WASHINGTON — The United States will open a formal investigation into the European Union’s trade practices, President Donald Trump said on Friday, claiming the bloc has unfairly levied billions of dollars of fines against Google, Apple and other U.S. tech giants. In a lengthy post on social media, Trump said he has warned the EU about its practice of fining U.S. tech companies . The new tariffs replace temporary 10% worldwide import taxes that Trump imposed after the Supreme Court struck down his biggest tariffs . Trump had threatened retaliation if American tech companies are penalized. The EU describes some of the world’s leading tech giants — Amazon, Apple, Google parent Alphabet, Meta, Microsoft and TikTok owner ByteDance — as “gatekeepers” that control access for consumers.