EU Commissioner-Designate Maros Sefcovic announced, on 20 March 2025, to the Committee on International Trade that the EU’s countermeasures against the US, in response to President Donald Trump’s metals tariffs, will be postponed. The countermeasures, announced on 12 March 2025, will now take effect in mid-April.
The Commissioner-Designate said this approach will allow the EU to deliver a firm, proportionate, robust and well-calibrated response to the US measures.
The European Commission planned to re-impose 2018 tariffs on EUR 4.5 billion (USD 4.9 billion) of US products on 1 April 2025, followed by an additional EUR 18 billion on 13 April 2025. However, Sefcovic announced that the timing will be aligned to allow consultations with member states and extend negotiations with the US.
The US president demanded the immediate elimination of the EU’s “nasty” tariff on American whiskey, describing the bloc as “hostile and abusive” and claiming it was “established solely to exploit the United States.”
US President Donald Trump has threatened a 200% tariff on EU alcohol imports in response to the EU’s plan to impose a 50% tariff on US bourbon. The move is the first countermeasure in response to US tariffs and is part of an escalating trade war following Trump’s tariffs on steel and aluminium imports.
Commissioner Sefcovic also criticised the US for imposing 25% tariffs on EUR 26 billion of EU steel and aluminium exports, about 5% of total EU exports to the US. He called the tariffs unjustified and stated that the EU is not to blame for global overcapacity in these sectors.
The Commissioner also noted the limited progress of negotiations with the US, stating that its focus on attracting investment and re-industrialising through tariffs has hindered efforts to reduce industrial import duties. The EU and the US enjoy the largest bilateral trade and investment relationship in the world, with transatlantic trade in goods and services worth EUR 1.6 trillion in 2023. EU-US bilateral investment flows top more than EUR 5 trillion.
