US tariffs will increase import tax on Belgian beer fivefold
The United States is quintupling its import tax on European beer from 5 per cent to 25 per cent, according to Foreign Affairs minister Maxime Prévot.
Americans will soon pay 25 per cent import tax on beer from the European Union instead of 5 per cent, Prévot told De Standaard on Thursday. Beer is on the list of "aluminium derivatives", he said, possibly because beer is often sold in cans in the US.
Prévot described the tariffs introduced by US president Donald Trump this week as "totally offensive and counterproductive" and economically "irrational". "By playing with matches, the Americans are going to get burned. The European Union will react harshly."
His cabinet added that, given the unpredictability of the current US administration, it remains to be seen whether everything will proceed as planned. In the past, Trump has delayed or cancelled tariffs after countries showed a willingness to make concessions.
Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One on Thursday evening, Trump hinted that he might do so again. He said he would be willing to cut import tariffs if other countries could offer something "phenomenal" in return.
What he would consider phenomenal depends on the country, he said. On China, for example, Trump said he would be willing to drop import tariffs if Beijing agreed to sell the US operations of ByteDance's TikTok subsidiary. That deadline is this weekend.
The global financial sector does not seem to think Trump will back down any time soon. After stocks plunged on Thursday, Asian and European markets opened in the red again on Friday. But Trump said he believes the economic turbulence will pass. "The tariffs give us a lot of power to negotiate. Every country has called us by now."
© BELGA PHOTO LAURIE DIEFFEMBACQ
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