US and EU Seal 15% Tariff Agreement on Exports, But Auto Sector Still Grapples with Heavy Levies

Trade tensions ease as transatlantic partners finalize tariff framework—yet automotive remains in the crosshairs.

Breaking Down the Deal

The 15% rate now formalizes what had been a moving target for exporters. While broader industries celebrate relief, automakers face stubbornly high barriers. No fresh data here—just the cold, hard 15% staring back from the negotiating table.

Auto Industry's Uphill Battle

Detroit and Stuttgart aren't popping champagne. Legacy combustion giants still get slapped with tariffs that'd make a crypto trader blush—guess some industries prefer to keep their volatility in politics, not portfolios.

Bottom Line: A partial win masking a sector-specific stalemate. Because nothing says 'global cooperation' like selectively punishing the industries that can afford the lobbyists.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• The U.S. and European Union fleshed out details of the trade deal they had agreed on last month, formalizing the 15% blanket tariffs on most EU exports to the U.S. although levies on autos remain elevated for now. 
• The 15% levy on auto imports from the EU to the U.S. will hinge on the 27-nation bloc reducing its tariffs on a slew of American products, among them all U.S. industrial products and seafood and agricultural products.
• The EU and the U.S. reached a trade deal late last months after weeks of strained talks. 

The U.S. and European Union fleshed out details of the trade deal they had agreed on last month, formalizing the 15% blanket tariffs on most EU exports to the U.S. although levies on autos remain elevated for now.

The 15% tariff on EU exports to the U.S. will include “strategic sectors such as cars, pharmaceuticals, semiconductors and lumber,” the EU said in its version of a joint statement released Thursday.

However, the 15% levy on auto imports from the EU to the U.S. will hinge on the 27-nation bloc reducing its tariffs on a slew of American products, among them all U.S. industrial products, seafood, and agricultural products such as tree nuts and processed foods, the WHITE House said in its version of the joint statement. At the moment, the U.S. imposes a 27.5% tariff on EU autos and auto parts.

The two major trading partners reached a deal late last month after weeks of strained talks. The EU committed to buying $750 billion worth of energy from the U.S. and an additional $600 billion across strategic sectors in the U.S. Both investments will be made through 2028, the White House statement said, noting also that the EU plans to buy at least $40 billion of American AI chips for its computing centers.

Exports from the EU to the U.S. that will face lower most-favored-nation tariffs are "unavailable natural resources (including cork), all aircraft and aircraft parts, generic pharmaceuticals and their ingredients and chemical precursors," the White House statement said.