The European Union possesses tools it can deploy if the United States makes excessive threats against strategic industries like steel, French Trade Minister Nicolas Forissier said.
This declaration followed US President Donald Trump’s announcement on Friday of his intention to raise tariffs on imported cars and trucks from the EU to 25% this week. Trump believes the bloc is not adhering to a trade agreement reached in July. EU officials stated that all options would be on the table if Trump followed through on his threat. “We will use our tools, especially if there are too many threats to our economy or to our industrial, strategic interests — for example, I’m thinking of steel — so we will no longer be naive,” Forissier said Tuesday in an interview with Bloomberg Television.
G-7 Meetings and Agenda
Minister Forissier is scheduled to meet with US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer later on Tuesday for talks, and on Wednesday, he will host his counterparts from the Group of Seven (G-7) in Paris.
Rising tensions over potential auto tariffs are overshadowing France’s efforts to advance other elements of the G-7 agenda. These include discussions on responding to China’s excess capacity, seeking greater coordination on diversifying critical mineral supplies away from China, and collaborating on digital trade challenges.
Even before Trump’s latest threats, the EU had been dissatisfied with US tariffs on steel and aluminum products, despite recent revisions by Washington. Nearly half of EU exports that use these metals would ultimately face higher duties. Both sides had agreed to continue negotiations to resolve the long-standing issue of steel and aluminum tariffs since reaching an agreement.
The European Commission informed EU ambassadors last week that it was prepared to respond if necessary. The July agreement between the US and the EU is currently undergoing ratification, Nicolas Forissier stated, adding that the process “is progressing at a normal pace.” “We will implement what was in the agreement,” he emphasized.
Source: Bloomberg Economics
