U.S. Department of Commerce chief, Wilbur Ross is citing the “Section 232” national security-related tariff modifications as why the tariffs are being imposed. The tariffs will include a 25 percent tariff on imported steel and a 10 percent tariff on imported aluminum,
Trump announced in March the United States would slap a 25 percent tariff on imported steel, and a 10 percent tariff on imported aluminum, citing national security interests. But he granted an exemption to the EU and other U.S. allies; that reprieve expires Friday.
The tariffs now raise the threat of retaliation from Europe and fears of a global trade war – a prospect that is already weighing on investor confidence and could hinder the global economic upturn.
And particularly disturbing is the news coming from the German magazine Wirtschaftswoche, according to Reuters — which reported Thursday that Trump told French President Emmanuel Macron he wanted to stick to his trade policy long enough that “Mercedes-Benz cars were no longer cruising through New York.”
That comment has already affected share prices for BMW, Daimler, and Volkswagen. French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire met Commerce Secretary Ross on Thursday hoping to end the stand-off. “Global trade is not a gunfight at the OK Corral,” said Le Maire. “It’s not about who attacks whom, and then wait and see who is still standing at the end.”
German Chancellor Angela Merkel stressed her opposition to the tariffs Thursday. “We believe these tariffs aren’t compatible with WTO rules,” she said in Lisbon. EU leaders want “exceptions from these tariffs and have offered to hold talks on a certain basis.”
