The EU wants to impose new punitive tariffs on US imports because of illegal subsidies for the US aircraft manufacturer Boeing. This was announced by EU Trade Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis on 9 November 2020. The World Trade Organisation WTO had previously allowed the EU Commission to impose punitive tariffs. German and European wine exporters view this step critically.
"The 25 percent increase in duties on still wines exported to the USA, which was imposed in October 2019, had dramatic consequences for wine exports to the USA - especially from Germany, France and Spain. Across Europe, there has been a painful 54 percent drop in wine exports. The USA and the EU must therefore return to the negotiating table immediately", Gerhard Brauer, chairman of the Association of German Wine Exporters (VDW), demanded.
The EU's decision could lead to an escalation, says Christian Schwörer, managing director of the German Winegrowers' Association, too. The even greater decline in export value compared to export volume suggests that exporters will not be able to pass on the punitive tariffs to importers or consumers in the USA.
A coalition of 20 business associations representing companies in the US, the European Union and the UK also warned: new European Union tariffs on US rum, spirits, vodka and Vermouth, for example, could exacerbate tensions and further damage the previously booming transatlantic beverage trade.
(uka)