The European Union (EU) is delaying until mid-April its retaliatory trade action over the Trump administration’s increase in tariffs on all steel and aluminum imports to 25%, according to the Associated Press.
The EU had intended to impose measures on goods from the United States worth some 26 billion euros ($28 billion) in two phases, on April 1 and April 13. The tariffs will target steel and aluminum products, as well as American beef, poultry, bourbon, motorcycles, peanut butter, and jeans.
U.S. President Donald Trump also plans to impose “reciprocal” tariffs, however, by increasing U.S. duties to match the tax rates that other countries charge on imports “for purposes of fairness.” These reciprocal tariffs are expected to be announced on April 2.
EU Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič, who has held talks with U.S. officials to try to avoid a tariff war, warned lawmakers on Thursday that “the situation is quite fluid, quite volatile.”
Šefčovič said that delaying the measures would allow the EU to better understand the possible impact of Trump’s reciprocal tariffs and work out how best to respond.
