The EU is aiming to avoid a tariff war with the US that could hit transatlantic parcel and freight shipments, even as it begins its own fiscal crackdown on cheap Chinese e-commerce imports.
Europe’s trade commissioner Maroš Šefčovič said there was “positive momentum” towards a trade agreement from both sides after he flew in for a four-hour meeting with newly confirmed US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick on Wednesday (February 19).
Trump pressure
US President Donald Trump has caused massive uncertainty in the European parcel industry after enacting a series of tariffs aimed at curbing what he sees as the EU’s unfair trading conditions with regard to the US.
The Trump administration has imposed 25% tariffs on EU steel and aluminum; reciprocal tariffs from April; and separate tariffs on cars, pharmaceuticals and semiconductor chips coming from Europe.
Elsewhere, he was forced to temporarily reverse an executive order that closed the ‘de minimis’ exemption for cheap Chinese imports into the US after a sudden rule change caused chaos at US ports of entry.
‘Avoiding economic pain’
