FILE PHOTO: European Economic and Financial Affairs Commissioner Pierre Moscovici attends a parliamentary committee meeting in Athens, Greece, July 3, 2018. REUTERS/Costas Baltas

BERLIN (Reuters) - A further escalation in trade policy tensions between the European Union and the United States would hit financial markets and hurt both sides, said European Commissioner for Economic and Financial Affairs Pierre Moscovici.

“An escalation - no matter from which side - would have serious consequences for the economy, including for the financial markets, which would hurt all sides,” Moscovici told the Augsburger Allgemeine newspaper in an interview.

“That’s why we need a gateway to get out of this spiral that ultimately damages the global economy and pulls everyone down with it,” he added.

U.S. President Donald Trump is taking a more aggressive, protectionist posture on trade than his recent predecessors that has sparked retaliatory measures from the European Union, Mexico and Canada.