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TMTPOST -- The European Union is exploring new ways to push for a deal as the deadline of U.S. President Donald Trump』s 90-day tariff pause draws closer.
Credit：Xinhua News Agency
The U.S. and the EU seem closer to a deal to address multiple non-tariff trade issues, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday, citing a draft agreement on reciprocal trade. The draft was reported to be circulated by the U.S.Trade Representative』s office and touch a litany of trade issues, such as the EU』s Digital Markets Act, its carbon-based border tariffs, shipbuilding, but it doesn』t specifically address any of the tariffs the Trump has threatened or imposed on the bloc.
It is unclear whether the EU will address the tariff issues in a separate deal, or if both sides will decide to extend those negotiations beyond the July 9 tariff deadline. A day prior to the report, advisor to German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Michael Clauss, revealed that the European Union is pushing for a Britain-style trade deal with the U.S. Such a deal leaves some tariffs in place after the deadline next month, further delaying retaliation against Washington.
Clauss, in a Financial Times (FT) event on Thursday, expected an arrangement 「a little bit along the model of」the U.S.-Britain agreement, rather than a full trade agreement. He said the European Commission will want to know if 「if there is a landing zone」 on the baseline 10% reciprocal tariffs before discussing tariffs on various sectors. He also said EU member states fear the economic consequences and the risk of European internal disagreements on taking countermeasures.
Some nations, led by France, plan to retaliate in that scenario, but others, including Italy and Hungary, want to keep negotiations going, spooked by Trump』s threat to impose 200% tariffs on wine and whiskey when the EU proposed targeting bourbon in April, according to the FT report.
European officials are increasingly expecting a 10% rate on the so-called reciprocal tariffs to be the baseline in any EU-U.S. trade deal, Reuters cited sources on Thursday. EU negotiators are said to still seek the tariff rate lower than 10%, but negotiating the 10% level down had become harder since the U.S. started drawing revenues from its global tariffs. One of the sources said there had been no acceptance by the EU of 10% as the baseline rate at talks, but suggested it would be difficult for the block to force U.S. to change or abolish that baseline.
A pharmaceutical industry source said the European Commission was resisting sector-specific tariffs. The EU executive arm has told the industry that while it does not want the 10% baseline reciprocal tariffs, accepting a 10% base tariff may provide leverage in those negotiations, according to the source. A beverage industry source said the wine and spirits sector would rather have a deal at 10% than protracted negotiations.
Trump said on April 9 in the post he has authorized a 90-day pause and 「a substantially lowered reciprocal tariff」 of 10% during this period, both effective immediately.European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said in a statement on April 10 the EU will put its countermeasures over U.S. steel and aluminum tariffs on hold for 90 days. The European Commission estimated a total of nearly €21 billion worth of goods imported from the U.S. will be affected.
Trump on May 23 vowed to slap a 50% tariff starting on June 1 as negotiations between the EU and the United Sates 「going nowhere.」 However, after a phone with von der Leyen,Trump on May 25 said he would hold off until July 9, the same deadline as Trump』s 90-day pause of his proposed 20% reciprocal tariffs on EU that is set to end. Von der Leyen said the same day 「Europe is ready to advance talks swiftly and decisively」, adding that 「to reach a good deal」 needs the time until July 9.
