Latest news with #Sefcovic
Sydney Morning Herald
3 days ago
- Automotive
- Sydney Morning Herald
Booze and Boeings: Europe sharpens tariff hit list, ramping up trade war with Trump
Trump has shifted ground on his deadlines in the past and may do so again on the tariff rate and timing, prompting disagreement among EU members about the scale of their retaliation. Loading Sefcovic said he would not walk away from a genuine effort to reach a deal, but he signalled a 'second strand' in the negotiations about new EU tariffs if necessary. 'As I have said before, it takes two hands to clap,' he said this week. 'We must prepare for all outcomes – including, if necessary, well-considered, proportionate measures to restore balance in our trans-Atlantic relationship.' The EU drafted a list of American products four weeks ago to consider tariffs on annual US exports worth €95 billion, about $170 billion. This was cut down to a revised list worth €72 billion, or about $128 billion. The list includes aircraft and aeronautical components, a major threat for Boeing in its competition with European giant Airbus. It also targets bourbon whiskey from states such as Kentucky, where 64.5 per cent of voters chose Trump at the presidential election. Other products on the list include cars, food, wine, beer and medical devices. Sefcovic shared the revised list with EU member countries this week, giving them a chance to negotiate changes, but also said he was prepared to do more. 'This does not exhaust our toolbox, and every instrument remains on the table,' he said. Export powerhouses such as Germany are concerned that retaliatory tariffs would only trigger a reprisal from Trump, who might pile even greater penalties on EU products. In the auto sector, for instance, the EU has more at stake with its exports than with any penalty it could apply on American products. While the EU shipped 749,170 new cars to the US last year, the US only sent 164,857 cars in the opposite direction. In the farm sector, France is concerned that retaliation would trigger White House reprisals against French wine and other high-value exports. The German Association of the Automotive Industry (VDA) said the situation meant an earlier 27.5 per cent tariff on European cars was still in force until a deal was struck. 'The costs for our companies are already in the billions – and the sum is growing every day,' VDA chief Hildegard Muller said in a comment to this masthead. 'With regard to any countermeasures, it must be ensured that they do not damage our own industry.' Muller said that two-thirds of the cars shipped from the US to the EU came from German companies – a key fact after German brands invested in American factories. The peak group for Italian wine exporters, the Unione Italiana Vini (UIV), called the Trump tariff plan the 'darkest page' in relations between Italy and the US. UIV president Lamberto Frescobaldi said the 30 per cent tariff on wine would push up prices so much that it was 'virtually an embargo' of 80 per cent of the Italian wine exports, costing hundreds of thousands of jobs. The retaliation is being described in Brussels as a final option if Trump does not give ground on his 30 per cent tariff, but it depends on EU member states holding their nerve. If some countries fear reprisals from Trump, they may push for carve-outs from the retaliation plan in the hope it would spare their biggest industries from even greater US trade penalties.
The Age
3 days ago
- Automotive
- The Age
Booze and Boeings: Europe sharpens tariff hit list, ramping up trade war with Trump
Trump has shifted ground on his deadlines in the past and may do so again on the tariff rate and timing, prompting disagreement among EU members about the scale of their retaliation. Loading Sefcovic said he would not walk away from a genuine effort to reach a deal, but he signalled a 'second strand' in the negotiations about new EU tariffs if necessary. 'As I have said before, it takes two hands to clap,' he said this week. 'We must prepare for all outcomes – including, if necessary, well-considered, proportionate measures to restore balance in our trans-Atlantic relationship.' The EU drafted a list of American products four weeks ago to consider tariffs on annual US exports worth €95 billion, about $170 billion. This was cut down to a revised list worth €72 billion, or about $128 billion. The list includes aircraft and aeronautical components, a major threat for Boeing in its competition with European giant Airbus. It also targets bourbon whiskey from states such as Kentucky, where 64.5 per cent of voters chose Trump at the presidential election. Other products on the list include cars, food, wine, beer and medical devices. Sefcovic shared the revised list with EU member countries this week, giving them a chance to negotiate changes, but also said he was prepared to do more. 'This does not exhaust our toolbox, and every instrument remains on the table,' he said. Export powerhouses such as Germany are concerned that retaliatory tariffs would only trigger a reprisal from Trump, who might pile even greater penalties on EU products. In the auto sector, for instance, the EU has more at stake with its exports than with any penalty it could apply on American products. While the EU shipped 749,170 new cars to the US last year, the US only sent 164,857 cars in the opposite direction. In the farm sector, France is concerned that retaliation would trigger White House reprisals against French wine and other high-value exports. The German Association of the Automotive Industry (VDA) said the situation meant an earlier 27.5 per cent tariff on European cars was still in force until a deal was struck. 'The costs for our companies are already in the billions – and the sum is growing every day,' VDA chief Hildegard Muller said in a comment to this masthead. 'With regard to any countermeasures, it must be ensured that they do not damage our own industry.' Muller said that two-thirds of the cars shipped from the US to the EU came from German companies – a key fact after German brands invested in American factories. The peak group for Italian wine exporters, the Unione Italiana Vini (UIV), called the Trump tariff plan the 'darkest page' in relations between Italy and the US. UIV president Lamberto Frescobaldi said the 30 per cent tariff on wine would push up prices so much that it was 'virtually an embargo' of 80 per cent of the Italian wine exports, costing hundreds of thousands of jobs. The retaliation is being described in Brussels as a final option if Trump does not give ground on his 30 per cent tariff, but it depends on EU member states holding their nerve. If some countries fear reprisals from Trump, they may push for carve-outs from the retaliation plan in the hope it would spare their biggest industries from even greater US trade penalties.
