The Portuguese Minister of Economy, Pedro Reis, declared on Wednesday that the response to U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs is not about rushing to be the first to react. The government is meeting to discuss the topic of tariffs imposed by the U.S. President and to deliberate on potential responses.
“These processes are very serious. It’s neither a race against time nor a vanity contest to show who is the fastest. Obviously, the government has had the situation in the United States on its radar for months, we just didn’t know its extent,” stated Reis in an interview on SIC Notícias’ program ‘Negócios da Semana’ (Business of the Week).
However, the official confirmed that the Portuguese government is aligned with Europe in responding to the tariffs imposed by President Trump. According to Pedro Reis, Europe “will operate as a bloc,” emphasizing the importance of unity and adding that the Portuguese government’s measures will focus on supporting businesses.
An official from the Prime Minister’s office stated that the Cabinet meeting will concentrate on the tariffs issue, following two days of discussions with various associations representing different sectors across Portugal.
The government is preparing a “robust” plan with measures to support businesses, according to the president of ATP – Associação Têxtil e Vestuário de Portugal.
Despite these developments, Trump has decided to defer the tariffs with a 90-day pause. Noticias ao Minuto is attempting to contact a source from the Ministry of the Presidency to verify if the agenda remains unchanged.
