The European Union’s Trade Commissioner, Maros Sefcovic, has announced plans to engage in discussions with his American counterparts, emphasizing in a social media statement on Thursday that the EU will act “in a calm, carefully phased, and unified manner” but will not remain passive if a fair agreement cannot be reached.
On Wednesday, U.S. President Donald Trump declared the imposition of new 20% tariffs on imports from the EU, in addition to existing 25% tariffs on the automobile, steel, and aluminum sectors.
Trump’s new tariff measures aim to bolster the U.S. industry while penalizing countries for what he alleged as years of unfair trade practices.
Portugal’s Ministry of Economy has announced plans to meet next week with 16 business associations from diverse sectors to assess “the impact and mitigation measures” regarding the tariffs announced by the U.S. President.
“Economy Minister Pedro Reis and Secretary of State for the Economy João Rui Ferreira will begin a series of meetings next week with 16 business associations to assess the impact and mitigation measures of the tariffs announced by the United States administration on Portuguese companies and the national economy,” stated a communiqué released by the ministry on Thursday.
In a previously written note sent to the Lusa news agency, the Economy Minister expressed that the tariffs announced by the U.S. President “are not good news for the world” and will have an impact “contrary to what is desired,” highlighting that the European Union will “respond as a whole.”
“The European Union will certainly respond as a whole and react with caution, firmness, and intelligence. This includes evaluating the application of excessive tariffs on U.S. products, which could escalate protectionist measures and potentially have a counterproductive effect on the prices of our intermediate consumptions,” stated Pedro Reis.
