US Aiming for Better Trade Relations With the EU

The COVID-19 pandemic has hurt the finances of almost all countries, and the international demand for products remains well below pre-pandemic levels. As a result, several countries are trying to boost their exports in order to improve their trade balance. One such country is the US, which is seeking to increase its exports under the leadership of its new president, Joe Biden. Thus, the country is aiming to leverage its trade relations with one of its largest trading partners, the European Union (EU).

The US Looks to Improve Relations with the EU

The US citizens were not the only ones rooting for President Biden during last year’s presidential election. In fact, the EU also wanted a change of guard at the helm of the North American nation. This was because of two major reasons. First, the EU had been facing economic challenges under the previous administration, as many trade issues had surfaced between the two parties. Secondly, the previous administration was deemed to be ignorant about the human aspects of business. It was widely believed that the new administration under Biden would improve both these issues.

Unsurprisingly, within the first few months of getting elected, the new administration had already indicated its willingness to focus on improving trade relations. As a first step, the US decided to suspend all retaliatory tariffs on EU products. Similarly, the EU has also decided to remove additional tariffs on US-sourced goods. This meant the union had temporarily halted some measures at the heart of a steel tariff dispute with the US on hold for the time being, which was regarded as one of the main trade issues dividing the two sides.

Along with the decision, EU trade chief Valdis Dombrovskis also stated, “we are walking the talk in our efforts to reboot the trans-Atlantic relationship…We are creating the space to resolve these issues before the end of the year,” while announcing that the bloc would not automatically raise tariffs targeting US goods. The trans-Atlantic conflict has had an impact on everything from Kentucky bourbon sales to steel production.

In a joint statement, both sides also said that they “agreed to avoid changes on these issues that negatively affect bilateral trade.”

All of these are significant steps in the right direction for both parties. The situation is likely to improve even further in the coming months if efforts like these continue.

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