US levies punitive tariffs on German jam

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Container ship in the port of Oakland (archive picture): Dispute over tariffs between the USA and the EU continues

Following a review, the US government has updated its list of punitive tariffs for imports from the EU. In place of some products from Greece and Great Britain, goods from Germany and France will move, as the US trade representative announced on Wednesday. Punitive tariffs on goods worth US $ 7.5 billion will remain, and tariff rates will remain unchanged. The changes are moderate, it said.

From September 1st, fruit jams from Germany and France are said to be affected by the measures, but punitive tariffs will apply to Greek cheese and British biscuits.

The basis of the punitive tariffs is a WTO ruling due to years of illegal subsidies for the aircraft manufacturer Airbus. According to this, the US government has the right to impose punitive tariffs of up to 100 percent on goods worth $ 7.5 billion.

It is the highest sum that has ever been approved in the almost 25-year history of the WTO. The punitive tariffs may be levied until the losing party - in this case the EU - has removed the trade distortions complained of.

The airlines' argument has been going on for many years

For this reason, the USA had already issued punitive tariffs of 25 percent on numerous products from Europe last October. This affected, for example, wine from Germany and France, Parmesan from Italy and olive oil from Spain. In addition, a special tax of 15 percent applies to aircraft imports. At the beginning of the year DER SPIEGEL reported on the effects of the transatlantic customs dispute on German winegrowers.

The two largest aircraft manufacturers, Airbus and Boeing, have been fighting fierce competition for decades. The USA and the EU have accused each other of distorting competition and have taken their complaints through every instance at the WTO.

jok / dpa