Donald Trump slapped 20% duties on EU exports as he announced much vaunted “reciprocal tariffs” on trading partners that sent shockwaves across the global economy.
In a rambling, egomaniacal, self-referencing speech at the White House, Trump went in hard on the apparent enemies of the United States.
The duties, which aim to mitigate the “unfair” trade barriers other countries impose on US goods, came as the self-proclaimed “Tariff Man” imposed sweeping duties of at least 10% on dozens of other countries, including China, India, and the UK.
Most imports from the EU will face a tariff - or special import tax - of 20% but Ireland avoided special treatment due to its high trade surplus with the US. Critically pharma products will not be covered by tariffs. This is some relief to Ireland, in the short term – pharma drugs and active ingredients make up the bulk of the wider total of Irish exports to the US in the pharma/chem sector.
“For decades, our country has been looted, pillaged, raped, and plundered by nations near and far, both friend and foe alike,” the US President said, adding that farmers and workers in the steel and automotive sectors had “suffered gravely” as a result of former US administrations’ leaders’ trade policy.
Trump also specifically accused the EU of imposing an effective tax rate of 39% on US goods and singled out the bloc’s VAT and automobile tariff rates, as well as its “non-tariff barriers” on US poultry.
“European Union, they’re very tough… very friendly. They rip us off. It's so sad to see. It's so pathetic,” he said.
He also declared duties of 34% on China, 31% on Switzerland, 26% on India, 25% on South Korea, 24% on Japan, 10% on the UK, and levies on multiple other countries.
Ursula von der Leyen said that the EU is “preparing further countermeasures” to protect its interests.
Von der Leyen, acknowledged the need for reforms to the global trade system but argued that tariffs would not provide the solution. She stressed that the EU will remain united in its response.
New US tariffs could bring "devastating impacts" to the spirits sector, according to the Irish Whiskey Association (IWA)
The US represents 41% of Irish drink exports every year, with the total value of the market calculated at 865 million euro annually.
In a statement, it highlighted a 450% growth in the combined US and EU spirits sector under a tariff-free regime between 1997 and 2018.
