EDINBURGH, Scotland (AP) — The United States and the European Union agreed to a trade deal setting a 15% tariff on most goods, President Donald Trump announced Sunday, staving off for now higher import taxes on both sides that might have sent shock waves through economies around the globe.
The announcement came after Trump and European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen met briefly at Trump's Turnberry golf course in Scotland. Their private meeting culminated months of bargaining, with the White House deadline Friday nearing for imposing punishing tariffs on the 27-member EU.
“It was a very interesting negotiation. I think it’s going to be great for both parties,” Trump said. The agreement, he said, was “a good deal for everybody” and “a giant deal with lots of countries.”
Von der Leyen said the deal “will bring stability, it will bring predictability that’s very important for our businesses on both sides of the Atlantic.”
Trump said the EU had agreed to buy some $750 billion worth of U.S. energy and invest $600 billion more than it already is in America, as well as making a major purchase of military equipment.
“We are agreeing that the tariff straight across for automobiles and everything else will be a straight across tariff of 15%,” Trump said. “We have a tariff of 15%. We have the opening up of all of the European countries.”
Von der Leyen said the 15% tariffs were “across the board, all inclusive” and that “indeed, basically the European market is open.”
Before the meeting began, Trump pledged to change what he characterized as “a very one-sided transaction, very unfair to the United States.”
"I think both sides want to see fairness,” the Republican president told reporters. She spoke of rebalancing.
Von der Leyen said the U.S. and EU combined have the world's largest trade volume, encompassing hundreds of millions of people and trillions of dollars. She added that Trump was “known as a tough negotiator and dealmaker."
“But fair,” Trump said.
For months, Trump has threatened most of the world with large tariffs in hopes of shrinking major U.S. trade deficits with many key trading partners. More recently, he had hinted that any deal with the EU would have to “buy down” the currently scheduled tariff rate of 30%.
During his comments before the deal was announced, he pointed to a recent U.S. agreement with Japan that set tariff rates for many goods at 15% and suggested the EU could agree to something similar.
Asked then if he would be willing to accept tariff rates lower than that, Trump said “no.”
Their meeting came after Trump played golf for the second straight day at his Turnberry course, this time with a group that included sons Eric and Donald Jr. The president's five-day visit to Scotland is built around golf and promoting properties bearing his name.
A small group of demonstrators at the course waved American flags and raised a sign criticizing British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who plans his own Turnberry meeting with Trump on Monday. Other voices could be heard cheering and chanting “Trump! Trump!” as he played nearby.
On Tuesday, Trump will be in Aberdeen, in northeastern Scotland, where his family has another golf course and is opening a third next month. The president and his sons plan to help cut the ribbon on the new course.
Joining von der Leyen were Maros Sefcovic, the EU’s chief trade negotiator; Björn Seibert, the head of von der Leyen's Cabinet; Sabine Weyand, the commission's directorate-general for trade, and Tomas Baert, head of trade and agriculture at the EU's delegation to the U.S.
The U.S. and EU seemed close to a deal earlier this month, but Trump instead threatened the 30% tariff rate. The deadline for the Trump administration to begin imposing tariffs has shifted in recent weeks but is now firm, the administration insists.
“No extensions, no more grace periods. Aug. 1, the tariffs are set, they’ll go into place, Customs will start collecting the money and off we go," U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick told “Fox News Sunday.” He added, however, that even after that “people can still talk to President Trump. I mean, he’s always willing to listen.”
Without an agreement, the EU said it was prepared to retaliate with tariffs on hundreds of American products, ranging from beef and auto parts to beer and Boeing airplanes.
If Trump eventually followed through on his threat of tariffs against Europe, it could have made everything from French cheese and Italian leather goods to German electronics and Spanish pharmaceuticals more expensive in the United States.
The U.S. and Britain, meanwhile, announced a trade framework in May and a larger agreement last month during the Group of Seven meeting in Canada. Trump says that deal is concluded and that he and Starmer will discuss other matters — though the White House has suggested it still needs some polishing.
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Associated Press writers Seung Min Kim in Cincinnati and Samuel Petrequin in London contributed to this report.
Will Weissert, The Associated Press
