The United States and the European Union formalized the terms of the framework trade agreement the two trading partners announced at the end of July, per a joint statement published by the White House Thursday.
The statement provides additional clarity and detail surrounding the terms U.S. President Donald Trump and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen shared following negotiations in Scotland on July 27, including a 15% tariff on EU imports by the U.S. The two trading partners will “promptly document” the agreement, per the statement.
Under the agreement, the U.S. committed to apply either a tariff of 15% or a most favored nation duty rate on EU imports, with the higher of the two to be enforced. The U.S. will set a cap of 15% on tariffs for imports of lumber and semiconductors, among other things. Those sectors are currently under Section 232 investigation. Similar probes have led to sector-specific tariffs of up to 50%.
For steel and aluminum imports, the two trading partners said they would “consider the possibility” of cooperating on ring-fencing their domestic markets to protect against overcapacity.
Other provisions apply to aircraft and aircraft parts, generic pharmaceuticals, chemical precursors, cars and car parts and “unavailable natural resources” coming in from the EU and some agricultural products from the U.S. going to the E.U.
“These tariff reductions are expected to be effective from the first day of the same month in which the European Union’s legislative proposal is introduced,” according to the statement.
As part of the agreement, the EU expects to procure $750 billion in energy products through 2028 and $40 billion worth of artificial intelligence chips from the U.S. EU companies would also invest $600 billion in the U.S. over the next three years.
The statement also says the EU will work to reduce regulatory burdens on U.S. companies that could inhibit transatlantic trade.
“Predictability for our companies & consumers. Stability in the largest trading partnership in the world. And security for European jobs & economic growth in the long-term,” von der Leyen said in a post on X Thursday. “This EU-US trade deal delivers for our citizens & companies, and strengthens transatlantic relations.”
Editor’s note: Facilities Dive made edits to the original piece to highlight aspects of the deal that could impact goods of importance to building operators.
