The agreement between the USA and the European Union on duties has disconnected many countries. If Italy and Germany are more optimistic on the European line, France and Spain have severely criticized, while accepting it, the solution found by negotiators. The text must still be drawn up and each state is trying to insert exemptions for its products.
In the meantime, the United States are also engaged on other fronts. The negotiation with China continues to avoid returning to the commercial war of the past few months. In Europe, Switzerland found itself with customs rates of almost 40% unexpectedly and asked for explanations.
The agreement between the USA and the EU likes a few in Europe
The agreement between the USA and the EU will continue not to be completely clear in detail. The base of duties at 15% for most of the goods imported from Europe in the United States, however, caused very different reactions among the various EU governments:
- French Prime Minister François Bayrou criticized the agreement by talking about “dark day”;
- The Spanish premier Pedro Sanchez accepted the agreement, still telling himself dissatisfied;
- German Chancellor Friedrich Merz spoke of “considerable damage” to the German economy;
- The Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni asked to deal with the details of the agreement.
Also at European institutional level, criticisms continue to arrive. European socialists, the European parties family which also includes the Democratic Party, have defined the “unbalanced” agreement. Without their support, the final text will not go to the classroom and, consequently, an agreement on the duties may not be reached.
Germany deals directly with Washington
To calm the complaints of European governments and Parliament, the exemptions will be fundamental. In commercial treaties such as the one who wants to stipulate, often the countries involved establish annual shares for many products, which remain exempt from duties.
Today, Monday 4 August, Germany Minister of Germany Lars Klingbeil will be in Washington to meet Scott Beesent, the US Treasury Secretary. A visit to have been scheduled for some time which, however, arrives just when Berlin tries to obtain exemptions for its products to be exported to the USA.
The possibility that Germany traits directly with the US to soften the American positions on steel and automotive, the two sectors of the German economy that most export to the American market, is a risk for other countries. The European front therefore risks splitting, weakening the position of the EU.
The situation in Switzerland
In the last announcement of Trump on duties, one of the highest rates ever is the one that hit Switzerland. The country found itself with a 39% duty that will start from August 7th. A totally unexpected decision, which caused confusion in the Swiss government. Bern asked for explanations from Washington, but for the moment no specific request arrives from the White House.
The spokesperson for the government of Switzerland, which is collegiate and therefore does not have a single figure of reference, have declared that they will try to treat to lower the threshold of rates. However, they also specified that the country does not have a commercial surplus with the USA, considering the large deficit that Switzerland suffers towards the United States in the service sector.
The negotiation between the US and China
The European one is not the only front on which the US are dealing with. In these days, in Stockholm, the negotiation between the United States and China continues.
After agreeing on a stop to the commercial war, the two largest economies in the world are trying to find an agreement that averts the return of the highest duties, over 140%, that Beijing and Washington had imposed themselves in recent days.
The most important themes are:
- China access to advanced chips produced in the USA;
- The influx from Fenanyl China, a synthetic opioid that caused major problems in the United States.
China was unable to find a bank in the EU to make a common front with the USA.
The commercial tensions between Beijing and Brussels, mainly due to the dumping of cars, solar panels and wind turbines on European markets by Chinese companies, prevented a collaboration that acts as an argine to the aggression of the White House.
