Monday 12 March 2018

EU, Japan push for exemptions from Trump’s metal tariffs

The European Union and Japan have urged the US to grant them exemptions from the import metal tariffs.

Trade officials met in Brussels on Saturday to address issues such as trade distortive practices that lead to severe global overcapacity in sectors like steel.

The EU and Japan also raised Donald Trump’s decision to impose additional duties on imports of certain steel and aluminium products, emphasising their strong concerns on the measures.

The US president previously suggested Canada and Mexico could win exemptions from the proposed import tariffs of 25% on steel and 10% on aluminium.

EU Commissioner for Trade Cecilia Malmström said: “I had a frank discussion with the US side about the serious pending issue of steel and aluminium tariffs. As a close security and trade partner of the United States, the European Union must be excluded from the announced measures. No immediate clarity on the exact US procedure for exemption however, so discussions will continue next week.”