EU may speed up retaliatory tariffs over US duties
‘If no mutually acceptable solution is reached, both the existing and possible additional EU countermeasures will automatically take effect on July 14 or earlier’
The European Union is preparing for another round of trade talks with the US and warned that it may speed up retaliatory measures if President Donald Trump follows through on his tariff threats, the latest of which includes a 50 per cent levy on steel and aluminium imports.
The European Commission, which handles trade matters for the EU, said Monday it “strongly” regrets the tariff hike – up from an originally planned 25 per cent – and said the move is undermining efforts to reach a solution to the trade conflict.
The EU’s trade chief, Maros Sefcovic, will meet with US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer on Wednesday in Paris and a team from the commission is on its way to Washington to continue technical talks, Commission Spokesman Olof Gill told reporters in Brussels on Monday.
“If no mutually acceptable solution is reached, both the existing and possible additional EU countermeasures will automatically take effect on July 14 or earlier if circumstances require,” Gill said.
“The commission has been clear at all times about its readiness to act in defence of EU interests, protecting our workers, consumers and industry.”
The EU is trying to fast track negotiations with the US before a July 9 deadline, when Trump said he will hit nearly all of the bloc’s imports with a 50 per cent tariff.