In a December 30, 2020, press release, the Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR) announced that additional Section 301 tariffs on certain European Union (EU) goods would be adjusted as part of the ongoing large civil aircraft dispute. “Products subject to the additional tariffs include aircraft manufacturing parts from France and Germany, certain non-sparkling wine from France and Germany, and certain cognac and other grape brandies from France and Germany.” An implementation date for the increased tariffs hasn’t been provided yet.
In October 2019, the World Trade Organization (WTO) authorized the US to impose duties on approximately $7.5 billion worth of EU products. However, the US “implemented its countermeasures in a restrained way and used trade data from the prior calendar year to determine the amount of products to be covered.” In September 2020, when the EU was authorized to impose tariffs affecting $4 billion in US trade, the EU chose a trade period inclusive of COVID-19’s impacts on the global economy resulting in more products being covered than if the EU “had utilized a normal period.” The US feels this is “distorted” trade data resulting in disproportionate actions and has taken the recent tariff action as retaliation.