US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said on Sunday that he was confident that the United States can secure a trade deal with the European Union (EU), but Aug 1 is a hard deadline for tariffs to kick in.
Lutnick said he had just got off the phone with European trade negotiators, and there was "plenty of room" for agreement.
"These are the two biggest trading partners in the world, talking to each other. We'll get a deal done. I am confident [that] we'll get a deal done," Lutnick said in an interview with CBS' "Face the Nation".
US President Donald Trump threatened on July 12 to impose a 30% tariff on imports from Mexico and the EU starting Aug 1, after weeks of negotiations with major US trading partners failed to reach a comprehensive trade deal.
Lutnick said that was a hard deadline.
"Nothing stops countries from talking to us after Aug 1, but they're going to start paying the tariffs on Aug 1," he said on CBS.
Trump announced the tariffs in a letter to European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen. He sent letters to other trading partners, including Mexico, Canada, Japan and Brazil, setting blanket tariff rates ranging from 20% to 50%, as well as a 50% tariff on copper.
Lutnick also said that he expects Trump to renegotiate the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) signed during Trump's first White House term in 2017-2021.
Barring any major changes, USMCA-compliant goods from Mexico and Canada are exempt from tariffs.
"I think the president is absolutely going to renegotiate USMCA, but that's a year from today," Lutnick said.
Source: theedgemalaysia