'Hands off!' demos against Trump and Musk across US, Europe

US tech billionaire Elon Musk said he hoped Washington and Europe would agree to a "zero-tariff situation" that would create a de facto free-trade zone spanning the Atlantic Ocean.

Musk was speaking via video link at a convention in Florence of Italy's right-wing, co-ruling League party.

"At the end of the day, I hope it's agreed that both Europe and the United States should move ideally, in my view, to a zero tariff situation, effectively creating a free trade zone between Europe and North America," Musk said.

US President Donald Trump's sweeping tariffs were announced earlier this week, and the EU, which faces a 20% tariff, has already vowed to retaliate.

Musk also said he was in favor of "more freedom of people to move between Europe and North America" for work. But he reiterated his condemnation of what he saw as mass immigration.

Opponents of President Donald Trump and billionaire Elon Musk gathered to rally across the US on Saturday to protest the administration's actions.

More than 1,200 "Hands Off!" demonstrations were planned by more than 150 groups, including civil rights organizations, labor unions, LBGTQ+ advocates, veterans and elections activists.

The protest sites included the National Mall in Washington, D.C., state capitols and other locations in all 50 states including Boston, Chicago and New York.

Protesters assailed the Trump administration's moves to fire thousands of federal workers, close Social Security Administration field offices, effectively shutter entire agencies, deport immigrants, scale back protections for transgender people and cut federal funding for health programs.

Musk, a Trump adviser who owns Tesla, SpaceX and the social media platform X, has played a key role in government downsizing as the head of the newly created Department of Government Efficiency.

In Massachusetts, thousands of people gathered on Boston Common holding signs including "Hands off our democracy," "Hands off our Social Security" and "Diversity equity inclusion makes America strong. Hands off!"

In Ohio, hundreds rallied in rainy conditions at the Statehouse in Columbus while thousands of people marched in New York City's midtown Manhattan.

Hundreds of people also demonstrated in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, a few miles from Trump's golf course in Jupiter, where the president spent the morning at the club's Senior Club Championship.

Activists have staged nationwide demonstrations against Trump or Musk multiple times since Trump returned to office but the opposition movement has yet to produce a mass mobilization.

Asked about the protests, the White House said in a statement that "President Trump's position is clear: he will always protect Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid for eligible beneficiaries."

"Meanwhile, the Democrats' stance is giving Social Security, Medicaid, and Medicare benefits to illegal aliens, which will bankrupt these programs and crush American seniors," the statement added, while failing to give any evidence for those claims. 

French President Emmanuel Macron has said following discussions with Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer, the two countries have reaffirmed their determination to "closely coordinate" positions in tariff discussions with US President Donald Trump.

"A trade war is in no one’s interest. We must stand united and resolute to protect our citizens and our businesses," Macron wrote in post on X. 

US President Donald Trump's universal baseline 10% tariff on all imports from many of the country's trading partners was introduced on Saturday, taking effect at the stroke of midnight in the eastern US. Imports from the European Union will be hit with a 20% tariff.

"With the British Prime Minister, we addressed key bilateral and European issues. Because in an unstable world, strong alliances remain our best compass."

Macron also made reference to the meeting between French and British military chiefs with Ukrainian officials in Kyiv, as the countries discussed strengthening the Ukrainian army and ways to support the war-torn country when the end of hostilities with Russia come to fruition.

Hundreds of protesters gathered in central London as part of global demonstrations against the administration of US President Donald Trump.

Crowds gathered in Trafalgar Square on Saturday afternoon with banners which read "No to MAGA hate" and "Dump Trump."

The rally was just one of hundreds of so-called "hands off" demonstrations around the world, including in cities across the United States, Paris, Berlin and Frankfurt.

The movement was organized by more than 150 groups, including civil rights groups and trade unions. In London, demonstrators voiced their concerns with chants of "Hands off Ukraine" and "Hands off the UK."

About 200 people, mostly American, gathered on Paris' Place de la Republique, listening to speeches and waving banners ranging from "Resist Tyrant," "Rule of Law," to "Feminists for Freedom not fascism" and "Save Democracy-"

Hundreds of people protested against billionaire Elon Musk outside a Tesla showroom in Berlin in on Saturday.

The rally's organizers said they hoped the demonstration would help boost the movement against Musk — who is a key advisor to US President Donald Trump — and his electric car company Tesla in Germany.

"Elon Musk must no longer be allowed to undermine democratic structures unhindered," said Caro Weber from Turn Off the Tap on Tesla.

Berlin police said they had taken action against one protester who was holding a banner with photos of Musk performing a gesture similar to the Nazi salute during Trump's inauguration in January. 

Musk has come in for intense criticism in Germany since making the gesture, which he denied had Nazi connotations.

A police spokesperson said they were investigating whether displaying the image amounted to a criminal offence. 

Public displays of Nazi symbols, including the one-armed salute, are banned in Germany.

As a key advisor to Trump, Musk has overseen massive cuts to public spending, despite not being an elected official.

There have been repeated protests targeting Tesla showrooms and calls for boycotts against the luxury electric cars since Musk took on his role at the so-called Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). 

Similar anti-Musk protests were also planned on Saturday in the US, as well as in Canada, the United Kingdom, France and Mexico.

The maker of British luxury cars Jaguar and Land Rover luxury cars has said it is pausing shipments to the United States this month.

