European cars and pharmaceutical products will be taxed at 15% upon their entry into the United States, according to a joint statement released Thursday by the EU and the Trump administration, which does not provide any exemption for wines and spirits.
Brussels/Paris (Belgium/France) – European cars and pharmaceutical products will indeed be taxed at 15% upon entering the United States, but the European Union was unable to obtain an exemption for the wine sector, announced European Commissioner Maros Sefcovic on Thursday during a press conference, presenting the details of the trade agreement reached between the EU and the Trump administration at the end of July.
After months of very tough negotiations, Brussels and Washington sealed a trade agreement at the end of July based on a 15% tariff on European products arriving in the United States.
This is much higher than the rate in effect before the return to power of the American president — around 4.8%. But less than what the billionaire Republican threatened to impose on the Old Continent, in the absence of an agreement.
The French Federation of Wine and Spirits Exporters (FEVS), whose American market is the top client, expressed its “immense disappointment,” and the French Minister of Foreign Trade stated a desire to work on “additional exemptions.”
(August 21, 2025)
