Overview

• The United States will apply a 15% import duty on European wine and spirits from August 1 under the new US-EU trade framework.
• American distilled spirits producers, led by the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States, are pressing for exemptions based on their prior zero-for-zero tariff status.
• In March, Canadian provinces removed American liquor labels in retaliation to earlier tariffs, causing an estimated $500 million in lost revenue and more than a 12% decline in total sales.
• US distillers report pallets of whiskey bottled for Canada are stuck in warehouses; Tennessee grain farmers say tariff uncertainty has cut their business by about 30%.
• Both sides are set to resume talks in autumn to seek carve-outs, adjust rates or eliminate the tariffs under the existing agreement.