EU Plan Countermeasures to 30% Tariffs 07/15 06:17

   EU trade ministers agreed Monday that U.S. President Donald Trump's 
announcement of 30% tariffs on the European Union was "absolutely 
unacceptable," and they are studying a new set of countermeasures to respond to 
the move.

   BRUSSELS (AP) -- EU trade ministers agreed Monday that U.S. President Donald 
Trump's announcement of 30% tariffs on the European Union was "absolutely 
unacceptable," and they are studying a new set of countermeasures to respond to 
the move.

   The ministers met Monday in Brussels following Trump's surprise announcement 
over the weekend of such hefty tariffs, which could have repercussions for 
governments, companies and consumers on both sides of the Atlantic. The EU is 
America's biggest business partner and the world's largest trading bloc.

   Maro efovi, the EU's trade representative in its talks with the 
U.S., said after the meeting that it was "very obvious from the discussions 
today, the 30% is absolutely unacceptable."

   He said that the commission was sharing proposals with the 27 member 
countries "for the second list of goods accounting of some 72 billion euros 
($84 billion) worth of U.S imports. They will now have a chance to discuss it. 
This does not exhaust our toolbox and every instrument remains on the table."

   Lars Lokke Rasmussen, foreign minister of Denmark, which recently assumed 
the presidency of the EU, said the ministers vowed to work together in 
negotiating a trade deal with Washington or agreeing on countermeasures.

   "The EU remains ready to react and that includes robust and proportionate 
countermeasures if required and there was a strong, feeling in the room of 
unity," Rasmussen told reporters after the meeting.

   The tariffs, also announced for Mexico, are set to start on Aug. 1 and could 
make everything from French cheese and Italian leather goods to German 
electronics and Spanish pharmaceuticals more expensive in the U.S., and 
destabilize economies from Portugal to Norway.

   Meanwhile, Brussels decided to suspend retaliatory tariffs on U.S. goods 
scheduled to take effect Monday in hopes of reaching a trade deal with the 
Trump administration by the end of the month.

   The "countermeasures" by the EU, which negotiates trade deals on behalf of 
its 27 member countries, will be delayed until Aug. 1. Trump's letter shows 
"that we have until the first of August" to negotiate, European Commission 
President Ursula von der Leyen told reporters in Brussels on Sunday.

   Maro efovi, the EU's trade representative in its talks with the 
U.S., said negotiations would continue Monday.

   "I'm absolutely 100% sure that a negotiated solution is much better than the 
tension which we might have after the 1st of August," he told reporters in 
Brussels on Monday. But he added that "we must be prepared for all outcomes."

   "I cannot imagine walking away without genuine effort. Having said that, the 
current uncertainty caused by unjustified tariffs cannot persist indefinitely 
and therefore we must prepare for all outcomes, including, if necessary, 
well-considered proportionate countermeasures to restore the balance in our 
transit static relationship."

   The letters to the EU and Mexico come in the midst of an on-and-off Trump 
threat to impose tariffs on countries and right an imbalance in trade.

   Trump imposed tariffs in April on dozens of countries, before pausing them 
for 90 days to negotiate individual deals. As the three-month grace period 
ended this week, he began sending tariff letters to leaders, but again has 
pushed back the implementation day for what he says will be just a few more 
weeks.

   If he moves forward with the tariffs, it could have ramifications for nearly 
every aspect of the global economy. The American Chamber of Commerce in the 
European Union, an influential industry group representing major American 
corporations in Europe, said the tariffs could "generate damaging ripple 
effects across all sectors of the EU and US economies" and praised the EU's 
delay of countermeasures.

   In the wake of the new tariffs, European leaders largely closed ranks, 
calling for unity but also a steady hand to not provoke further acrimony.

   Just last week, Europe was cautiously optimistic.

   Officials told reporters on Friday they weren't expecting a letter like the 
one sent Saturday and that a trade deal was to be inked in "the coming days." 
For months, the EU has broadcast that it has strong retaliatory measures ready 
if talks fail.

   Reeling from successive rebukes from Washington, efovi said Monday the 
EU is "doubling down on efforts to open new markets" and pointed to a new 
economic agreement with Indonesia as one.

   The EU top brass will visit Beijing fora summit later this month while 
courting other Pacific nations like South Korea, Japan, Vietnam, Singapore, the 
Philippines, and Indonesia, whose prime minister visited Brussels over the 
weekend to sign a new economic partnership with the EU. It also has mega-deals 
in the works with Mexico and a trading bloc of South American nations known as 
Mercosur, and efovi will meet with his counterpart from the United Arab 
Emirates next week.

   While meeting with Indonesia's president on Sunday, Von der Leyen said that 
"when economic uncertainty meets geopolitical volatility, partners like us must 
come closer together."