According to a new analysis from the European Central Bank (ECB), internal trade frictions within the European Union impose significantly higher costs on commerce than the steepest tariffs threatened by U.S. President Donald Trump against the bloc last year.
The ECB research highlights how barriers — such as differences in national rules and regulations, cumbersome administrative procedures, and anti-competitive practices — create intra-EU trade costs equivalent to tariff-like levies of 67% on goods and a staggering 95% on services.These internal hurdles are described as more burdensome than the highest U.S. tariff levels Trump proposed targeting the EU in 2025 – 50% on EU goods, which was simply an opening bid at the start of negotiations.
The findings underscore a recurring theme in recent ECB commentary: while external threats like U.S. tariffs grab headlines, the EU’s own fragmented single market continues to hinder growth and integration far more severely. Economists Lucia Quaglietti and Vanessa Gunnella authored the article, published January 14, 2026.
MacDailyNews Take: ‘Tis shocking that a bloated quasi-governmental bureaucratic blob excretes massive impediments to commerce. Just shocking.
The European Union arose because the Europeans couldn’t compete on their own with the rest of the world, so they each lined up to surrender their national sovereignty, unique cultures, and dignity for an undemocratic, opaque, wasteful, bloated, bureaucratic quasi-governmental blob – and, even with the EU’s thumbs all over the scale, they still can’t compete. — MacDailyNews, March 4, 2024
We usually prefer the government to be hands-off wherever possible, Laissez-faire… Regulations are static and the marketplace is fluid, so extensive regulations can have unintended, unforeseen results down the road. – MacDailyNews, June 9, 2006
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@Macdailynews:
You’re evaluation of the EU is just totally wrong. The EU simplifies things but it’s each nation’s government on their own that has their own specific extra and in many cases more complex rules.
As a EU citizen I’m happy we got European standards for dangerous substances, food safety, privacy, retributions and protection of customers fraud prevention,… etc. Something the US in some instances lacks to the detriment of its citizens.
The article refers as additional costs between countries for products and services, as far as I have understand.
As an EU citizen I’m not happy to leave in an economic area where a Finish person have to pay 84.000€ extra than a German for the same car (Base model Porsche 911 without any optional equipment)
That sounds fair to you? Any compelling reason for that?
By the way, this week will be signed an agreement with Mercosur with which all that safety standards with food will go away. Something that is right now happening with Morocco, for instance.
I understand your point: everything should be fair and balanced but their is a huge difference living standards and salaries between Finland and Poland. The Finnish median salary is 3700 euro and the median salary is Poland is 2050 euro.
So there is a logic between price differences in Europe depending on many things – sometimes the laws and taxes in that specific country itself. We get the benefits of Europe while still having our own independence in many decisions. Not perfect but a good system for many things and certainly better than standing alone as a counting today’s world.