U.S. Formalizes EU Auto Tariff Cut to 15% With Retroactive Effect

Overview

• The Commerce Department and USTR published rules on September 24 that set the U.S. tariff on European autos at 15% effective August 1.
• The document also lists retroactive exemptions from September 1 for sectors such as aircraft, aircraft parts, generic medicines and certain scarce natural resources including cork and specific metals.
• Relief for cars and parts followed EU moves on August 28 to lower tariffs on selected U.S. industrial and non‑sensitive farm goods, satisfying a condition of the preliminary deal.
• Shares of European automakers rose after the announcement, with Porsche gaining up to 3.8% in Frankfurt.
• Tariffs on EU steel and aluminum remain at 50%, and EU trade chief Maroš Šefčovič is pursuing a quota‑based solution in new talks with U.S. trade chief Jamieson Greer at the ASEAN summit.