On 5 March, the EU and USA agreed to suspend all retaliatory tariffs on EU and US exports imposed in the Airbus and Boeing disputes for a four-month period. Those tariffs affected not just the aerospace industry but a whole raft of other products, including many food and beverage items. The tariff suspension will allow both sides to focus on resolving the long-running dispute. It will provide a major boost to EU exporters, as the US was authorised to raise tariffs on $7.5 billion of EU exports to the US. Happily for the US, EU tariffs will be suspended on around $4 billion worth of exports into the EU.
Scotch whisky is one of the high profile UK products that was seriously affected, while
examples from Europe include wine from Germany and France, Italian Parmesan and Spanish olive oil.
This suspension of the US–EU trade war which was initiated mainly by Donald Trump while he was president, is a welcome deescalation of hostilities that will allow trade volumes of all the affected products to return to something like normal. If you'd like to discuss how to promote your food and/or beverage in the US, EU or UK, contact Ted Horton at TradeScope. TradeScope is well placed to help, with offices in the UK and Germany and representatives and numerous contacts across the wider EU.
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