Comments, assessments and developments on US tariffs:
EU trade commissioner travels to Washington – WSJ on Monday
The EU trade commissioner Maros Sefcovic will meet US government officials in Washington on Monday, an EU spokesman said. The trip takes place after the EU has announced that it would suspend its plans for retaliatory tariffs against the United States after President Donald Trump announced a delay. The EU “is ready to find WIN-WIN results and for both sides advantageous agreements with our American partners to avoid tariffs and prevent any harmful escalation,” said a EU spokesman. He refused to give details of the possible conversations. Sefcovic will travel to the United States “in good faith” to look for solutions for the trade conflict, the spokesman said.
China increases customs to US imports to 125 percent
In the course of the trade war with the United States, China increased tariffs to US goods from 84 to 125 percent. The State Council’s customs tariff commission explained that after China, the new customs level exported to China were no longer marketable. China will therefore ignore all other USes in the USA in Chinese goods. The step, after the White House had clarified, was that the tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump in his second term against China and not only to 125 percent, as initially stated, because in addition to the punitive tariffs, they would be charged with 20 percent with which Trump wanted to punish the Chinese role in fentanyl trade.
Macron: Trump’s customs break is fragile
The break among trade tariffs between Europe and the USA is welcome, but fragile, said French President Emmanuel Macron. The EU exposed its own package of retaliation tariffs after US President Donald Trump announced a 90-day break for the majority of its planned import tariffs, which would have meant a general custom of 20 percent of all goods introduced from the EU. This suspension is “a signal and a gateway to negotiations,” said Macron in a contribution to X. “But this break is fragile.” The European companies are still unsettled, and the US tariffs on cars and steel that are produced in the EU remained. “With the European Commission and in the spirit of European unity, our goal is simple: to negotiate the withdrawal of these unfair tariffs and to ensure a balanced agreement without asymmetry on both sides.”
Trump threatens Mexico with tariffs due to water agreements from 1944
US President Donald Trump threatens Mexico again with tariffs and even sanctions. It accuses the neighboring country of violations of a water agreement from 1944, in which the distribution of the water between the two countries is regulated. “Mexico owes Texas 1.6 billion cubic meters of water as part of the water contract of 1944, but unfortunately Mexico violates his contractual obligations,” Trump explained to Truth on Thursday evening.
Navarro: Trade agreements will come in “Trump time”
Peter Navarro, the trade advisor of the White House, said that there would be trade agreements. “We do everything in the Trump time, that is, as soon as possible,” said Navarro in a CNN interview. “Let us see what happens.” When asked if he was in a room with President Donald Trump when he decided to suspend the tariffs by 90 days, Navarro did not want to answer. “It doesn’t matter who is in the room,” he said.
Japan wants to talk to the United States in addition to tariffs about exchange rates
As part of the negotiations on the liberation of higher tariffs, Japan also wants to talk to the Trump administration about other questions such as the exchange rates. Minister of Economic Affairs Ryosei Akazawa said, “Since it is a negotiation, we cannot simply rule out everything that the other side brings up from the outset”. Akazawa will have the talks with US Finance Minister Scott Bessent. “Since ministers have reportedly reported other trade barriers and exchange rates, we would of course be open to discussions if such topics come up,” he said. Akazawa continued to plan to visit the USA as soon as possible.
Spokeswoman: Trump wants to negotiate with China
According to his spokeswoman, US President Donald Trump wants to negotiate with China. “He is open to discussions,” said Karoline Leavitt, spokeswoman for the White House, in an interview with Fox News on Thursday afternoon. “He believes that China wants to talk to the United States of America, just don’t know how to do it.” The White House made it clear on Thursday that the tariffs that the President imposed on China in his second term amount to 145 percent and not to 125 percent, as it was previously.
EU Vice President announces measures against US tech companies
The executive vice president of the EU Commission Henna Virkkunen, which is responsible for digital, security and democracy, announces hard measures against US tech groups. Several of the procedures against American tech companies, in which the Commission is going to deal with illegal content against companies such as Apple, Meta and X due to violations of competition or a lax handling, the Finnin said in an interview with the Süddeutsche Zeitung and several European newspapers. “We have many procedures in the pipeline and I think we will complete our investigations in the coming weeks to months,” said Virkkuns. “We will enforce our rules.”
Contact to the editorial team: [email protected]
DJG/apo
(End) Dow Jones Newswires
April 11, 2025 06:59 ET (10:59 GMT)