An Airbus A330neo commercial passenger aircraft takes off on July 10, 2018 at Colomiers near Toulouse, France.
Regis Duvignau | Reuters
Airbus said on Wednesday it regretted a US decision to keep 15% fares on Airbus aircraft in place despite European Union action to comply with World Trade Organization decisions, and said it expected that Brussels would defend European interests.
“Airbus deeply regrets that, despite Europe’s recent actions to achieve full compliance, USTR has decided to maintain fares on Airbus aircraft – especially at a time when aviation and other sectors are going through an unusual crisis,” said Airbus spokesman Clay McConnell in a statement. “Airbus trusts that Europe will respond appropriately to defend its interests and the interests of all European companies and sectors, including Airbus, guided by these tariffs.”
The US government said on Wednesday that it would maintain 15% tariffs on Airbus aircraft and 25% tariffs on other European goods, despite moves by the European Union to resolve a long-standing dispute over aircraft subsidies.
US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said the EU had not taken any action to comply with the World Trade Organization’s decisions, and Washington would initiate a new process to try to reach a long-term solution.
The Lighthizer office said it would change its $ 7.5 billion list of affected European products to remove certain goods from Greece and Britain, and add an equivalent amount of goods from Germany and France.
Last month, Airbus said it would increase repayment of loans to France and Spain in a “definitive” bid to reverse US fares and jog the United States in a settlement of a 16-year-old dispute over billions of dollars in aviation subsidies .
Trade groups are pushing for an escalation of the series in the autumn, when the EU is expected to win WTO approval to retaliate with its own rates on subsidies for Boeing.
Boeing said it hoped “the EU and Airbus will immediately engage in meaningful negotiations with the US to address the full extent of their noncompliance and finally end this matter.”
USTR in October 2019 imposed 25% tariffs on some European food, wine and beverages in compensation for EU subsidies on large aircraft. The rates range from French wine, Italian cheese and single-malt Scotch whiskey, as well as biscuits, salami, yoghurt, olives from France, EU-produced pork sausage and German coffee.
USTR initially set 10% fares on Airbus aircraft, but reached 15% in March.
Despite pressure from members of Congress, USTR refused to drop 25% tariffs on EU food, wine and beverages, but it also did not drop tariffs on vodka, gin and beer because it had threatened.
The Wine & Spirits Wholesalers of America criticized the decision not to lift tariffs on wine, saying it would keep pressure on a sector in need of emergency.
However, the United States Distilled Spirits Council said that continuing tariffs on EU alcohol products will cause additional damage to hospitality companies “who are already suffering.”
No immediate comment was received from EU diplomats in Washington.
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