The European Union’s (EU) trade chief, Maros Sefcovic, is planning to hold a call with Jamieson Greer, his US counterpart, on Friday to take stock of talks, according to a European Commission spokesperson.

The call is expected to take place late afternoon, amid pessimism in Brussels that negotiations will progress quickly.

Earlier this week, the EU shared a revised paper with the US that includes proposals on international labour rights, environmental standards, economic security and gradually reducing tariffs to zero on both sides for non-sensitive agricultural products as well as industrial goods, Bloomberg reported. 

The proposal also outlined mutual investments and strategic procurement in energy, artificial intelligence and digital connectivity.

One EU official described the prior US proposal as a wish list of unrealistic and unilateral demands, Bloomberg reported earlier. The EU is aiming to cooperate with the US, and is seeking a balanced and mutually beneficial deal. EU officials and many member states remain sceptical that the Trump administration is driven by similar goals.

The Financial Times reported earlier that the US is expected to reject the EU proposals on the call on Friday.

Other areas covered in the EU’s latest proposal include food and agri-standards, mutual recognition agreements, public procurement, digital trade and discussions on the rules of origin of goods in order to safeguard mutual interests.

The paper also contains areas for cooperation on shared challenges, such as export controls and investment screenings, combating overcapacity in steel, pharmaceutical, automotive and semiconductor supply chains, as well as global competition faced by the civilian aircraft industry and a joint market for critical raw materials.

The document provides space for more specific announcements on procurement and investments.

In parallel, the 27-nation bloc has put together plans to hit €95 billion (US$108 billion or RM458.52 billion) of US exports with additional tariffs in response to US President Donald Trump’s “reciprocal” levies and 25% tariffs on cars and some parts, should negotiations fail to achieve a satisfactory outcome.

The EU agreed earlier this month to delay for 90 days the implementation of a separate set of retaliatory tariffs against the US over 25% duties Trump imposed on the bloc’s steel and aluminum exports. That move came after Trump lowered his so-called reciprocal rate on most EU exports to 10% from 20% for the same amount of time.

Trump has also said he will press ahead with plans to target semiconductors and pharmaceutical imports, and has threatened action on movies and aircraft parts. Several EU member states have urged the bloc to retaliate should any of those levies be introduced while the two sides are negotiating.

Source: Bloomberg

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