Dear Colleagues,
We would like to provide you with an update on the EU-US trade deal announced on Sunday, 27th July. This is also based on a briefing meeting with the EU Commission that EBI was invited to join this afternoon.
- US President Trump signed an Executive Order on tariffs (to be found here). It formalises the 15% tariff rate on most EU goods, including recreational boats and related products. It confirms that 15% is the single rate without addition of existing pre-April tariffs. The tariffs take effect on 8 August, one week later than the previously announced 1 August date. This means that the 10% baseline (+ existing pre-April tariffs) applies until then. The Executive Order also introduces a 40% penalty on goods transhipped through lower-tariff countries to evade the higher duties.
- There is an agreement between the EU and US on adding more products to the list of zero tariffs on the US side in the future, but this largely focuses on strategic products for the time being (e.g. agricultural products, pharmaceuticals).
- The EU has agreed to remove the exiting duties on industrial goods imported from the US. This will likely mean that import duties for recreational boats, engines and other components from the US will be reduced to 0%. This will only apply to the US and not other countries as would usually be the case in international trade. However, this must first be legally implemented on the EU side and does not apply directly.
- The EU and US will work towards reducing non-tariff barriers, including mutual recognition of conformity assessment. It is not yet confirmed whether this will include conformity assessment under the EU Recreational Craft Directive (or any other relevant legislation for our sector).
- It remains important to note that the deal announced on Sunday, 27th July is only a political agreement and not yet codified. EU and US negotiators are still working on a joint statement to follow up on the political agreement, which will be published in the next days or few weeks. That statement will act as a non-binding roadmap for cooperation and will be followed by legal procedures on the EU and US side.
- The EU Commission confirmed that it intends to suspend the €93 billion retaliatory package once the US proceeds with the agreed implementation of the 15% tariff, which includes US recreational boats and certain engines and components. The Implementing Regulation is expected to be published early next week and certainly ahead of 7 August (when the measures would start to apply). However, it will only be suspended and not revoked. The EU Commission will remain attentive to how the deal is implemented and reserves the right to reactivate rebalancing measures if necessary.
Please let us know if you and your members have any further questions on the above or other questions. We will keep you informed on next steps.
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Philip Easthill Secretary-General Square de Meeûs 35 │ B-1000 Brussels │ +32 473 637334 europeanboatingindustry.eu │ Twitter │ LinkedIn
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