US President Donald Trump and European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker announced they have agreed to work towards “zero tariffs” and “zero subsidies” on non-car goods.
They also said they would work to resolve US tariffs on steel and aluminium imports that have agitated European markets.
The US president, in a hastily called Rose Garden statement with Mr Juncker, said the EU had agreed to buy “a lot of soybeans” and increase its imports of liquefied natural gas from the US.
The United States and the European Union have a $1 TRILLION bilateral trade relationship – the largest economic relationship in the world. We want to further strengthen this trade relationship to the benefit of all American and European citizens… pic.twitter.com/4zlmEEtCpG
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 25, 2018
Mr Juncker, meanwhile, said the US and EU had agreed to hold off on further tariffs as part of trade talks aimed at averting a crippling trade dispute involving the lucrative car market.
Mr Trump told reporters it was a “very big day for free and fair trade” and vowed to “resolve the steel and aluminium tariff issues”.
He added: “We will resolve retaliatory tariffs. We have some tariffs that are retaliatory and that will get resolved as part of what we’re doing.
“We’re starting the negotiation right now, but we know very much where it’s going.”
I came for a deal, we made a deal. The EU continues to stand up for free and fair trade. My joint statement with @realDonaldTrump: https://t.co/JISJJ1CWR2 pic.twitter.com/GMpS0ZL5Ul
— Jean-Claude Juncker (@JunckerEU) July 25, 2018
Mr Juncker said he had an “intention to make a deal today and we made a deal today”.
He said: “We have identified a number of areas on which to work together, work towards zero tariffs on industrial goods. That was my main intention, for those to come down to zero tariffs on industrial goods.”
As US soybean farmers have struggled against retaliatory tariffs, Mr Juncker said the EU “can import more soybeans from the US and it will be done”.
He said the two sides had also agreed to work together to reform the World Trade Organisation, which Mr Trump has vehemently criticised as being unfair to the US.
Earlier in the Oval Office, Mr Juncker told Mr Trump that the two trading partners were “allies, not enemies” and said they needed to work together to address recent frictions involving Mr Trump’s threats to impose tariffs on car imports and EU plans to retaliate.
The president has repeatedly called the EU – which includes many of the US’ oldest and most committed allies – an unfair trading partner and even labelled it a “foe”.
The EU has warned that it will retaliate with tariffs on products worth 20 billion (£15 billion) if Mr Trump puts duties on cars and parts from Europe.
