While negotiations with the Trump administration continue, the European Commission is now preparing a new response if it fails to convince the US president to curb tariffs on European goods.
On Thursday, the European Commission identified 95 billion euros worth of US goods that could be subject to tariffs. At the same time, the EU is opening a case in the World Trade Organization (WTO) against the US. This is according to the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen.
- The EU remains fully committed to finding results in negotiations with the US. At the same time, we continue to prepare for all options, and the consultation launched today will help us in this necessary work, says von der Leyen.
She continues to believe that a solution can be found "that benefits consumers and businesses on both sides of the Atlantic". But if that doesn't happen, the EU will have a response ready when Trump's 90-day tariff break expires.
A senior official in the EU Commission emphasizes that this is a preliminary list. The EU Commission will now consult stakeholders such as companies about the list until June 10.
This is done to ensure that the EU does not hit European companies unnecessarily hard with its response to Trump, as the official puts it.
- An agreement with the US remains our top priority. I would like to emphasize that, says the official.
Have list ready
The EU Commission will spend the next four weeks on consultations. A revised list will then be prepared based on the responses received from stakeholders.
The list will be submitted to the EU countries so that they can take a final decision on whether to impose tariffs on US goods.
- We have so far seen a lot of support from EU countries, including heads of state and government, to come up with a strong response to the US. I expect the same this time, says the senior EU official.
The EU Commission has previously prepared a similar list in response to Trump's 25 percent tariff on steel and aluminum. The new list is a response to Trump's tariffs on cars and car parts as well as the general additional tariff of 10 percent on European goods that Trump has introduced.
The EU Commission has chosen to exempt pharmaceuticals and semiconductors from the list. This is because Trump, despite repeated threats, has not yet imposed tariffs on the two product groups.
The new EU list is instead dominated by industrial products such as cars and car parts, aircraft, electrical equipment, machine parts and batteries. In addition, the EU Commission is also planning to hit American wine and spirits, after the US has imposed tariffs on European wine and spirits.
The EU Commission has also designated American food products such as nuts and dried fruit worth a total of 6.4 billion euros and fishery products worth half a billion euros on the list.
- All options remain on the table. If necessary, we can also take measures that affect services, says the EU official.
While the EU has a trade surplus with the US when it comes to goods, the US has a trade surplus with the EU when it comes to digital services.
This could become a sore point for the US that the EU Commission could address if the negotiations end up running directly into Trump's tariff wall. However, this is an outcome that the EU Commission wants to avoid. That is why it has held back so far, it says.
- The list does not represent any kind of escalation. It is in no way a dollar-for-dollar response that we are giving to the US, says the official.
Does not match US tariffs
The EU Commission estimates that Trump is proposing tariffs on European goods worth a total of 379 billion euros. A figure that is so far clearly higher than the possible European response.
According to the European Commission, Trump's potential tariffs mean that 70 percent of EU exports to the US could be affected if no solution is found.
The European Commission has also decided to open a case at the World Trade Organization because it believes that Trump's tariff practices are in breach of WTO rules.
Initially, the case will only begin with consultations with the US. If a solution is found through the consultations, the case will not be taken further, says the EU Commission official.
In the same way, the EU can also immediately cancel the additional tariffs on US goods if the Trump administration agrees to an agreement.
/ritzau/
Text, graphics, images, sound, and other content on this website are protected under copyright law. DK Medier reserves all rights to the content, including the right to exploit the content for the purpose of text and data mining, cf. Section 11b of the Copyright Act and Article 4 of the DSM Directive.
Customers with IP agreements/major customer agreements may only share Danish Offshore Industry articles internally for the purpose of handling specific cases. Sharing in connection with specific cases refers to journaling, archiving, or similar uses.
Customers with a personal subscription/login may not share Danish Offshore Industry articles with individuals who do not themselves have a personal subscription to Danish Offshore Industry.
Any deviation from the above requires written consent from DK Medier.
