A DEAL BETWEEN the US and EU to prevent the implementation of tariffs on European goods exported to America is “possible”, President Donald Trump has said.

Negotiators are under renewed pressure to strike a deal after Trump last week threatened a 30% tariff would be in place for the EU if a new trade agreement was not reached by 1 August.

The European Commission this week renewed its mandate to continue negotiations to strike a deal, which Trump has now suggested may be reacher soon.

Speaking to broadcaster Real America’s Voice, the US President said: “We could possibly make a deal with the EU [...] The EU, the European Union, has been brutal. But now they’re being very nice, and they want to make a deal.

“It will be a lot different from the deal that we have had for years. I was going to do them last time, but then we had Covid come up, and it wasn’t a good time to tell Spain and France, ‘Guess what, you’re going to be paying a lot of money’.” 

Speaking earlier in the interview, Trump suggested that foreign administrations rush to reach a deal after receiving a letter from the White House which threatens high tariff rates.

It was widely rumoured last week that the EU was close to striking a deal, with European Trade Commissioner and lead negotiator Maroš Šefčovič agreeing on Monday that he felt let down after Trump threatened to impose a 30% tariff.

“We are showing an enormous patience and enormous creativity to find solutions, but if it reaches 30+%, quite simply, the trading as we know it will not continue, with a huge negative effect on both sides of the Atlantic,” Šefčovič told reporters this week.

Trump said last night: “We could make a deal, possibly, with Europe. I’m very indifferent to it because I sent out a letter, I think we had 30%. That means 30% of everything they do they give to us, it’s not a bad business.”

Tánaiste and Trade minister Simon Harris told cabinet on Tuesday that the new 30% tariff rate on goods from the EU could accelerate potential job losses in Ireland.

Employment minister Peter Burke said the new, higher rate made it very difficult to assess the potential impact.