MOSCOW, March 12 — The European Commission has announced retaliatory measures to new United States (US) tariffs that will affect goods worth about €18 billion euros (US$19.6 billion or RM86.8 billion) and will go into effect in mid-April.
"On March 12, the United States imposed tariffs of up to 25 per cent on imports of steel, aluminium, and certain products containing steel and aluminium from the European Union (EU) and other trading partners.
"In response, the Commission is launching a series of countermeasures to protect European businesses, workers and consumers from the impact of these unjustified trade restrictions," the EU body said in a statement on Wednesday, reported Sputnik/RIA Novosti.
On April 1, the EU will reinstate the 2018 and 2020 rebalancing measures and impose a new package of additional measures that will go into effect in mid-April.
"Since the new US tariffs are significantly broader in scope and affect a significantly higher value of European trade, the Commission launched the process on March 12 to impose additional countermeasures on the US.
"These will target approximately €18 billion worth of goods, which will then apply together with the reimposed measures from 2018," it said.
At the same time, the bloc remains ready to work with Washington to find a negotiated solution despite the US tariffs, and that the countermeasures could be lifted at any time if the problem is resolved.
— Bernama
