President Donald Trump imposed sweeping 25% tariffs on all steel and aluminum imported into the United States Wednesday, a policy aimed at leveling the playing field for US manufacturing but a move that threatens to drive up prices on a broad range of consumer and industrial goods for Americans.

The European Union announced tariffs on 26 billion euros, or $28.4 billion, worth of US goods in response to new American duties on steel and aluminum. The European Commission introduced the "swift and proportionate" countermeasures in a statement on Wednesday.

Europe had been banking on a United States that wanted to make a deal on tariffs and trade. With little progress in that direction, it’s reluctantly starting to hit back.