Young people with placards reading “Greenland is not for sale!” take part in a demonstration that gathered almost a third of the city population to protest against the US President’s plans to take Greenland, on January 17, 2026 in Nuuk, Greenland, near the US Consulate to Greenland.
Alessandro Rampazzo | Afp | Getty Images
LONDON — European stocks are expected to open sharply lower on Monday as traders react to U.S. President Donald Trump’s threat to hike tariffs on a number of European countries if they oppose his bid to buy Greenland.
The U.K.’s FTSE index is seen opening 0.5% lower, Germany’s DAX 1.23% lower, France’s CAC 40 down 10.63%, and Italy’s FTSE MIB down 1.24%, according to data from IG.
The expected morning open slump for markets comes after Trump announced on Saturday that eight European allies would face increasing tariffs, starting at 10% on Feb. 1 and rising to 25% on June 1, if a deal is not reached that allows Washington to “buy” Greenland, a semi-autonomous territory that’s part of Denmark.
Eight NATO members’ goods sent to the U.S. will face escalating tariffs “until such time as a Deal is reached for the Complete and Total purchase of Greenland,” Trump stated on his social media platform Truth Social on Saturday.
The proposed tariffs would target Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, the U.K., the Netherlands, and Finland, Trump said. European leaders said the tariffs were “unacceptable” and vowed to stand behind Denmark.
Markets will also be keeping a close eye on the World Economic Forum kicking off in Davos, Switzerland, this week. Trump is due to address the Forum on Wednesday.
There are no major earnings this week, though on the data front, euro zone inflation data is due.
