Ahead of the formal start of next week’s Group of 7 meeting in Brussels, Belgium, a consortium of 113 associations issued a joint statement urging the need for E.U. and U.S. leaders to terminate retaliatory tariffs.
The groups range from boatbuilders and producers of agricultural and various consumer products to distillers, vineyards and more. The full statement and the signatories can be found here.
The statement, issued by the European Boating Industry reads, in part:
“The undersigned 113 organizations reiterate our call for the permanent removal of tariffs on sectors unrelated to the ongoing transatlantic trade disputes. The transatlantic relationship is of enormous economic importance to our sectors, and we are eager to see it protected and nurtured. We welcome the positive steps to de-escalate the disputes over the past few months and hope that both sides can build on this positive momentum to secure the permanent removal of retaliatory tariffs on our products.”
The EBI and its stateside counterpart — the National Marine Manufacturers Association — said they were encouraged after U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo; Ambassador Katherine Tai, the U.S. Trade Representative; and European Commission executive vice president Valdis Dombrovskis announced in a tweet last month that they had agreed on suspending the increase of its rebalancing measures on U.S. 232 steel & aluminum tariffs.
The NMMA said that since the retaliatory tariffs were put in place in 2018, U.S. boatbuilders have seen a 40 percent decrease in exports, with an estimated loss of more than $400 million in sales.
The statement continues: “We are hopeful the recent positive momentum in both disputes will lead to the permanent removal of tariffs on unrelated sectors and an agreement not to introduce new tariffs in these transatlantic disputes. We call on our leaders to intensify negotiations to ensure that this happens without delay. Removing tariffs on unrelated sectors is essential to create the necessary certainty and stability to grow the transatlantic economy as it recovers from the Covid-19 pandemic.”
