The European Union is preparing to make the blows. She will “reply” to new customs rights announced by Donald Trump, as she did during the first term of the American president, French Minister of Foreign Affairs Jean-Noël Barrot said on Monday.
“There is no hesitation when it comes to defending our interests,” continued the minister on TF1. Jean-Noël Barrot added that the European Commission had a mandate to act in this direction, and “that it had (had) assured” the member countries that it was going to carry it out without delay. The French minister did not give details on the recommership measures envisaged.
“25 % customs duties”
Donald Trump said on Sunday that he “(announced) customs duties on steel on Monday”, that “all steel arriving in the United States will have 25 % customs duties”, and that the same fate would be reserved with imported aluminum. During his first mandate (2017-21), Donald Trump had already imposed customs duties on steel and aluminum in order to protect the American industry which he considered to be confronted with unfair competition from Asian countries and Europeans.
About 25 % of European steel exports are intended for the United States, according to Roland Berger. Consequently, “any tax on the part of the United States would hit the European sector,” he warned in a recent note. The steel industry is already subject to strong international competition as well as to the decline in demand from the automotive sector, one of its large customers.
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