Featured Image Credit: Getty Images/Andrew Harnik
Topics: Business, Donald Trump, News, Politics, Tariffs, World News, Europe
Niamh Shackleton
Topics: Business, Donald Trump, News, Politics, Tariffs, World News, Europe
America and the EU have finally come to an agreement on tariffs after months of back-and-forth.
Trump declared the deal as the 'biggest deal ever made', after a high-stakes meeting with Ursula von der Leyen on the second full day of his private visit to Scotland.
All 28 countries in the European Union are set to face 15 percent tariffs on most of its goods including cars, semiconductors and pharmaceuticals entering America rather than a 30 percent levy previously threatened by the US President.
President of the EU Commission von der Leyen said the agreement would provide 'certainty in uncertain times' for citizens and businesses.
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The agreement will include 'zero for zero' tariffs on a number of products including aircraft, some agricultural goods and certain chemicals, as well as EU purchases of US energy worth $750 billion over three years.
The two leaders met at the US President’s Turnberry golf resort in Ayrshire on Sunday (July 27) to hammer out the broad terms of the agreement, the detail of which is due to be fleshed out in the coming weeks.
Before their bilateral talks, which lasted around an hour, Trump had said there was a '50-50' chance of the deal being reached as a number of the sticking points remained.
Following the meeting, he said: "I think it’s great that we made a deal today instead of playing games and maybe not making a deal at all. I think it’s the biggest deal ever made."
von der Leyen added: "Today’s deal creates certainty in uncertain times, it delivers stability and predictability for citizens on both sides of the Atlantic."
Seemingly von der Leyen and Trump are seemingly quite pleased with how Sunday's talk went, Americans are less enthusiastic about the outcome of their discussions.
Taking to Twitter to discuss this, one person penned: "The European Union isn't going to pay 15% of anything. US consumers are going to pay 15% on everything coming from Europe."
"It’s not that hard to explain — the 15% tariff is a tax on Americans, not Europeans," argued another.
They added: "When the U.S. imposes a 15% tariff on EU imports, it’s American businesses and consumers who pay more for goods like machinery, cars, wine, and cheese. Meanwhile, the EU drops tariffs to 0% on American imports, meaning Europeans get cheaper U.S. products."
Per the deal, US exports to the EU including cars, currently at 10 percent, will be duty free from Friday, The Guardian reports.