The European Union has called on the United States to quickly restore tariff levels agreed in last year’s EU-US trade deal, the European Commission said Tuesday.
The Commission stated it would be beneficial if the main terms of that deal were in place before its one-year anniversary at the end of July.
Maros Sefcovic met U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer in Paris on Tuesday, with U.S. President Donald Trump’s threat to raise tariffs on EU cars and trucks to 25% among the EU’s primary concerns.
The Commission said the two officials held a 90-minute discussion on the most pressing aspects of the trade agreement. Trump says he is raising car tariffs because the European Union is not complying with the deal’s terms.
The EU executive said Sefcovic updated Greer on the expected timeline for the EU to implement the removal of EU duties on imported U.S. industrial goods, as the two sides agreed last year. That is unlikely to happen before June.
"At the same time, he called for a swift return to the agreed Turnberry terms, i.e. a 15% all-inclusive tariff rate, with the agreed carve-outs for the EU," the Commission said.
The U.S. Supreme Court struck down the previous global tariffs in February and Washington replaced them with a blanket 10% surcharge on top of existing duties. In some cases, EU goods face a U.S. tariff above 15%.
The EU executive added that Sefcovic and Greer agreed to increase engagement.
Source: Investing