As Donald Trump rattles global markets with his renewed political rise, French President Emmanuel Macron sees an opening: positioning the euro as a stronger challenger to the dollar.
In private talks last week in Brussels, Macron questioned ECB chief Christine Lagarde about the euro’s rising strength. Lagarde, according to insiders, told EU leaders that Trump’s erratic policies are weakening the dollar’s global safe-haven status — offering the euro a rare chance to gain ground.
Trump’s economic shake-up — tariffs, NATO threats, ballooning deficits — is fueling European calls for greater autonomy. Germany has already ditched fiscal caution, and long-taboo ideas like joint borrowing are back on the table. Macron, a longtime advocate of EU integration, sees this as a path to a more sovereign Europe.
Yet major hurdles remain. The euro still makes up only 20% of global reserves, compared to the dollar’s 60%. Efforts to unify EU banking and capital markets have stalled, and German resistance to shared debt persists.
Still, momentum is building. Bundesbank President Joachim Nagel and Eurogroup head Paschal Donohoe both cite growing opportunity. As Lagarde put it, if Europe can streamline its markets, it could attract investment looking to move away from dollar assets.
For now, the euro is gaining in value — up 4% this year — but turning it into a true rival to the dollar remains a long-term ambition.
