U.S. presses EU to roll back import rules in trade talks

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US urges EU to ease import rules

Highlights

U.S. officials have proposed new public commitments from Brussels before the first anniversary of last August's trade agreement, citing slow progress on non-tariff barriers.
The European Commission submitted a fresh list of proposed tariff reductions covering 115 billion euros in annual EU exports to the U.S., including wine, spirits, cheeses, and machinery.
Market access disputes remain, with the U.S. criticizing EU rules on car safety and food, while emphasizing the EU's 198 billion euro goods trade surplus with the U.S. last year.

Pressure builds before trade deal anniversary

As reported by Financial Times, U.S. officials have sent European counterparts a proposal in recent weeks setting out the public commitments Washington wants Brussels to make ahead of the first anniversary of last August's trade agreement.

The deal reduced duties on industrial goods and some farm products from the EU side, while the U.S. lowered tariffs on many EU products, including cars, to 15 per cent. Both sides also agreed to work together to reduce or eliminate non-tariff barriers, an area where Washington says progress has been too slow.

EU officials appear reluctant to formalize new promises. A senior European Commission official says there are constant talks with the U.S. on the trade relationship, but the Commission does not anticipate signing a document with future commitments, adding that the aim is to mark the anniversary by showing how far both sides have come.

The Commission also confirms to the European Parliament this week that it has sent the U.S. a new list of proposed tariff reductions on EU goods, including wine and spirits, some cheeses and machinery. Officials say the list covers 115 billion euros in annual EU exports to the U.S.

Market access disputes remain unresolved

The latest U.S. move shows Washington is still pressing trading partners even as Donald Trump has been forced to retreat from the highest tariff levels by U.S. courts and by affordability pressures ahead of midterm elections.

Although both sides have implemented the tariff reductions already agreed, U.S. officials continue to complain about EU rules affecting American goods, particularly in car safety and food and farm regulation. The trade framework announced last year included a pledge on cars, with both sides saying they intend to accept and provide mutual recognition of each other's standards.

Trump has previously accused the EU of designing rules and regulations to block foreign products. U.S. officials also note that the EU has the largest goods trade surplus with the U.S. of any trading bloc, at 198 billion euros last year, while the EU points to the U.S. services surplus of 178 billion euros.

The European Commission says it remains committed to full implementation of the joint EU-U.S. statement, citing the recent entry into force of its commitment to eliminate tariffs on imports of U.S. industrial goods. It adds that work continues to improve market access on both sides.

In our earlier coverage of U.S.-EU trade talks ahead of the first anniversary of last August’s agreement, we detailed how Washington pushed Brussels to make public commitments to roll back non-tariff barriers that it views as limiting market access. We also noted the EU’s proposed package of additional tariff cuts on key goods alongside ongoing friction over regulatory standards and the persistent goods-versus-services trade imbalance between the two economies.

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