Bernard Arnault, LVMH’s CEO and Europe’s richest man with a fortune of $156 billion, wants to negotiate a better tariff deal for Europe and America.
The luxury conglomerate chief believes conversations on trade matters between the EU and U.S. Are “not going well” at the moment, he told French senators during a parliamentary hearing on Wednesday.
LVMH has a lot riding on the potential agreement, given that 25% of the company’s revenues come from U.S. Sales.
That’s perhaps why Arnault suggests he’d lend his help in sorting the transatlantic deal.
“It is very important to reach an agreement with the U.S. For Europe,” he said, adding that the talks need to be pursued “with the aim to succeed” and find concessions.
The 76-year-old Arnault cited the U.K. As an example after it managed to negotiate down some of the tariffs President Donald Trump initially proposed. While the 10% blanket rate still applies to most goods, the deal had key changes on cars, steel, and aluminum.
“Using my modest means and contacts, I hope I will manage to convince Europe to adopt a similarly constructive attitude,” the Frenchman said, according to a translation from French reported by Reuters.
Currently, most of the world is on a 90-day clock imposed by the Trump administration and ending in July. During this time, countries and regional blocs like the EU are scrambling to strike a deal that would limit the impact of additional levies on key sectors.
LVMH’s wine and spirits business could be hit hard by potential tariffs. The company’s cognac has already been a bone of contention between Europe and China, as the latter imposed tariffs in response to a trade dispute.
Additional tariffs from the state side could further decimate its struggling alcohol business.
“We must do everything with Europe to prevent this … because the day it happens it will be too late,” Arnault said.
The businessman didn’t comment further on any direct talks with Trump or his recent White House.
Representatives at LVMH didn’t immediately return Coins2Day’s request for comment.
This isn’t the first time the French mogul has criticized the EU for failing to negotiate effectively with the U.S.
Last month, he flirted with the idea of nearshoring operations to America and said it would be “Brussels’ fault if this happens.”
Arnault previously hinted at expanding production in the U.S. Before, but LVMH has only a handful of factories across the group’s 75 brands.
While the luxury chief has a close relationship with Trump that goes back several decades, transplanting production from Europe or Asia to the U.S. Will be challenging.
“Europe is not run by a political power, but by a bureaucratic power that spends its time issuing regulations that are unfortunately imposed on all member states and that penalize our business sectors,” Arnault said at LVMH’s annual shareholder meeting in April.
Earlier, Europe proposed a zero-for-zero deal to the U.S., which it rejected. The region has been firm about cracking a fair, rather than lopsided, deal with one of its biggest trade partners. It has also held off on retaliatory measures against American goods to seek a middle ground.
On Thursday, the EU shared a revised trade proposal with the U.S.
Companies and individual countries in the bloc will watch how it unfolds with bated breath as the 90-day deadline inches closer.
