Trump administration announced new tariffs of $11 Billion on EU Goods

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The U.S President Donald Trump said the United States will impose tariffs of $11 billion on EU goods in retaliation for European subsidies supporting Airbus. On Tuesday, Trump tweeted: “The World Trade Organization finds that the European Union subsidies to Airbus have adversely impacted the United States, which will now put Tariffs of $11bn on EU products! The EU has taken advantage of the US on trade for many years. It will soon stop”! The USTR (U.S Trade Representative) released a list of items on Monday. These items needed to hit with import charges following an expected decision on the matter from the WTO this summer.

The WTO already said that subsidies for the Airbus have an adverse impact on the United States. The recent move points an escalation in tensions between the European Union and Trump’s administration. The values of these goods are relatively a small proportion of trade between the United States and Europe. New tariffs would suggest that trade talks have broken down and raising wider concerns for the global economy. The targeted goods include cheddar cheese, aircraft parts, motorbikes, salmon fillets, virgin olive oil, cashmere sweaters, and mechanical wall clocks. The U.S and EU representatives have been negotiating since last year regarding how to resolve a 14-year dispute over aircraft subsidies for Boeing and Airbus.

The World Trade Organization finds that the European Union subsidies to Airbus has adversely impacted the United States, which will now put Tariffs on $11 Billion of EU products! The EU has taken advantage of the U.S. on trade for many years. It will soon stop!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 9, 2019

Both sides have consumed billions of dollars from government budgets to gain a competitive advantage. An EU official informed Reuters on Tuesday that the EU started preparing to retaliate over Boeing subsidies following news of potential U.S action on tariffs. The U.S trade representative Robert Lighthizer said time has come for action on Airbus subsidies. He said, “The administration is preparing to respond immediately when the WTO issues its finding on the value of U.S countermeasures. Our ultimate goal is to reach an agreement with the EU to end all WTO-inconsistent subsidies to large civil aircraft. The additional U.S duties imposed in response can be lifted when the EU ends these harmful subsidies”.