Questions and Answers on the US reciprocal tariff policy by the EU Commission
- Bilateral Trade Figures: In 2023, total bilateral trade in goods between the EU and the US reached €851 billion, with the EU exporting €503 billion and importing €347 billion, resulting in a goods trade surplus of €157 billion for the EU. Additionally, trade in services was valued at €746 billion, where the EU had a services trade deficit of €109 billion.
- Investment Partnership: EU and US firms have a substantial investment relationship, with approximately €5.3 trillion in investments in each other’s markets as of 2022, highlighting the deep economic ties between the two regions.
- VAT vs. Tariffs: The Value-Added Tax (VAT) is a non-discriminatory consumption tax applied equally to domestic and imported goods in the EU, not a tariff. It complies with WTO regulations as a domestic tax, while both the EU and US maintain similar treatment of goods regarding internal taxes, with average tariff rates around 1% on both sides of the trade.
Source ec.europa.eu
