his Bureau of Industry and Security or the Treasury Department, as happened to the rapporteur Francesca Albanese, without going through congressional oversight. This can involve diplomatic restrictions, limits on banking services and travel bans affecting both public and private entities.

The Department of Commerce could also restrict the sale of US technology (semiconductors, software, defence components) to specific Spanish companies through the so-called “Entity List”. There have historically been occasional listings in EU countries, but on national security grounds, such as shell companies linked to Russia or Iran. The vast majority of current sanctions target China.

Spain, however, enjoys a privileged status under the US Export Administration Regulations (EAR). It is listed in the A:5 country group (alongside Germany, France, Italy, the United Kingdom, Japan and South Korea), which receives the most favourable treatment for export licences.