EU and U.S. starting talks on ending steel tariffs

The European Union and the United States are to begin talks to discuss the steel tariffs forced by President Donald Trump.

In a shared statement Monday, the U.S. and European trade representatives stated they were attending to find answers before the end of the year that will mark the overcapacity in the steel sector.

This issue has registered on the trans-Atlantic relationship for longer than two years.

The United States forced a 25% tariff on European steel and a 10% tariff on aluminum in June 2018 on national security.

The EU opposed the move from the start. After various deserted tries to strike a deal with the Trump administration, the bloc took the matter to the World Trade Organization. It required retaliatory measures on up to 6.4 billion euros ($7.78 billion) of U.S. exports. The EU’s targeted products covered Bourbon whiskey, peanut butter, and orange juice.

Of this number, the EU first targeted 2.8 billion euros of U.S. exports and announced it would implement the left 3.6 billion euros three years later or after a positive result at the WTO. This second tranche of tariffs was supposed to come into force next month.

On Monday, the European Commission established that it temporarily suspended those further tariffs as talks continue over a potential deal.

Our collective purpose is to put an end to the WTO discussions following the U.S. application of tariffs on imports from the EU, a spokesperson for the European Commission announced Monday.