The European Union’s member countries voted on Thursday to approve counter-tariffs on €93 billion of US goods, which could be imposed should the bloc fail to reach a trade deal with Washington, EU diplomats said.
The 27-nation bloc’s executive European Commission had said on Wednesday its primary focus was to achieve a negotiated outcome with Washington to avert 30 per cent US tariffs that president Donald Trump has said he will apply on August 1st.
The commission said it would press on in parallel with plans for potential countermeasures, merging two packages of proposed tariffs of €21 billion and €72 billion into a single list and submitting this to EU members for approval.
No countermeasures would enter force until August 7th. So far, the EU has held back from imposing any countermeasures, despite Trump’s repeated announcements of tariffs, the broadest of which have been postponed.
READ MORE
EU member states authorised the first package of countermeasures in April, but these were immediately suspended to allow time for negotiations.
[ EU moves towards accepting 15% tariff as price of dealOpens in new window ]
The EU and United States appear to be heading towards a possible trade deal, according to EU diplomats, which would result in a broad 15 per cent tariff on EU goods imported into the US, mirroring a framework agreement Washington struck with Japan. Mr Trump would still need to take any final decision.
Under the outlines of the potential deal, the 15 per cent rate could apply to sectors including cars and pharmaceuticals and would not be added to long-standing US duties, which average just under 5 per cent.
There could also be concessions for sectors such as aircraft, lumber as well as some medicines and agricultural products, which would not face tariffs, diplomats said.
Washington does not, however, appear willing to lower its 50 per cent tariff on steel. – Reuters
