US President Donald Trump's trade negotiators are pushing the EU to make unilateral tariff reductions on US goods, saying without concessions the bloc will not progress in talks to avoid additional 20% "reciprocal" duties, the Financial Times reported on Friday.
US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer is preparing to tell European Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic on Friday that a recent "explanatory note" shared by Brussels for the talks falls short of US expectations, the newspaper said, citing unnamed sources.
The FT added that the European Union has been pushing for a jointly agreed framework text for the talks, but the two sides remain too far apart.
Reuters was unable to immediately verify the report. The European Commission and the Office of the United States Trade Representative did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
"The priority for the EU is to seek a fair, balanced deal with the US, one that our massive trade and investment relationship deserves," Olof Gill, the European Commission spokesperson for trade, told Reuters in an email. The European Union continues to actively engage with the US, with Commissioner Sefcovic due to speak to Greer on Friday, Gill added.
The US imposed 25% tariffs on EU cars, steel, and aluminum in March and 20% tariffs on other EU goods in April. It then halved the 20% rate until July 8, setting a 90-day window for talks to reach a more comprehensive tariff deal.
European Union's tariff policy
In response, the 27-nation EU suspended its own plans to impose retaliatory tariffs on some US goods and proposed zero duties for all industrial goods on both sides.
The European Union plans to levy a flat fee on billions of small packages entering the bloc, mainly from China, FT reported on Tuesday, citing a proposal.
European pharma companies warned the European Commission president at a meeting in April that US tariffs would expedite the industry's shift away from Europe and toward the United States.