The Trump administration is reportedly considering not putting tariffs on vehicles imported from the EU after holding “good conversations” with European, Japanese and Korean carmakers.
Back in May, the White House agreed to delay new tariffs on EU imports for six months. However, while a deal with Japan was struck last month so as to avoid any such tariffs, the EU has yet to reach a similar agreement with the Trump administration, as reported by Bloomberg.
“Our hope is that the negotiations we’ve been having with individual companies about their capital investment plans will bear enough fruit that it may not be necessary to put the 232 fully into effect, may not even be necessary to put it partly in effect,” stated U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross in a TV interview this past weekend.
Also Read: Trump Administration Preparing To Freeze Fuel Efficiency Penalties
“We’ve had very good conversations with our European friends, with our Japanese friends, with our Korean friends, and those are the major auto producing sectors,” he added.
South Korea was also exempted from any future tariffs since it renegotiated the U.S. – Korea Free Trade Agreement (KORUS) last year.
As far as the EU is concerned, it has maintained that cars made within their borders pose no threat to U.S. national security and thus should also be exempt from American tariffs. However, the U.S. has already placed steel and aluminum duties on the EU justifying it precisely as a national security measure.
Last year, President Trump flat out dismissed an offer from the European Union for zero tariffs claiming that the proposal wasn’t good enough. He then went on to compare the EU with China, saying that it “is almost as bad as China, just smaller.”
