It was something that we had been waiting for for weeks, and finally Brussels and Washington have made official the agreement on the duties, with the publication of the joint declaration.
The agreement reduces the balzelli for US industrial products and opens preferential lanes for some agri -food categories considered non -sensitive, such as dried fruit, fresh and transformed vegetables, seeds, dairy products and pig meat.
It is not really an agreement that favors everyone. There are great excluded, key sectors such as wine, beer and spirits continue to bear the weight of the rates. In Italy this news pushed Farnesina to convene a special task force, in charge of analyzing impacts and opportunities for the most strategic chains of the country.
EU USA agreement on the duties, tariff limits and excluding sectors
The United States have put their conditions, no more than 15% rate on European goods, including the clause of the “most favorite nation” (MFN).
Some categories remain linked only to the MFN rate, in particular:
- Natural resources that cannot be found on the American internal market (including cork);
- components for the aeronautics;
- Generic drugs.
Different the speech for wines and alcohol, which remain crushed by the maximum roof of 15%. The same limit will also apply to the assets under investigation for the so -called “section 232”, including:
- semiconductors
- timber
- pharmaceutical products
On the automotive front, the reduction will start on the first day of the same month in which the European Union will present its legislative proposal, which provides for zero duties for American agri -food.
Steel and aluminum remain special supervisors: the two parts speak of cooperation to defend the respective markets, but a message of zero concessions arrives from Washington, a sign of a force position that has always maintained.
Energy, investments and defense
The economic chapter of the agreement puts important figures on the plate. Brussels undertakes to buy energy from the United States for 750 billion dollars by 2028, including liquefied natural gas, oil and nuclear. It could not do otherwise, given that this mechanism also falls within the geopolitical agreements, where the EU has decided to cut any agreement with Russia, even if the prices would have been lower.
To this are added 600 billion of investments from European companies, of which 40 billion directed to American semiconductors. The package also includes a decisive increase in military supplies purchased beyond Atlantic, confirming the weight of the US defense industry.
On the front of non -tariff barriers, the two sides opt for pragmatism: go -ahead for mutual recognition of standards for the car and simplification sector of health certifications for pigs and dairy products.
Environmental regulations and trade
One of the most delicate knots concerns European environmental rules. On the deforestation front, Brussels recognized that US production affects the extent that has been contained globally and has promised to open a technical table to manage the concerns of American producers. But, as the The Guardianalthough not being the protagonists of national deforestation, are responsible for the loss of 3% of natural habitats. In addition, the country, between 2001 and 2024, contributed to almost 10% of the global loss of arboreal coverage.
As regards the mechanism for adjusting the carbon to borders (CBAM), the EU has taken note of the difficulties reported by Washington for small and medium -sized enterprises and has ensured greater flexibility in the application phase.
The meeting of the Task Force duties at Farnesina
In Italy, the spread of the joint declaration pushed Farnesina to organize an extraordinary meeting. On the input of Minister Antonio Tajani, the meeting of the Task Force Dazi was held.
At the table the main production associations, called to discuss in detail the impact of the intens on sectors such as automotive, pharmaceuticals, semiconductors and timber.
Tajani spoke of an agreement useful to give stability to exchanges and to support industrial sectors deemed strategic, remarking that Italy has always aimed at a transatlantic dialogue marked by collaboration.
The minister clarified that the summit is not the final stage, but the start of a path that could involve other sectors and strengthen the economic link between the two banks of the Atlantic.
