Billionaire Bernard Arnault, CEO of luxury conglomerate LVMH, publicly rejected French President Emmanuel Macron’s appeal to suspend investments in the United States, branding state interference in private business as a path to “disaster,” according to Politico.
Speaking at a French Senate hearing on 21 May, Arnault dismissed Macron’s plea, which followed US President Donald Trump’s imposition of 20% tariffs on EU goods.
I think it’s very bad for the state to meddle in the management of private companies. It usually leads to disaster. I don’t think it’s a good idea to take advice like that, wherever it comes from.
The US tariffs, temporarily paused for 90 days to allow negotiations, spurred fears of a transatlantic trade war, particularly for sectors like cognac, where LVMH’s Hennessy brand faces existential risks from combined US and Chinese levies.
Arnault, a vocal Trump ally who attended his January 2025 inauguration, praised the US leader’s “wind of optimism” and economic policies, contrasting sharply with Macron’s stance. His defiance aligns with LVMH’s reliance on the US market, which accounts for 25% of its sales, though the company faces headwinds from China’s luxury slowdown and a 36% stock plunge since January.
The spat extends to France’s luxury sector. Kering CEO François-Henry Pinault mocked LVMH’s US manufacturing push, stating “it would make no sense to have Italian Gucci bags made in Texas,” a jab at LVMH’s Trump-era Texas facility, which has struggled with production issues.
Arnault retorted by highlighting Kering’s declining US sales versus LVMH’s growth, though analysts caution relocating production offers limited protection against tariffs.
Arnault reserved sharp criticism for Brussels, accusing the European Commission of inflexibility and “brandishing ultimatums” instead of pursuing “reciprocal concessions” with the US. He urged EU leaders to emulate the UK’s sector-specific tariff mitigation strategy, warning that failure to negotiate “cleverly” would force companies to shift operations stateside.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen countered, asserting the bloc is “ready to shape what comes next” and prepared retaliatory measures, including digital service tariffs. However, with Trump recently signalling optimism about a deal following talks with Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, businesses await clarity.
