EU Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič is set to travel to Washington on Monday for high-level discussions with US counterparts, including US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer. The meetings aim to break a long-standing deadlock in trade negotiations between the EU and the US.
According to EU Commission spokesperson Olof Gill, the EU is focused on finding mutually beneficial solutions to avoid tariffs and prevent a harmful escalation of trade tensions. The EU has proposed eliminating tariffs on industrial goods for both the US and the EU, a move seen as essential for moving forward.
In a bid to foster negotiation, the EU suspended retaliatory measures on US products last week, giving talks a chance to succeed. Meanwhile, EU Economy Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis has highlighted the potential economic impact of ongoing trade tensions. According to EU figures, the US could face a GDP reduction of up to 1.4% by 2027, while the EU would see a smaller impact of 0.2%. However, a full-scale trade war could result in more severe consequences, with global trade potentially shrinking by 7.7% in just three years.
