Trump extends tariff relief for EU, Mexico and Canada
President Donald Trump drew short shrift from key economic allies after he offered a second temporary exemption on metal-import tariffs rather than the permanent waiver most are demanding.
The US said late Monday it would delay until June 1 import tariffs of 25% on steel and 10% on aluminium for the EU, Mexico and Canada. The White House also said it reached agreementsin-principle with Argentina, Australia and Brazil to remove the levies, which were introduced on national security grounds.
“The US decision prolongs market uncertainty, which is already affecting business decisions,” The European Commission, the EU’s executive arm that coordinates trade policy for the 28-nation bloc, said in a statement.
“The EU should be fully and permanently exempted from these measures, as they cannot be justified on the grounds of national security.”
The president’s decision to delay the tariffs gives the White House breathing room as it weighs leaving the Iran nuclear accord later this month, prepares for disarmament talks with North Korea’s Kim Jong Un and as treasury secretary Steven Mnuchin leads a contingent of cabinet members to China this week to try to head off a brewing trade dispute between the world’s two-biggest economies. US trade representative Robert Lighthizer has been sent to negotiate with countries seeking permanent waivers from the metals levies.
Trump dangled a permanent
WASHINGTON:US
exemption as incentive to reach a tentative Nafta deal in the Americas, though talks continue with no immediate agreement in sight. Canada is the biggest steel exporter to the US.
The 30-day extension prolongs the standoff with the EU, the world’s largest trading bloc. European officials have said the US tariffs violate international trading rules, and they have threatened to retaliate with levies on iconic American brands such as Harley Davidson motorcycles and Kentucky bourbon.
The EU and US should “develop a positive trade agenda in the interests of both sides,” Steffen Seibert, German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s chief spokesman, said on Twitter Tuesday. “Fundamentally, the German government’s expectation remains a permanent exemption.”
The Trump administration has been pushing countries to accept quotas on the amount of steel and aluminium they export to the US.
EU: TRUMP TARIFF UNCERTAINTY IS HITTING BUSINESS BRUSSELS:
The European Commission said on Tuesday that US President Trump’s decision to postpone the imposition of steel and aluminium tariffs on the European Union prolonged business uncertainty and repeated its call for a permanent exemption.
“The US decision prolongs market uncertainty, which is already affecting business decisions,” the Commission said. “The EU should be fully and permanently exempted from these measures, as they cannot be justified on the grounds of national security,” it continued.
REUTERS