EU pushes to restore 15% tariff
- EU trade chief Maroš Šefčovič used a 90-minute Paris meeting with USTR Jamieson Greer to demand Washington roll car tariffs back to 15%. - The fight is over Trump’s May 1 threat to raise EU auto duties to 25%, despite last year’s Turnberry deal capping them at 15%. - That matters because Brussels now sees the dispute as a test of whether any U.S.-EU tariff deal is actually durable.
Cars are at the center of this one, but the real story is trust. The EU thought it had a tariff ceiling deal with Washington. Then President Donald Trump said on May 1 he wanted to raise tariffs on EU cars and trucks to 25% from 15%. That is why EU trade chief Maroš Šefčovič spent Tuesday in Paris pressing U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer to put the old number back. ### What actually broke? The basic problem is simple — both sides say there was a deal, but they now disagree on whether the U.S. can unilaterally change it. The arrangement, struck last year in Turnberry, capped U.S. tariffs on EU goods at 15%. Trump’s new threat to lift auto duties to 25% blows through that cap, and Brussels is treating that as a breach rather than a negotiating tactic. ### Why is Šefčovič pushing now? Because the timing matters. The European Commission said Šefčovič’s meeting with Greer lasted about 90 minutes, and the message was blunt — restore the agreed tariff level quickly. Brussels does not want this to drift into a new normal where the U.S. announces a higher rate first and negotiates later. ### Why are cars the flashpoint? Because autos are politically loud and economically useful. A 25% tariff hits some of Europe’s most visible exporters — especially German premium brands and the wider supplier network behind them. Trump has also framed the tariff as leverage to push more production into U.S. plants, which makes cars a pressure point, not just a customs line. ### What did von der Leyen add? She turned a trade complaint into a credibility argument. In Yerevan, Ursula von der Leyen said “a deal is a deal” and stressed “prosperity, common rules and reliability.” That wording matters — she is signaling that Brussels sees this less as a squabble over one sector and more as a test of whether negotiated commitments with Washington still mean what they say. ### Is Europe threatening retaliation? Not openly in the same breath, but the posture is clearly hardening. Von der Leyen said the EU is “prepared for every scenario,” and French officials have also signaled they do not want Europe to simply absorb a tariff hike and move on. Basically, Brussels is leaving room for countermeasures if the U.S. makes the 25% rate real. ### Why does the 15% number matter so much? Because tariff fights are rarely about the number alone. The difference between 15% and 25% is big enough to change pricing, margins, and sourcing decisions across auto supply chains. But the bigger issue is predictability — companies cite the part executives hate most. ### So what happens next? The immediate question is whether Washington backs away before the higher tariff takes effect next week. If it does, this becomes an ugly but contained enforcement dispute. If it does not, the EU will have to decide whether to retaliate, litigate, or try to salvage the broader trade framework while one of its core promises is already broken. ### Bottom line? This is not just about imported BMWs getting pricier. It is about whether the U.S. and EU still have a trade relationship where negotiated ceilings hold. If Brussels cannot get Washington back to 15%, every future transatlantic deal gets harder to trust.
