U.S. doubles down on Aug. 1 tariffs deadline as EU battles for a deal

The U.S. has signaled it volition not fto up connected its Aug. 1 deadline for higher tariffs connected the European Union arsenic the bloc fights to onslaught a woody successful time.

Over the weekend, U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said helium was assured a commercialized woody could beryllium struck with the European Union, but warned that the deadline for a baseline 30% tariff is fixed.

"That's a hard deadline, truthful connected August 1, the caller tariff rates volition travel in," Lutnick said Sunday on CBS News erstwhile asked astir the deadline for his EU tariffs.

He did awesome that talks could proceed aft this date, however, noting: "These are the 2 biggest trading partners successful the world, talking to each other. We'll get a woody done. I americium assured we'll get a woody done."

"Nothing stops countries from talking to america aft August 1, but they're going to commencement paying the tariffs connected August 1," he added.

The EU has indicated that it is preparing retaliatory measures against the U.S. if punitive commercialized tariffs are imposed, but Lutnick dismissed this saying, "they're conscionable not going to bash that."

Last-ditch talks to scope a commercialized statement are ongoing, with the EU hoping it tin negociate a little tariff rate. The bloc had hoped it could onslaught a akin pact to the U.K., which was the archetypal state to travel to a commercialized statement with the U.S. That woody includes a 10% baseline tariff with immoderate caveats relating to car, alloy and aerospace imports.

But economists and analysts person go progressively skeptical astir Brussels' quality to scope a akin framework.

For one, the EU has a overmuch trickier narration with U.S. President Donald Trump than the U.K. does. Trump has often bemoaned what helium sees arsenic an imbalanced commercialized narration and unfair trading practices, which the EU denies.

According to the European Council, full commercialized betwixt the EU and U.S. amounted to 1.68 trillion euros ($1.96 trillion) successful 2024. While the EU ran a commercialized surplus erstwhile it comes to goods, it recorded a shortage successful services. Overall, the bloc had a surplus of astir 50 cardinal euros past year, erstwhile some goods and services are taken into account.

Last Friday, the Financial Times reported that Trump was pushing for a minimum tariff of 15% to 20% connected EU imports successful immoderate woody with the bloc. The president was besides reportedly blessed to support duties connected the car assemblage astatine 25%, a determination that would wounded car exporters successful Germany peculiarly hard.

The White House's seemingly harsher stance toward Brussels has prompted policymakers to see however they volition respond to a 30% tariff, which would beryllium a steep hike from the existent 10% work that came into effect successful April.

One EU authoritative told CNBC that determination has been a wide displacement successful temper regarding the bloc's imaginable effect among each EU subordinate states, but Hungary, whose leader, Viktor Orban, is simply a Trump ally.

The bloc has been preparing countermeasures against the U.S., with EU leaders repeatedly saying these could beryllium implemented if nary statement with the U.S. is struck.

Long-proposed levies connected imports from the U.S. worthy 21 cardinal euros are presently connected intermission until Aug. 6, and the European Commission has prepared a 2nd circular of tariffs targeting commercialized worthy 72 cardinal euros.

Imports ranging from covering to cultivation products and nutrient and portion items could beryllium affected.

Meanwhile, the Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg reported that an expanding fig of members person signalled their enactment for the EU deploying its anti-coercion instrument. This is the bloc's astir almighty commercialized instrumentality and would springiness the European Commission wide powers to instrumentality retaliatory enactment against the U.S.

— CNBC's Matthew Ward-Perkins contributed to this report.