New York Times
4 days ago
- Business
- New York Times
Europe Rushes to Negotiate a Trade Deal as Trump's Team Voices Indifference
Maros Sefcovic, one of the European Union's top trade negotiators, is headed to Washington on Wednesday to talk to Trump administration officials in a bid to stop painful 30 percent tariffs from kicking in on Aug. 1. But at a time when E.U. officials are hoping that President Trump's latest tariff threat is more of a negotiating gambit than a serious possibility, the latest comments from the White House have offered little encouragement. Mr. Trump is 'indifferent whether we take in the 30 percent rate or whether the Europeans come to us with a much better deal,' Scott Bessent, the Treasury secretary, said on Bloomberg Television on Tuesday, later calling this moment a 'generational opportunity to reset trade.' Mr. Trump told reporters outside the White House on Tuesday that 'we already have a deal with the E.U.,' referring to the letter he sent last week to Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, threatening to increase across-the-board tariffs. That is the backdrop of the latest visit by Mr. Sefcovic, the European Union trade commissioner. He is expected to meet separately with Howard Lutnick, the commerce secretary, and Jamieson Greer, the U.S. trade representative, said Olof Gill, a spokesman for the European Commission, the European Union's executive arm. Mr. Sefcovic has flown to Washington repeatedly in recent months, and has spoken by phone with Mr. Greer and Mr. Lutnick already this week. He and other European trade negotiators had thought until last week that their constant contact with the Trump administration was about to yield results and that they were close to striking a deal. The agreement was widely expected to include a 10 percent across-the-board tariff rate, while securing exceptions for key products. Instead, they received Mr. Trump's letter on July 11 threatening to boost levies to a level that European policymakers have warned would be devastating for the trans-Atlantic trading relationship. It is not clear what Europe could offer the United States that it has not already put forward. The bloc was willing to accept higher tariffs, to buy more American energy and to invest more in American technology, among other concessions. But it has refused to bend to some Trump administration demands, including changing how it regulates large technology companies and online speech. 'I don't think there's this magic' solution, said Jörn Fleck, a senior director with the Europe Center at the Atlantic Council, a think tank. 'I think it's in the Trump administration's hands.' The European Union has been drawing up plans to retaliate if negotiations fail by hitting a wide array of American imports with tariffs. When asked on Tuesday about those plans, Mr. Trump said simply that 'I don't know how they can retaliate.' 'They've treated us very badly, but now they're treating us very nicely,' he added. 'I think everybody's going to be happy with the E.U.'
CNA
4 days ago
- Business
- CNA
EU trade chief heads to Washington for trade talks
BRUSSELS: The European Union (EU)'s top trade negotiator Maros Sefcovic is jetting to Washington on Wednesday (Jul 16) for talks with his United States counterparts as the bloc renews its push to settle the transatlantic tariffs standoff. "Sefcovic is flying to DC this afternoon, for separate in-person meetings" with US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, said European Commission trade spokesman Olof Gill. President Donald Trump threw months of EU-US talks into disarray at the weekend by threatening a 30 per cent levy on European goods from Aug 1 if the transatlantic allies don't strike a deal. Leading up to Saturday's missive, Brussels thought it was on the cusp of closing a deal with Washington, but EU officials remain hopeful they can reach an agreement by the end of the month. A technical team from the European Commission - which leads on trade for the 27-country bloc - had already travelled to Washington this week for more talks with US officials. The EU has until now sought to tackle trade tensions with the US through negotiations but has prepared retaliatory tariffs if no deal is made. On Monday, Brussels shared with EU states a list of US goods worth 72 billion euros (US$84 billion) that could be hit by levies - with several capitals urging the bloc this week to toughen its stance. The 202-page document seen by AFP lists big-ticket items like US-made aircraft, cars, chemicals and electrical equipment alongside sundry other items, such as live bees, camels, parrots, condoms and opium.
Time of India
5 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Would Europe actually retaliate against Trump's tariffs?
