The Globe and Mail reports in its Monday edition that the European Union expects to find out today whether President Donald Trump will impose punishing tariffs on America's largest trade partner in a move economists have warned would have repercussions for companies and consumers on both sides of the Atlantic. An Associated Press dispatch to The Globe says Mr. Trump imposed a 20-per-cent import tax on all EU-made products in early April as part of a set of tariffs targeting countries with which the United States has a trade imbalance. Hours after the nation-specific duties took effect, he put them on hold until July 9 at a standard rate of 10 per cent after financial markets rebelled. Expressing displeasure with the EU's stance in trade talks, however, Mr. Trump said he would increase the tariff rate for European exports to 50 per cent, which could make everything -- from French cheese and Italian leather goods to German electronics and Spanish pharmaceuticals -- much more expensive in the U.S. The EU's executive Commission is hopeful for a deal. Without one, the EU said it was prepared to retaliate with tariffs on hundreds of American products, ranging from beef and auto parts to beer and Boeing airplanes.