[CTC] Lutnick: ‘Plenty of horse-trading’ left to do with the EU

[Arthur Stamoulis]

*Lutnick: ‘Plenty of horse-trading’ left to do with the EU*

*Inside US Trade*

*By Margaret Spiegelman
<https://insidetrade.com/authors/Margaret-Spiegelman>  / July 29, 2025 at
12:38 PM*



The U.S. and the European Union still have much to hash out after
announcing a framework trade deal, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said
Tuesday, highlighting EU digital policies as a key U.S. concern that wasn't
on the table in talks leading up to the announcement.



“There’s plenty of horse-trading still to do,” Lutnick said in an *interview
on CNBC* <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w0wiyvR35AY>. The deal, announced
on Sunday by President Trump and European Commission Ursula von der Leyen,
brings U.S. tariffs on many EU goods, including autos, pharmaceuticals and
semiconductors, to 15 percent while lowering EU tariffs on U.S. goods,
including industrial products, to zero -- though many details remain
unknown and the two sides’ *accounts of the accord vary*
<https://insidetrade.com/node/183854>.



The Commerce secretary cited digital services taxes and “the attack on our
tech companies” as a priority for future talks. “That is going to be on the
table. It wasn’t on the table today,” he said.



The U.S. had been pushing for the EU to adjust rules on digital markets
that major U.S. tech firms consider discriminatory, but European officials
have repeatedly said changes to its regulations are not up for discussion.
Washington also views digital services taxes implemented or proposed by
some EU member states as discriminatory.



Other issues up for future discussion, according to Lutnick, include steel
and aluminum trade, a key priority for the EU: “There are other things that
they would like, like steel and aluminum, that were not included in this
deal, that will be on the table,” he said.



The two sides’ accounts diverge on what was agreed to on steel and aluminum
as well as copper, subject to 50 percent tariffs imposed under Section 232
of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962 (the steel and aluminum duties are in
place while the copper tariffs are set to go into effect in August). A
White House fact sheet says the EU will remain subject to the 50 percent
tariffs and that the two sides will discuss “securing supply chains for
these products.” But an *explanation of the deal*
<https://insidetrade.com/sites/insidetrade.com/files/documents/2025/jul/wto2025_0637a.pdf>
issued
by the European Commission, dated July 28, says the U.S. duties will be
replaced with tariff-rate quotas for EU exports “at historic levels.”



The EU explanation also provides some detail on the bloc’s commitments to
lower duties on industrial goods and provide more access for U.S. fishery
products and certain “non-sensitive” agricultural products, while stating
that the agreement “fully respects the EU's regulatory sovereignty and
protects sensitive areas of EU agriculture, such as beef or poultry.”



The explanation further outlines the bloc's view on what Trump described as
a promise by Brussels to invest “$600 billion more than they’re investing
already” in the U.S., among other details. EU companies, it says, "have
expressed interest” in investing at least that amount “in various sectors
in the US by 2029, further boosting the already significant €2.4 trillion
in existing investment.”



The agreement has drawn strong criticism from some top EU officials,
including French Prime Minister François Bayrou, who said it marked a “*dark
day* <https://x.com/bayrou/status/1949749114436194782?s=61>” for the bloc.



Lutnick said critics would be proven wrong.


*“Anybody who picks on them is going to learn over the next two weeks why
the people who did that deal were really smart* to get the deal done with
Donald Trump,” he said, noting that the EU secured a cap on tariffs for
autos as well as pharmaceuticals and semiconductors, two sectors subject to
Section 232 probes likely to lead to new tariffs in the coming weeks.
-- *Margaret
Spiegelman* (*mspiegelman at iwpnews.com* <mspiegelman at iwpnews.com>)
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