The European Union has decided to suspend duties on American steel and aluminum until March 2025 as a result of an agreement between Brussels and Washington. This decision is aimed at ensuring market stability and business confidence for EU importers and exporters, as emphasized by Vice President of the European Commission Valdis Dombrovskis, UNN reports with reference to Polish Radio.
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The 15-month extension of the tariff suspension is expected to save European steel and aluminum exporters one and a half billion euros annually. By March 2025, the EU plans to use this time to reach an agreement with the United States on the complete and final elimination of tariffs on EU steel and aluminum. The trade war between the US and the EU began in 2018 when then US President Donald Trump, citing national security concerns, imposed duties on steel and aluminum from Europe.
This was aimed, in fact, at helping the American steel industry, which was in crisis, the newspaper points out. In response, the EU imposed punitive duties on certain products imported from the United States, such as peanut butter, American bourbon, and Harley Davidson motorcycles. Although the European Union and the United States reached a deal two years ago and canceled some customs duties, the trade dispute remained unresolved.
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During Trump's presidency, in a protectionist move, high duties were imposed on steel and aluminum imported from various countries, mainly as a defense against cheap Chinese imports, sweeping away EU exports in the process. Trump's successor, US President Joe Biden, who also seeks to protect American industry, left the duties in place but agreed to suspend them for EU exporters.