BRUSSELS (Reuters) -The EU-U.S. trade deal does not include wine and spirits, European Union Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic said on Thursday, adding that the door was not closed to tariff reductions for the sector and others not included in the deal.
He made the comments after the European Union and the United States detailed commitments made in a deal reached last month that includes a 15% U.S. tariff on most imports from the bloc, including autos, pharmaceuticals, semiconductors and lumber.
“This one we didn’t get in. But I can tell you that there is clear commitment from the European Commission to put it on the table”, Sefcovic said, referring to wines and spirits.
The Distilled Spirits Council of the United States expressed disappointment in a statement.
“Without a permanent return to zero-for-zero tariffs on spirits, American distillers do not have the certainty to plan for future export and job growth without the fear of retaliatory tariffs returning”, it said. It added that it was “determined to continue engaging with the Trump administration to urge for additional negotiations”.
(Reporting by Sudip Kar-Gupta, Charlotte Van Campenhout; Editing by Benoit Van Overstraeten and Emelia Sithole-Matarise)
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