EU clears major hurdle to finalize U.S. trade pact — and sidestep Trump tariff hikes

Ursula von der Leyen (CDU), President of the European Commission, sits on the podium at the Charlemagne Prize ceremony in City Hall. Picture Alliance | Picture Alliance | European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Wednesday welcomed a provisional agreement on legislation to remove import duties on U.S. goods and called on co-legislators to move swiftly to finalize the process. EU lawmakers welcomed the breakthrough after more than five hours of talks overnight, saying it likely paves the way for the 27-nation bloc to avoid a threat by U.S. President Donald Trump to punish a further delay with higher tariffs . The agreement includes a safeguard mechanism that would let Brussels suspend tariff reductions in the event that U.S. imports harm European industry. It also allows the European Commission, the EU's executive arm, to suspend tariff preferences if the U.S. continues to apply a tariff rate higher than 15% on EU steel and aluminum derivatives by the end of 2026. The provisional agreement comes almost a year after the EU and U.S. first struck a trade deal at Trump's golf resort in Turnberry, Scotland. Under the terms of the accord, the EU agreed to scrap tariffs on U.S. industrial goods, while the Trump administration agreed to cap tariffs on most European goods at 15%. "A deal is a deal, and the EU honours its commitments," the EU's von der Leyen said on Wednesday via X. …