Europe's $12.6T in US assets offers little real leverage in escalating trade dispute

On January 19, 2026, analysis showed Europe holds about $12.6 trillion in US assets, exceeding the combined holdings of the rest of the world, yet most of this capital is in private hands and cannot be directly used as a policy weapon. EU policymakers are instead weighing options such as delaying a July trade deal and imposing around €93 billion in retaliatory tariffs, as strategists warn that any forced sell-off of US assets would damage Europe and face serious absorption limits in alternative markets.