Even though a US appeals court on Friday ruled that large parts of the US punitive tariffs on imported goods were unconstitutional, it probably won't change much for Danish companies exporting to the US.
This is the assessment of Peter Bay Kirkegaard, senior chief consultant of the Confederation of Danish Industries, who advises members of the trade association on US customs regulations.
- The decision concerns the punitive tariffs that were introduced in the spring. However, the EU and the US have since entered into a mutual agreement on a 15 percent tariff, which in our opinion is not included, he says.
The senior chief consultant certainly believes that with the decision in hand, the EU could approach the Americans with a view to having the current agreement renegotiated, but he does not believe that will happen.
- The Trump administration still has the option of appealing the case to the US Supreme Court, and therefore it has not yet been finally decided. And even if the Supreme Court were to reach the same result, it might be worth considering whether it would not be wise to maintain the current rates of 15 percent, he says.
Peter Bay Kirkegaard calls the current agreement with the Americans "okay", and that the alternative may turn out to be worse.
- It could easily happen that the Trump administration will raise rates on specific goods such as steel, aluminum or medicine if the general tariff rate is rejected, says Peter Bay Kirkegaard.
Before the customs agreement between the EU and the US, goods from Europe were subject to a 10 percent punitive tariff, and it is this tariff that, according to the Court of Appeal, is illegal. Therefore, according to Peter Bay Kirkegaard, there may be a possibility that the 10 percent can be refunded retroactively.
The Court of Appeal's decision says that the current punitive tariff can be allowed to apply until October 14. If the US government appeals the decision to the Supreme Court, most expect it to have a suspensive effect, so that the punitive tariffs will be maintained until a decision is made.
/ritzau/
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