On Sunday afternoon, US President Trump will hold a crucial meeting with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in Scotland, and whether the US and EU can reach a trade agreement is highly anticipated.
On the EU side, EU Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic and his assistants arrived in Scotland on Sunday morning to join European Commission President von der Leyen, who arrived there on Saturday. On the US side, US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer flew to Trump’s Turnberry Golf Resort in Scotland on Saturday. They will join Trump in the meeting with the EU delegation.
The EU is aiming to reach a trade agreement with the US this weekend to avoid the 30% tariff set to take effect on August 1. Ahead of the meeting, the US and EU have been in the final stages of negotiations for tariffs on key industries such as automobiles, steel, aluminum, and pharmaceuticals.
According to Reuters, a Trump administration official stated, “We are cautiously optimistic about reaching an agreement.” “But nothing is final until it’s agreed upon.” the official said.
Under the Danish presidency of the EU, ambassadors from EU member states visited Greenland on Sunday and held a teleconference with EU Commission officials to reach a consensus on the freedom enjoyed by von der Leyen in negotiations.
If an agreement cannot be reached, the US will impose a 30% tariff on EU products starting from August 1, and the EU is prepared to impose retaliatory tariffs on US goods worth €93 billion ($109 billion).
EU diplomats mentioned that the US-EU agreement may include a 15% tariff on EU goods imported into the US, similar to the US-Japan trade agreement, while imposing a 50% tariff on European steel and aluminum with possible export quotas.
In order to learn from Japan, EU negotiators had conversations with Japanese negotiators during the preparation for Sunday’s US-EU negotiations. Japan reached a 15% baseline tariff agreement with the US earlier this week.
For Trump, his goal is to reshape the global economic order and reduce the US trade deficit that has accumulated over decades. A US-EU agreement would be the largest trade agreement, exceeding the $550 billion agreement reached with Japan.
So far, Trump has reached trade agreements with the UK, Japan, Indonesia, and Vietnam.