Trade conflict
Trump provides the prospect of a letter with a deal of EU and extracölle
US President Donald Trump follows in the trade dispute with the European Union. Is there a movement in the conversations?
In the customs conflict with a number of trading partners, US President Donald Trump announced a letter to the EU and special tariffs for certain industries. When asked by a journalist, whether he is optimistic about a deal with the European Union, he said: “We are probably two days away from sending them a letter. We are in conversation with them. I just want to know that a letter means a deal.”
Trump emphasized that EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and “the entire group” would now treat the United States well. “It’s like a new world. (…) They were among the hardest with which we had to do. In many ways they were even worse than China,” he said.
Trump: customs of 50 percent on copper
The US President wants to introduce extracölle for certain industry imports regardless of the European Union. Surse of 50 percent should be charged on copper imports. He can also imagine tariffs on medicines, semiconductors and “various other things”.
Trump had already had particularly high extracols of 25 or 50 percent introduced on the import of cars and car parts as well as steel and aluminum. With his customs policy, the Republican wants to correct alleged trade weights and achieve that more is produced in the United States.
Chief of committee: EU and the USA negotiate on a few pages
The fact that Trump now wants to send a letter to the European Union would be new: Such a letter has not yet been expected in the EU Commission.
According to the chairman of the trade committee in the European Parliament, Bernd Lange, both sides currently only negotiate only a few pages. The intended framework agreement is created as a “relatively limited paper”-the SPD European politician said that there is currently negotiating about a three-sided text.
It could be generally stipulated that you can deal with certain import volume of cars, which can then be traded duty -free or for a small duty. Details would then have to be regulated later. For a long time, it also warned that the current “breathing space” had to be used in order to find a comprehensive package solution for all existing and threatened tariffs.
The EU Commission sees the tariffs as not justified and incompatible with the rules of the World Trade Organization (WTO).
German exports to the United States recently dropped
The customs dispute with the United States already has a negative impact on the German economy. In May, exports to the United States, the most important trading partner for German companies, fell to the lowest level of state for more than three years according to data from the Federal Statistical Office. Exports fell by 7.7 percent to the previous month to 12.1 billion euros and ensured the second decline in German exports in a row.
“The situation in foreign trade is dramatic and threatens to further tighten,” says Dirk Jandura, President of the BGA export association. “The consequences of Trump’s customs policy are becoming increasingly clear.”
US government expects billions of fresh funds
Meanwhile, US Finance Minister Scott Bessent promises to be a descendant of all the additional import fees: by the end of 2025, he expects more than $ 300 billion, he said after a cabinet session. The customs income is important for the United States: they should serve to at least partially countered Trump’s expensive election promise of large tax cuts.
Already sent more than a dozen letters
On Monday, Trump published more than a dozen letters with customs specifications to different countries, especially in Asia. He also postponed the deadline for new imports by almost a month. Actually, the deadline would have expired this Wednesday (July 9). From August 1st, new tariffs are to be raised to exports from other countries to the USA.
Shortly before, Trump had settled again – he insists on his customs period on August 1st. The Republican wrote Truth Social on his platform: “Nothing has changed on this date, and nothing will change. In other words: All amounts are due from August 1, 2025”. He added: “No extensions are granted.”
Hours later, the Republican had not completely committed himself to the liability of the new customs period. When asked whether the deadline for August 1, he said in the presence of journalists on Monday evening (local time): “I would say binding, but not 100 percent.” He showed himself open if the trading partners submit a proposal to him.
dpa
Source: Stern
