Sep 9, 2020 - Economy & Business

LVMH backs out of Tiffany acquisition over U.S. tariffs

Tiffany.

Photo; Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images

LVMH backed out of an $18.5 billion agreement to buy jeweler Tiffany & Co. Wednesday, citing U.S. tariffs on French products.

The big picture: LVMH’s board of directors recently made the decision after a "succession of events which undermine the acquisition," the company wrote. Tiffany filed a lawsuit in Delaware to enforce the acquisition.

Our thought bubble via Axios' Dan Primack: The move highlights how the U.S. is in trade wars with more than just China, with the Trump administration proposing new tariffs on French luxury goods in retaliation for a French tax on U.S. tech companies.

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