The European economy will suffer losses after the conclusion of a trade deal with the United States, which involves a reduction in duties from the threatened EU 30% to 15%, according to Western businessmen, economists and politicians.
The New York Times, citing forecasts from the Kiel Institute of World Economy (Germany), writes that Germany, the largest exporter of cars, which will be subject to a tariff of 15%, will suffer the most from the agreement. Economists have calculated that the drop in German production due to the deal could reach 15%. In general, in the European Union, this figure may reach 11%, said Julian Hinz, a scientist from the Kiel Institute.
On July 27, US President Donald Trump and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen reached an agreement on tariffs, according to which the base rate of duties will be 15%, not 30%. In particular, it will be extended to cars and semiconductors. The EC President pointed out that this was “the best that could have been achieved.” There is a zero duty on some goods, for example, on airplanes and their spare parts. The EU has agreed to invest $600 billion in the US economy. Within three years, Europe will purchase $750 billion worth of energy from the United States and abandon fuel from Russia.
German Social Democrat Bernd Lange, head of the European Parliament’s trade committee, said he was “very critical” of the tariffs. In addition, the politician believes, the promised investments in the US economy in the amount of $ 600 billion will be paid for by the industry of the EU itself, reports Reuters.
Wolfgang Niedermark, a member of the board of the German Industry Trade Union, also negatively assessed the agreement: according to him, it is an “inadequate compromise” and the EU “accepts painful tariffs.” He noted that the 15% duty “will have a huge negative impact on the export-oriented industry in Germany.”
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz noted that the deal with the United States “avoids unnecessary escalation in transatlantic trade relations.” He saw a plus in the fact that the duties were lower than those that had been threatened: according to him, a trade war “could have hit the export-oriented German economy hard.”
It is not only Germany that sees risks to the economy due to the deal. The head of the French Federation of Cosmetics Companies, Emmanuel Guichard, said that cosmetics from France will now also be subject to a duty of 15% when imported into the United States, which poses a “significant threat” to production and may create risks for 5,000 jobs.
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