The U.S. Trade Representative proposed tariffs on an additional $4 billion of European Union goods, including Scotch, Irish and “other whiskies.”
This all goes back to subsidies to the Airbus. After the European Union imposed tariffs on U.S. whiskies – which have cut U.S. whiskey exports to the EU by 18% — the U.S. Trade Representative today proposed imposing tariffs on 89 different types of European products, including whiskies from Scotland, Ireland and elsewhere.
The list is in addition to proposed tariffs on 89 categories with a trade value of about $21 billion announced in April and includes a wide variety of agricultural products as well as ammonia and related products, cast iron, and refined copper.
“We strongly oppose the inclusion of distilled spirits products in any proposed retaliation list,” the Distilled Spirits Council of the U.S. said today. ‘These tariffs, if imposed, will have numerous unintended negative consequences on U.S. jobs, U.S. consumers and many U.S. companies that export to the EU.
“U.S. companies–from farmers to suppliers to retailers–are already being negatively impacted by the imposition of retaliatory tariffs by key trading partners on certain U.S. distilled spirits resulting from other trade disputes, and these additional tariffs will only inflict further harm,” DISCUS said.
Last year, imports of Scotch whisky reached $1.4 billion, up 8% from 2017, imports of Irish whiskey rose 15% to $455 million, and imports of “other whiskies” rose $14.5 million, up 45% from 2017.
Kane’s Komment: Our belief is that retaliatory tariffs should be reciprocal. The underlying dispute here relates to airplane parts, not whiskey. So any tariffs should be imposed on airplanes and airplane parts and related goods and services, not on whiskey.