EU to suspend US countermeasures despite lack of auto tariff relief
The move comes a week after the world's largest trading partners clinched a much-anticipated 'framework deal', which both sides said would see most EU exporters, including car manufacturers, hit with a 15% flat US levy beginning this Friday – the day after the EU's retaliatory tariffs were initially set to enter into force.
On Thursday, Donald Trump issued an executive order confirming the introduction of the flat 15% levy. However, the US president has yet to formally lower the levy on EU cars, which are still subject to a special 27.5% tariff. Most EU exports to America currently face a 10% minimum duty.
The reduction of US car duties is crucial for Europe's long-suffering auto industry, which is struggling to keep pace with increasingly fierce competition from Chinese electric vehicle manufacturers. The US accounts for more than a fifth of the EU's car exports, with €40 billion worth of autos shipped to America in 2024.
'On 31 July 2025, the US issued an executive order confirming the first step in the implementation of the agreement, namely the introduction on 8 August of a single, all-inclusive 15% tariff on goods from the EU,' Olof Gill, EU trade Commission spokesperson, said on Monday.
'The other elements of the 27 July agreement are now to be implemented by the US. This includes the commitment to decrease its Section 232 tariffs on cars and car parts imported from the EU to a 15% ceiling rate, as well as the specific treatment agreed for certain strategic products (e.g. aircraft and aircraft parts),' he added.
'With these objectives in mind, the Commission will take the necessary steps to suspend by six months the EU's countermeasures against the US, which were due to enter into force on 7 August.'
The proposed suspension comes amid deep disagreements between Washington and Brussels over the precise details of last month's deal, which falls well short of a traditional trade agreement.
In addition to the pledged car tariff reduction, the Commission has claimed the deal will see both sides completely forgo duties on each other's aircraft, semiconductor equipment, critical raw materials, and 'certain' chemicals, generics, and agricultural products.
A White House 'fact sheet' on the deal also states that the agreed 15% tariff rate applies to cars but does not state that Washington will offer the EU any additional tariff relief.
Adding to the confusion, the US officials have claimed that the EU's digital regulations and services taxes remain 'on the table' – a claim fiercely denied by Brussels.
Moreover, the US claims its levies on steel and aluminium – which are also subject to a special 50% levy – are not covered by the agreement. The Commission, however, says the US has agreed to a 'quota system' in which some EU metals will be taxed below 50%.
In addition to sector-specific duties on metals and cars, Trump has announced special so-called 'Section 232' probes, which could see further tariffs imposed on specific goods on national security grounds.
The EU and the US both say that pharmaceuticals and semiconductors, which are each subject to Section 232 investigations, are covered by the 15% levy.
The Commission's proposal to suspend the countermeasures is overwhelmingly likely to pass, given that a 'qualified majority' of EU countries, or 15 countries representing 65% of the bloc's population, is required to block it.
The measures, which combine two previous lists and have never been imposed, target a wide range of American products, including soybeans, motorbikes, cars, aircraft, machinery, and diamonds.
They were designed in response to Trump's sweeping tariffs, which have upended global supply chains currently affecting €370 billion worth of EU goods, or 70% of the bloc's exports to America.
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