The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, stated that Brussels will extend the suspension of retaliatory measures on American tariffs for steel and aluminum, as the European Union seeks to reach an agreement to avoid a 30% tax on all its exports to the US.
„The United States has sent us a letter with measures that will take effect if there is no negotiated solution, so we will also extend the suspension of our retaliatory measures until the beginning of August,” von der Leyen declared on Sunday.
The suspension of these retaliations on American tariffs for steel and aluminum from the EU was set to expire on Monday night, AFP reports.
"At the same time, we will continue to prepare countermeasures to be fully prepared," she added, a day after Donald Trump announced that the 30% tariffs on all products from the European Union and Mexico will take effect on August 1.
Brussels has prepared tariffs worth around 21 billion euros on American products in response to the 25% tariffs imposed by Trump on European steel and aluminum imports earlier this year, but in April announced that they would suspend their application to facilitate a broader trade agreement with the US administration.
On Saturday, American President Donald Trump announced that products imported from the EU and Mexico will be subject to a 30% tariff starting on August 1. In the case of the EU, he cited the trade imbalance between the EU and the US to justify his decision.