The US trade representative slammed the ongoing subsidies as “massive EU corporate welfare” following the WTO’s decision on Monday and insisted that American and European companies must compete on a “level playing field.”
“Strong action is needed to convince the EU that its interests lie in eliminating these market-distorting subsidies now and in the future so that our industries can compete on a level playing field,” trade rep Robert Lighthizer said in a statement.
In light of today’s report and the lack of progress in efforts to resolve this dispute, the United States is initiating a process to assess increasing the tariff rates.
In October, the WTO gave Washington the green light to slap the EU with $7.5 billion in new levies following a previous decision over illicit subsidies to Airbus – to date the largest WTO ruling in history – affecting imports of aircraft and agricultural goods from Germany, France, Spain and the United Kingdom.
While EU trade commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom has insisted that “we are not in a trade war,” the WTO is set to hear a European counter-case against Boeing next year, indicating more battles to come.
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The threat comes as leaders of 29 countries prepare to meet in London on Wednesday for a NATO summit. Though the officials are set to discuss the future of the NATO alliance, tensions between member states – the US-EU trade row included – could prove distracting.
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Article source: https://www.rt.com/business/474878-us-considers-eu-tariffs/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=RSS
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