EU Council President urges faster trade deals with India amid US tariffs

European Council President Antonio Costa has urged the European Union (EU) to quickly finalise trade agreements with key global partners, including India. His statement comes in response to new tariffs imposed by the US.

 

On Thursday, Costa posted on X, stressing that Europe must strengthen its trade relationships beyond the US to ensure global economic stability.

 

“The trade tariffs imposed by the United States should urge Europe to reach free trade deals with other partners in the world,” he said.

 

European Council President Antonio Costa voiced full support for the EU Commission’s ongoing trade negotiations with the US and highlighted the role of trade in global prosperity.

 

 

“Trade is a powerful engine of global prosperity. The EU will remain a staunch advocate for free and fair trade. We will engage with all our partners and continue to strengthen and expand our trade network. Now is the time to move forward with the agreements with #Mercosur, #Mexico and decisively advance in the negotiations with #India and other key partners,” he mentioned.

 

Trump’s tariffs announcement

 

President Trump announced the tariffs on Thursday (IST), calling them “kind of reciprocal”. He said that India had been placing “very, very tough” tariffs on American goods for years, which created an unfair trade situation.

 

“He (PM Modi) is a great friend of mine. But I said, ‘You’re a friend of mine, but you’re not treating us right,’” Trump said during his speech at the White House event ‘Make America Wealthy Again’. He added, “They charge us 52 per cent, but we charged them almost nothing for years and decades.”

 

To support his argument, Trump showed a chart comparing tariff rates in different countries. It showed that India imposes 56 per cent tariffs, along with currency manipulation and trade barriers. In response, the US will now apply a lower reciprocal tariff of 27 per cent on Indian goods.

 

Which sectors will be most affected?

 

The US buys about 18 per cent of India’s total exported goods, so the 27 per cent tariff will have a big impact on key industries:

 

Electronics & telecom: India sells $6.5 billion worth of telecom instruments to the US. Higher tariffs could slow down growth in this sector. 

Gems & jewellery: India exports precious and semi-precious stones ($5.3 billion) and gold jewellery ($3.2 billion). The tariff increase may lower demand in the luxury market. 

Steel & petroleum products: India exports $4.1 billion worth of petroleum products and $2.7 billion worth of iron & steel products. These industries might face lower profits due to the higher tariffs.