EU Pauses Retaliatory Tariffs on US Goods for 90 Days

The European Union (EU) has announced a 90-day suspension of its planned retaliatory tariffs on US imports, in response to President Donald Trump reducing his imposed tariffs on the bloc.

The Details: The decision by the EU comes after Trump reduced the 20% tariff he imposed on the bloc on April 2 to 10%, aligning it with his universal tariff. In response to the initial tariff, the EU, backed by all member states except Hungary, had planned to implement three phases of countermeasures starting on April 15, affecting $4.3 billion worth of US imports. EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has expressed support for a “zero-for-zero” tariff deal with the US if Trump agreed to it.

Key Quotes: Von der Leyen stated, “We want to give negotiations a chance. While finalising the adoption of the EU countermeasures that saw strong support from our Member States, we will put them on hold for 90 days. If negotiations are not satisfactory, our countermeasures will kick in.” Under the countermeasures, products such as soybeans, meat, iron, steel, textiles, tobacco, and ice cream would be subject to tariffs of up to 25%. 

For Context: Reuters (Center bias) reported, “The Trump administration is weighing offers from more than a dozen countries on tariff deals and is close to reaching agreements with some of them, White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett said.”

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