European Union officials have spent this week working to finalize a plan to retaliate against President Donald Trump 's tariffs, laying the groundwork to hit more than $100 billion worth of American imports with levies if negotiations on a new trade deal fail. But a question looms over that effort. "If it comes to it, will they?" asked Frances Burwell, a fellow at the Atlantic Council's Europe Center, a research organization. Officials from the 27-nation bloc have spent months preparing their plans to hit back, only to hold off in favor of more talks. In April, EU policymakers approved a plan to impose tariffs on 21 billion euros (nearly $25 billion) of American goods. But they abruptly suspended them in a show of goodwill when Trump pivoted at the last minute and paused some painful across-the-board tariffs. The goal was to negotiate. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Buy Lifetime Office 365 Download Undo No deal was forthcoming. Instead, Trump said on social media last week that he planned to impose 30% tariffs on the bloc starting Aug. 1. After that announcement, EU officials chose to again delay that first batch of retaliatory tariffs -- which had been suspended only through July 14 -- to allow room for more talks. But they have also redoubled their vow to respond forcefully if necessary. Live Events Now, EU trade officials are finishing up a second list of tariffs that would target an even longer list of American goods, one that amounts to 72 billion euros ($84 billion) of products that include Boeing airplanes and Kentucky bourbon. The list was sent to member states Monday, said diplomats who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss an internal process. National representatives have not yet voted on the list. That push to prepare a retaliation plan is rooted in an uncomfortable reality. The EU would prefer to come up with a negotiated solution and avoid a painful and protracted trade war, but the talks could still fail. Strength, many politicians and ministers pointed out, seems to be the only negotiating language that Trump understands. It is necessary to "flash some muscles," Lars Lokke Rasmussen, the Danish foreign minister, said Monday. "If you want peace, you have to prepare for war, and I think that's where we are." But Europe is still trying to make a deal. Maros Sefcovic, the EU trade commissioner, talked to Howard Lutnick, the commerce secretary, on Monday. He was expected to speak with Jamieson Greer, the U.S. trade representative, on Tuesday. Trade experts who specialize in detailed negotiations were headed to Washington, Olof Gill, a European Commission spokesperson, said in a news conference. But Sefcovic has said that European ministers have become more adamant about striking back if a negotiated solution could not be reached. He had already spent months trying to reach a broad-brush agreement. Sefcovic and other negotiators thought that they were closing in on one up until last week -- only to have the situation blow up after Trump issued his threat last week to impose 30% tariffs. "We have to protect the jobs, you have to protect the businesses," Sefcovic said at a news conference in Brussels on Monday. Yet actually following through with the plan to hit back would be no easy choice. Placing tariffs on American soybeans, handbags, machinery and other goods would make those products more expensive for consumers and businesses in France, Germany, Italy and other EU member states. Given that, discussions over what products Brussels should target have been intense. The tariffs that were prepared and nearly put into effect in April could be rolled out very quickly, because they were finalized and no longer up for debate. But they were always envisaged as only a first step: 21 billion euros' worth of goods is not a lot in the context of a 1.6 trillion euro trans-Atlantic trading relationship. "We will continue to prepare further countermeasures so we are fully prepared," Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission, said Sunday. EU member states would still need to vote to approve the second set of proposed tariffs that would apply to 72 billion euros worth of goods. The list initially covered 95 billion euros of products, but it was whittled down after feedback and lobbying. After that, officials could consider using a new tool, the so-called anticoercion instrument, to target big technology firms or other American service companies by imposing trade or investment restrictions on them. Such a move could hit American businesses in the pocketbook, but because it would be so painful and risk escalating the trade war, it is sometimes referred to as the "nuclear option" in Brussels. "We are not there yet," von der Leyen said Sunday, when asked about using the tool. "This is very important. This is now the time for negotiations." Europe is still trying to speak gently while reminding the world that it carries several big sticks. It would prefer not to use them. Officials are hoping that a negotiated deal can be reached in the coming weeks and that the threatened 30% tariffs never come into effect. Tariffs hurt consumers on both sides of the Atlantic, they argue. By that logic, they say, delaying retaliation is a sign of rationality, not of timidity. "I don't think this is weakness," Lokke Rasmussen said. "It's a clear signal that we don't want to escalate things." Trying to shore up goodwill and hoping for the best has not been a winning strategy to date. But "the pain threshold is quite high" for Europe to decide to retaliate, said Mujtaba Rahman, managing director for Europe at the Eurasia Group, a political risk consultancy. Rahman added that things would have to go very badly -- an across-the-board tariff rate of perhaps 15%, along with charges on sectors -- for Europe to hit back. Officials will want to avoid angering the Trump administration, especially at a time when the bloc depends heavily on the United States to help with the war in Ukraine. "The Americans will really need to go mad if the Europeans are going to retaliate," he said. But if Trump follows through with his latest threat, that would firmly push the bloc over the edge, predicted Ignacio García Bercero, a former EU trade official who is now at Bruegel, an economic think tank. "A 30% tariff would be no choice but to retaliate," he said.
