U.S. trade talks yield positive reactions
The Washington Post
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump rejected an informal proposal by the European Union’s top trade officialto eliminate tariffs on importedcars in both the EU and the United States, a rebuff that undermined a day of otherwise positive reactions from U.S. trading partners on both sides of the Atlantic.
In an interview with Bloomberg News, Mr. Trump suggested that eliminating car tariffs wouldn’t lead Europeans to buy more American cars. “It’s not good enough,” he said of the idea. “Their consumer habits are to buy their cars, not tobuy our cars,” he said.
His remarks came hours after Cecilia Malmstrom, the EU’s trade commissioner, said the bloc is willing to eliminate tariffs on imported cars if the U.S. does the same, and as Canadian officials reported a “constructive atmosphere” during talks in Washington to rework the North AmericanFree Trade Agreement.
The EU is willing to reduce “car tariffs to zero, all tariffs to zero, if the U.S. does thesame. It has to be reciprocal,”Ms. Malmstrom said.
Mr. Trump has long complained about what he considers high European tariffs on U.S. auto imports. The EU charges a 10 percent tariff on imported U.S. automobiles, while the U.S. charges a 2.5 percent tariff on European cars and a 25 percent tariff on imported pickups andSUVs.
Earlier this year, Mr. Trump threatened to heighten a trade war by increasing tariffs on auto importsfrom Europe.
In late July, he and European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker announced a deal to ease U.S.EU trade tensions and avoid hitting each other with further tariffs. That preliminary deal called for both sides to “work together toward zero tariffs” on nonauto industrial goods. Ms. Malmstrom’s proposal to consider zero tariffs on auto imports went a step beyond that.
TheEU and the U.S. established a group to work out the details of their rough July agreement, and Ms. Malmstrom said it will be meetingsoon in Brussels.
Meanwhile, U.S. negotiations with Canada over a new NAFTA continued to receive positive reactions Thursday.
Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland emerged from talks with U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer to say that she was “encouraged by the constructive atmosphere” of the talks. “Our officials did some work, they’ve prepared some issues for me and Ambassador Lighthizer to take some decisions, and we’re about to go in to continue negotiating to do precisely that,” Ms. Freeland saidduring a break.
OnWednesday, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau lifted hopes when he said the U.S., Canada and Mexico might reach a deal on reworking their free tradeagreement by Friday.