BRUSSELS/FRANKFURT/PARIS (dpa-AFX) - Representatives of European automotive industry have voiced strong concerns about the broader implications of the US tariffs, particularly the risk of trade diversion.
They highlighted the uncertainty these measures create for integrated supply chains, especially in the automotive sector, which span both sides of the Atlantic and are central to current business models.
Trade diversion occurs when a trade agreement leads to a shift in trade patterns, where consumption of goods or services shifts from a cheaper, more efficient producer outside the agreement to a more expensive, less efficient producer within the agreement.
In the wake of reciprocal tariffs announced by the United States, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen convened a high-level dialogue with representatives of automotive industry to discuss the implications of the US measures on cars, car parts and commercial vehicles exported to that country.
The exchange of views focused on gathering industry views and proposals for the most effective EU response to the measures.
US President Donald Trump is set to implement 25 percent import tariffs on steel and aluminium and cars from the European Union Wednesday.
He rejected the 27-nation bloc's offer to remove tariffs on industrial goods, including cars, saying that it is not enough to address the trade imbalance between the United States and the European Union.
Top officials from the European automotive sector expressed support for lowering tariffs on both sides as part of a negotiated solution. They also shared perspectives on the potential for the EU and US to reduce non-tariff barriers in a mutually beneficial way.
They urged the European Commission to further implement its competitiveness agenda, in particular through accelerating actions included in the Action Plan on Automotive.
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