Merkel announces to back EU auto tariff cuts on US

German Chancellor Angela Merkel declared yesterday, July 5, that she would back cutting the European Union tariffs on cars imported from the United States. This she announced in response to the US offer to abandon threatened duties on the EU-assembled imported cars in return for concessions.

According to a report, the US ambassador to Germany told German car bosses at a meeting on Wednesday, July 4, that Trump would abandon the threatened 20 per cent tariff on EU car exports provided the US gets similar concession in return.

Merkel said, "When we want to negotiate tariffs, on cars for example, we need a common European position and we are still working on it."

She also said any move to reduce tariffs on US vehicles would require reductions on those imported from other countries to conform to the WTO rules.

"I would be ready to support negotiations on reducing tariffs, but we would not be able to do this only with the US," she said further.

German automotive trade body VDA also appreciated this suggestion for mutual tariff reduction. But he added, “It is clear that the negotiations are exclusively being held at a political level.”