Intensive negotiations are currently underway between the EU and the USA, where the EU is frantically trying to avoid a trade war and avert a 30 percent tariff threat from the USA on goods from EU countries. At the same time as the EU is keeping the door open for a negotiating solution with the USA, the EU has also prepared a countermeasure: counter-tariffs on American goods to the value of 72 billion euros.
Mitigate the damage
In order to mitigate the damage to the European economy, individual EU countries have put forward wishes to be allowed to exempt certain goods from the EU's countermeasures list. When the previous countermeasures package was implemented in the spring, Sweden got three exemptions: Kaolin - a clay mineral used in the manufacture of medicines, paper pulp and paint, a bleaching chemical and a certain type of oak wood.
Prior to the EU's larger countermeasures package, Sweden has now got five more goods exempted from the list and will avoid tariffs, says Benjamin Dousa.
Exactly these commodity codes where we import from the USA are particularly important for Swedish research, development and innovation, says Dousa.
He declines to provide more details, citing secrecy, but says it involves products from various industries that are important for Sweden's industry and jobs.
Interchangeable goods
While, for example, Germany submitted a list of over a hundred products (including peanut butter) that they wanted to exempt from the counter-tariffs, Sweden's wish list contained a handful of goods that were based on an analysis that the agency Kommerskollegium was responsible for.
Personally, I have also met with representatives from hundreds of industries over the past few months, says Dousa.
Not all of Sweden's wishes for exempted goods were granted, he admits. But again, he does not want to say which ones, citing secrecy.
However, Sweden has pushed for countermeasures tariffs to include goods that are easy for Europeans to replace, and together with other EU countries, got exemptions for defense equipment on the list.
We should not shoot ourselves in the foot. Rather tariffs on American juice, spirits and jeans than strategically important defense equipment, says Dousa.
Already in March this year, the USA introduced additional tariffs of 25 percent on steel and aluminum imports from EU countries.
On June 4, the additional tariffs for these were increased by a further 25 percent, to 50 percent.
The tariff announcement that US President Donald Trump had previously flagged to give on July 9 was postponed and the tariff pause was extended to August 1.
After a crisis meeting in Brussels, it became clear that the EU is preparing specific counter-tariffs on American goods to the value of 72 billion euros, which include, among other things, machine products, chemicals, plastics, electronics, wines, agricultural products and medical technology. At the same time, the EU is keeping the door open until August 1 for a negotiating solution with the USA.
Negotiations are currently underway between the EU and the USA.
The EU's first countermeasures package of 21 billion euros is now paused to open up for negotiations. For the second package to be adopted, it must be approved by a majority of the member states.
A sharp vote on the countermeasures package is expected in the coming weeks.
Source: Kommerskollegium, CNBC and the Government Offices.
