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These could get more expensive in the EU if a transatlantic trade scuffle escalates. Photo: Mike Mozart via Flickr (CC BY 2.0) 

Earlier this month, the WTO said that support from federal authorities and the US states of South Carolina and Washington “provided to US producers of large civil aircraft” broke international trade rules.

Cecilia Malmström, the European trade commissioner, stated on 17 April that:

“European companies must be able to compete on fair and equal terms. The recent WTO ruling on U.S. subsidies for Boeing is important in this respect. We must continue to defend a level-playing field for our industry. But let me be clear, we do not want a tit-for-tat. While we need to be ready with countermeasures in case there is no other way out, I still believe that dialogue is what should prevail between important partners such as the EU and the U.S., including in bringing an end to this long-standing dispute. The EU remains open for discussions with the U.S., provided these are without preconditions and aim at a fair outcome.”

The “tit-for-tat” refers to the fact that the US has its own very similar case pending against the EU. The Trump administration has likewise proposed adding tariffs on $11bn worth of European goods in response to EU subsidies to the aerospace giant Airbus, which also break World Trade Organization rules, per the AFP, DW and Financial Times.

Cecilia Malmström, the EU trade commissioner, is seen during a visit to vineyard in the French region of Alsace, 17 April 2019. The EU could ask the WTO to slap additional import tariffs on US wine, as Brussels-Washington trade tensions simmer. Photo: Eur
Cecilia Malmström, the EU trade commissioner, is seen during a visit to vineyard in the French region of Alsace, 17 April 2019. The EU could ask the WTO to slap additional import tariffs on US wine, as Brussels-Washington trade tensions simmer. Photo: European Commission

Items on initial EU additional import duty list

The EU draft list of products runs to 11 pages (PDF) and includes:

  • Various sorts of fish and seafood, such as salmon, tuna and lobster
  • Dried onions, potatoes, sweetcorn, tomatoes, carrots and other dried vegetables
  • Sunflower seeds
  • Several types of vegetable oil
  • Several types of nuts
  • Frozen orange juice and frozen grapefruit juice
  • Ketchup
  • Wine, rum, vodka and some other alcoholic beverages
  • Processed tobacco
  • Coal
  • Several types of luggage and baggage
  • Several types of tractors
  • Gaming equipment

The proposed duties are subject to a public consultation that runs until 31 May. The commission will then submit the revised list to a WTO arbitrator, who will determine which retaliatory tariffs can actually be applied.