EDINBURGH, Scotland (AP) — The United States and the European Union agreed to a trade deal setting a 15% tariff on most goods, President Donald Trump announced Sunday, staving off for now higher import taxes on both sides that might have sent shock waves through economies around the globe.
I think what pisses me off most about this is everyone is just letting Trump get away with this shit and acting like this is a win because we didn’t get 30%. If everyone had just held strong and not wavered Trump would just destroy the American economy with his tariffs or chicken out like he did last time. Sure it would suck for a bit, but it would show that the international community can’t just be bullied around like this. Now, everyone has seen that this works and everyone will do it. Even worse, giving the US a deal that is this unbalanced against Europe just reinforces Trump’s political power back home. If they had just held strong Trump might have started feeling some real pressure from Congress when people ask why the fuck everything costs 30% more overnight. Now things will cost 15% more but all of the sudden corporations are suddenly able to just eat into profits to pay for it without raising prices because they’re so scared of Trump or think that it’s easy to get money sucking him off instead of competing fairly. The EU has fucked over everyone on Earth with this “deal” and not just their own citizens.
EU accepted 15% tariff AND it has to keep spending billions on oil, gas, and weapons from US. If it doesn’t US can increase the tariffs. So to summarize:
- EU has worst trade position than before
- EU is still tied to US without clear way to become independent
- the situation is only stabilized for now and Trump can “alter the deal” in the future
Great job Ursula!
Seriously, it’s clear now that UE only has one card: let’s build close business ties with everyone so they can’t afford to fight us. Putin and Trump showed that this tactic doesn’t work against strongmen but EU is unable to come up with anything else. EU has no power and it will all go downhill now.
We (EU) have been sold.
The title is very misleading. It implies that there are 15% tariffs on both sides but only the US is levying the tariff. This is a horrible deal for the EU.
Steel and aluminum remain at 50%, and the EU has to invest in the US and buy military equipment from them. Sounds like a terrible deal and I hope we (Canada) don’t make a similar one.
It does seem that way. Unfortunately, the info is yet quite meager. The official EU press release was a bit of a propaganda piece imo. See also this X post
Other outlets are slowly realeasing some info, and one paper states that it’s more of a " principle deal" and that many details need to be worked out. There is a list of zero tariff goods as well.
And, FYI, we were already importing US LNG, and US defense materials. I don’t know about the amounts and specifics of existing contracts though.
Also, we ( EU) will be importing Canadian LNG and other stuff from Canada, in the coming years.
Since no agreement with Trump means anything this “deal” is barely important news. Tarrifs between the EU and the US can and will change unpredictably.
This is an important point.
When the new trade deals materialize in a year and a half or so, precipitated by the chaos Donald created, the US will find its economic power diminished. The evident unreliability of the US and its governing system is not going to be ignored by the rest of the world when China is waiting in the wings and demonstrating a firm commitment to business.
And it’s costing US companies a shitload of money, not just directly to the government on tariffs, but also in lost sales.
And the markets will rejoice that he only hacked off our own toes instead of the whole foot.
hacked off our own toes
Maybe, probably, perhaps…
I mean, hopefully it’s only " some toes" Problem is that the credibility is completely down the drain. I wonder whether any deal with this administration will restore both consumer’s & producer’s sentiment.
We’ll see which way it will go.
The article really should have covered some basic economy.
The US consumer and factories are paying the US government 15 cents on every dollar of product they import from the EU.
That’s annoying for the EU, because it will mean fewer exports to the US. But it’s WAY worse for the US.
And on top of that, it’s really not so bad for the EU, all in all, the tariffs are lower than for many others, meaning that we might actually sell more. Of course, that’s assuming the US keeps imports steady, which they won’t, because prices will go up and thus demand goes down.
This is horrible for the EU. They now have a huge economic disadvantage over the US.
And on top of that, it’s really not so bad for the EU, all in all, the tariffs are lower than for many others, meaning that we might actually sell more.
This is some of the hardest cope I have ever read. “If we work while the others are on strike then we can get paid while they do not!” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strikebreaker
This is horrible for the EU. They now have a huge economic disadvantage over the US.
Yeah, that IS the point of tariffs. It’s also a very basic understanding of global trade.
When you buy something from another continent, you’re already paying WAY more than when you’re buying it nearby. So why would you do that? Well, in most cases, it’s because you can’t buy it locally.
Global trade is global because lots of products aren’t produced everywhere. Much of what the EU is selling to the US is stuff that the US either doesn’t make, or doesn’t make in enough volume to cover its needs. And vice versa. Trade balances group products together, so it doesn’t usually show, but you can sell me a billion worth of ball bearings, and I can sell you a billion worth of ball bearings, and if I tariff you heavily, that won’t change at all because there are a thousand different types of ball bearings.
Now, traditionally, a tariff can promote growth of local industries, but you can’t just make a new factory in a few weeks, months or sometimes even years. If we assume the industry reacts immediately, it will be many years before simple factories are up, and decades before entire chains are reproduced.
And the industry won’t react immediately, because nobody trusts that these tariffs will stick. You need to put a tariff in place for decades to be effective, and Trump can’t even stick to a plan for months.
So in practice, just having short term stability is worth it. Plenty of industries are actively holding off on large purchases because it might suddenly have a 20% tax hike on top. Or lose one, or god knows what the orange idiot does next that will destroy your profit margin.
Because again, they’re not buying abroad for a small advantage, they’re doing it because that’s where this product is made, and they can’t buy it elsewhere.
Strike breaking
That doesn’t remotely apply. Assuming International Trade is like your personal bank account is a Trump level misunderstanding of economics.
International trade is often done simply because it is cheaper. China is a manufacturing hub for a reason.
If European cars are more expensive people will buy an American car faster for example.
International trade is often done simply because it is cheaper. China is a manufacturing hub for a reason.
So, do you imagine there are factories producing goods that simply go unsold, (Tesla doesn’t count) just waiting for a reduction in foreign imports and/or an increase in price?
No, they’re producing to meet demands, having too much excess capacity is a waste of money, so they don’t have it.
cars are actually a funny example, because the tariff used to be 25%, so it actually decreased. But let’s pretend it didn’t. Let’s say a BMW just started costing 15% more, and people look for an alternative. They spot a US car, how much do you think that will cost? If you answered “14.5% more than yesterday”, you’re spot on!
But here’s the thing. There aren’t suddenly, magically more US cars to make up for the difference. The people who want that BMW-like car, will find it doesn’t actually exist at the previous price, simply because demand went up (and due to profit seeking).
Strange how you had to include “Tesla does not count” I wonder why you did that. Almost like you already know you are completely wrong and are admitting it.
It was a joke about how nobody wants to buy cybertrucks.
You’re the one who fucked up by picking an example that’s actually the reverse of what you wanted to show, and still not understanding it.
