This archive report was first published on 6 October 2019.
On October 18th, 2019, the United States will begin imposing tariffs on $7.5 billion worth of European Union goods annually, escalating the ongoing trade war between the two economic powers.
The tariffs, which were approved by the World Trade Organization, will affect Airbus planes made in France, Britain, Germany, and Spain, as well as various other EU goods, including Spanish olives, British sweaters and woollens, German tools and coffee, British whisky, French wine, and cheese.
According to Reuters, the US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer stated, "The WTO has confirmed that the United States is entitled to impose countermeasures in response to the EU's illegal subsidies."
“The WTO has confirmed that the United States is entitled to impose countermeasures in response to the EU’s illegal subsidies,” U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said in a statement. However, the tariffs will not be imposed on EU-made aircraft parts used in Airbus' Alabama assembly operations or those used by Boeing.