The move by Jaguar Land Rover Automotive — one of the largest auto manufacturers in the United Kingdom — comes in the wake of the "new trading terms" associated with Trump's sweeping tariffs, which include a 25% levy on vehicle imports.

"The USA is an important market for JLR's luxury brands," the company said in a statement. "We are taking some short-term actions including a shipment pause in April, as we develop our mid-to-longer term plans."

The 25% levy on foreign-made cars, which Trump announced late last month, took effect on Thursday, April 3.

The new tariffs are expected to hurt the UK automotive industry, which is already struggling with falling domestic demand and amid the industry's transition to electric vehicles.

In a statement, the chief executive of the UK's Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) Mike Hawes said Trump's announcement "comes at the worst possible time."

The levies are also bad news for Germany's carmakers, who like their UK counterparts are also struggling. 
 

US President Donald Trump has insisted that his sweeping tariffs, which have sent shockwaves through global markets and upended the post-World War II trading order, will bring "historic" results.

In a post on his social media platform Truth Social, Trump said the US would "no longer" be treated like a "dumb and helpless 'whipping post'" by its trading partners.

"We are bringing back jobs and businesses like never before," the president said, adding that "this is an economic revolution, and we will win." 

"Hang tough, it won't be easy, but the end result will be historic."

Italy's Economy Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti has warned against retaliating to the tariffs imposed by the Trump administration.

In his announcement at the White House on Wednesday, Trump said countries in the European Union would face levies of 20% from April 9.

Addressing a business forum outside Milan on Saturday, Giorgetti said the Italian government prefers to try to deescalate the situation, amid fears of a global recession.

"We must avoid launching a policy of counter-tariffs that could be damaging for everyone, and especially for us," Giorgetti warned. 

"Our message is that we need to avoid pushing the panic button. We are following a pragmatic and rational approach."

The minister also called for the EU's fiscal rules to be relaxed to allow member states to increase spending.

In the wake of Trump's announcement, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Thursday said the bloc was ready to respond with sweeping countermeasures should negotiation with Washington fail.

Von der Leyen said the EU was already preparing a first round of tariffs on some €26 billion ($28.5 billion) on US imports, that will take effect in mid-April.

China's Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said Saturday that "the market has spoken" after stocks around the world plummeted this week in the wake of Trump's tariffs announcement.

"Now is the time for the US to stop doing the wrong things and resolve the differences with trading partners through equal-footed consultation," Guo said in a post on Facebook.

Trump has ordered 34% tariffs on Chinese imports to the US, bringing the total taxes on goods from China this year to 54%.

Beijing retaliated in kind on Friday, slapping tariffs of 34% on all US goods as well as curbing exports on key rare earth elements.

The moves are the latest in a rapidly escalating trade war between the world' two largest economies.

Chinese state media Xinhua, meanwhile, published a statement from China's central government which urged the Trump administration to "stop using tariffs as a weapon to suppress China's economy and trade, and stop undermining the legitimate development rights of the Chinese people."

"China has taken and will continue to take resolute measures to safeguard its sovereignty, security and development interests," Beijing said, adding that Washington's actions "seriously undermines" the rules-based multilateral trading system, and global economic stability.

Hong Kong, however, will not be imposing counter tariffs, with the Special Administrative Region's Finance Secretary Paul Chan saying the city must remain "free and open."

"Allowing a free flow of capital and acting as a free port are our advantages, and this will not change," Chan told Hong Kong's public broadcaster RTHK.

"The rules-based multilateral trading system is our core," he added.
 

US President Donald Trump's universal 10% tariff on all goods imports from many of the country's trading partners was introduced on Saturday.

The "baseline" 10% tariff took effect at the stroke of midnight in the eastern US, marking the start of a new era in global trade.

The United Kingdom, Brazil, Singapore are some of the countries facing the 10% levies.

Trump's tariffs — a tax on foreign imports — have upended the global trading order that has been in place since the end of World War II, under which nations traded under mutually agreed rates.

Kelly Ann Shaw, a former White House trade advisor during Trump's first term, said this week that the move, which she described as the "biggest trade action of our lifetime," represents "a pretty seismic and significant shift" for trade between the US and its largest partners. 

The US president's announcement of "reciprocal" tariffs last Wednesday — which he termed "Liberation Day" — has sent global markets tumbling and stoked fears of a global recession.

Some $5 trillion (€4.56 trillion) were wiped from the stock market by the end of trading on Friday, the largest sell off since the pandemic.

Higher tariffs, ranging from 11% to 50%, on dozens of the US biggest trading partners are due to take effect at midnight on Wednesday, April 9.

Imports from the European Union will be hit with a 20% tariff. Goods from China will face a 34% tariff, on top of a 20% levy on Chinese goods implemented by the Trump administration earlier.   

Imports of steel and aluminum, as well as cars, trucks and auto parts, will be exempt from the latest tariffs as they are subject to a separate 25% national security tariff.

The energy sector, which in 2024 was valued at $645 billion in imports, has also been exempt from the tariffs.

US President Donald Trump's universal 10% tariff on all imports from many of the country's trading partners was introduced on Saturday.

The "baseline" 10% tariff took effect at the stroke of midnight in the eastern US, marking the start of a new era in global trade.

The move has sent shockwaves through stock markets around the world, as countries weigh up their response.

Meanwhile, anti-Trump protests today are expected in the US, Germany, France and elsewhere.