US to hold high tariffs on European cars until Brussels moves to cut tariffs on US goods
Washington will not lower steep tariffs on European cars until Brussels has introduced legislation to reduce its own tariffs on US exports, maintaining pressure on the EU’s automotive industry.
While the Trump administration has agreed to lower the current 27.5% US tariffs on European cars and car parts to 15%, details of a framework trade deal published on Thursday revealed the terms and conditions.
Donald Trump, the US president, and European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen announced the deal on 27 July at Trump’s luxury golf course in Turnberry, Scotland after an hour-long meeting that followed months of negotiations.
In a joint statement, the US and the EU listed commitments including the EU’s pledge to eliminate tariffs on all US industrial goods, and provide preferential market access for a wide range of US seafood and agricultural goods.
The US has agreed in principle to charge a 15% tariff on most EU imports, including autos, pharmaceuticals, semiconductors and lumber.
US officials have suggested it could only be a matter of weeks before the administration lowers its high tariffs on the EU auto industry, depending on how long it takes the bloc to formally legislate its pledges to pare back tariffs on the US.
“As soon as they’re able to introduce that legislation – and I don’t mean pass it and fully implement it, but really introduce it – then we will be in a position to provide that relief,” an unnamed US official told Reuters. “And I will say that both sides are very interested in moving quickly.”
But the joint statement makes clear that EU carmakers will continue to face 27.5% US tariffs until the bloc introduces new laws. US tariffs on EU cars will be lowered “from the first day of the same month in which the European Union’s legislative proposal is introduced”, it says, adding that the legislation must “be consistent with this Framework Agreement and enacted by the necessary legislatures”.
Reuters contributed reporting