The Financial Times reported, citing three people familiar with the matter, that the United States and the European Union are close to reaching a trade agreement, which would include Washington imposing a 15% tariff on European goods. According to reports, the United States and the European Union will exempt some products such as aircraft, spirits and medical equipment from tariffs.
The 15% tax rate will include the 10% baseline set by the United States; given that the previous tariff was about 4.8%, people familiar with the matter believe that the 15% tax rate will solidify the existing tax rate.
The 15% tax rate will drop from the 27.5% auto tariff.
The Financial Times stated that the EU continues to prepare to impose retaliatory tariffs in case the two sides fail to reach an agreement before August 1.
European bonds fell on this news; Eurozone Stoxx 50 Index H expanded its gains to 2.4%.