The EU suspends mirror duties for the US for 90 days
10 April 2025 18:04
The European Union has suspended its duties on American goods for 90 days.
This was announced by the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, "Komersant Ukrainian" reports.
“While we finalize the EU countermeasures, which have received strong support from our member states, we will suspend them for 90 days. If the negotiations are not satisfactory, our countermeasures will take effect,” the official emphasized.
She noted that the EU has taken note of US President Donald Trump’s statement and wants to give the negotiations on duties a chance.
Ursula von der Leyen emphasized that the Europeans continue to prepare for other customs responses, while all options for possible agreements with the United States “remain on the table.”
The day before, the EU announced duties on American goods worth €21 billion. Some of them will come into effect on April 15, others in May and December. Most of the goods were subject to a 25% duty, some to a 10% duty.
However, on April 9, Donald Trump introduced a 90-day pause on tariffs for a number of countries except China. The US President called his decision “from the heart,” although, according to CNN, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent was involved in changing Trump’s tariff policy.
What is known about US duties
On April 2, US President Donald Trump announced that he would impose reciprocal duties on goods from all countries of the world starting at 10%.
For a number of countries, the rates were much higher: 20% for the EU, 25% for South Korea, and 24% for Japan. Amid the escalation of the trade war, duties on China increased first to 54%, then to 104%, and now to 125%.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent warned U.S. trading partners against retaliating against the new duties. Nevertheless, the world’s largest countries have announced countermeasures. In particular, China announced an increase in duties on American goods to 84%. Subsequently, the country recorded the lowest level of its currency in more than 17 years.
In response to the global duties, stock markets around the world showed a significant drop. In addition, oil prices in the United States fell to their lowest level in almost four years, temporarily dropping below $60 per barrel. Against this backdrop, the American president called on his citizens to “be strong and patient.”
Ukrainian imports were also subject to a 10% tariff. The Ministry of Economy of Ukraine said that there were chances to negotiate other terms of trade with the US, and Minister Yulia Svyrydenko assured that the US duty would not affect the exchange rate or food prices in Ukraine.
