WASHINGTON: Donald Trump said Friday there was a 50 percent chance of a trade deal with the European Union as the bloc’s chief Ursula von der Leyen announced a weekend meeting with the US president.
In an attempt to slash his country’s trade deficits, Trump has vowed to hit dozens of countries with punitive tariff hikes if they do not hammer out a pact with Washington by August 1.
“I would say that we have a 50/50 chance, maybe less than that, but a 50/50 chance of making a deal with the EU,” Trump told reporters before leaving the White House for a trip to Scotland.
His administration promised “90 deals in 90 days” as it delayed the imposition of higher duties in April, but has so far unveiled just five agreements, including with Britain, Japan and the Philippines.
The EU’s 27 countries have been allowing the European Commission to focus on seeking a deal to avoid hefty US tariffs, with Trump threatening 30 percent levies without an accord by month’s end.
EU believes US trade deal ‘within reach’
Brussels and Washington appear to be inching towards a deal with a baseline 15 percent US tariff on EU goods, and potential carve-outs for critical sectors, multiple diplomats have told AFP.
But EU member states on Thursday backed a package of retaliation on $109 billion (93 billion euros) of US goods – to kick in from August 7 if talks fall short.
Von der Leyen said Friday she will meet Trump in Scotland this weekend to address the tariffs standoff.
“Following a good call with POTUS, we have agreed to meet in Scotland on Sunday to discuss transatlantic trade relations, and how we can keep them strong,” she wrote on X.
Trump claimed that most of the deals he was seeking had been completed, although he made clear that he was talking about sending letters imposing tariffs on US trade partners, rather than negotiating free trade agreements.
Tariffs charged on other countries are ultimately passed on as a sales tax to US consumers, because they are paid by importers, not the country supplying the goods or services.
“I don’t want to hurt countries, but we’re going to send a letter out some time during the week, and it’s basically going to say, ‘You’re going to pay 10 percent, you’re going to pay 15 percent, you’re going to pay maybe less,’ I don’t know,” Trump told reporters.
Trump said his negotiators were working “diligently” with EU officials, but he added that “we haven’t really had a lot of luck” in talks with Canada, which Trump has threatened with a 35 percent tariff.
The United States and China, Washington’s third-biggest partner in goods trade this year, have the “confines of a deal,” Trump told reporters.
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