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Social Democrats are losing ground in Germany’s industrial heartland, where the far-right AfD could win direct seats for the first time.
Negotiation tactics
Has the EU blinked first in its trade fight with the US? Trade commissioner Maroš Šefčovič emerged yesterday from talks in Washington offering to discuss lower EU car tariffs to US levels in response to Donald Trump’s threats, writes Andy Bounds.
Context: The US president has railed against “unfair” EU trade policy and threatened more tariffs unless the bloc buys more American goods. Trump has already ordered tariffs on all steel and aluminium imports, which will kick in on March 12 and also affect EU goods.
Šefčovič has now said the US and EU could discuss changes to tariffs on cars; the EU charges 10 per cent on car imports, versus 2.5 per cent charged by the US. Increasing US LNG purchases could also be an option, he said.
Member states broadly back the approach, believing it would be worth it to avoid the pain of a trade war, according to three EU diplomats.
But one warned it could just be delayed pain, and that negotiations would be cumbersome because of the long list of US complaints.
Another feared that under WTO rules the EU tariff reduction would have to apply to all countries: “We will get flooded with Chinese cars.”
However, they believed the EU was well equipped to deal with the challenges. “Trade is a commission competence. We know how to do this,” said the third.
Some trade experts believe that dropping tariffs would in fact be a master stroke, as few Europeans would want to buy a boxy, gas-guzzling Chevrolet. “We need a new customs code: cars that would get stuck in an Italian town,” joked one.
What to watch today
European commission president Ursula von der Leyen receives Romania’s Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu in Brussels.
Several European commissioners visit Helsinki.
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Publish date : 2025-02-20 22:00:00
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