Switzerland’s Improved US Tariff Deal to Apply Retroactively
Reduction Will Cut the Levy to 15% From 39%
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Switzerland’s agreement last month to get the U.S. to lower tariffs on the country will be backdated to take effect on the day the deal was announced.
The reduction will cut the levy to 15% from a previous level of 39%, a punitive rate that was the highest slapped on any developed country. Switzerland’s government announced the retroactive implementation — applying from Nov. 14 — in a statement Dec. 10.
It said that in return, it will cut tariffs on U.S. exports of fish, seafood and certain other agricultural products.
President Donald Trump’s surcharge decision this summer had dealt asevere blowto the export-focused economy. After months of negotiations between officials, it was a high-profile intervention by a group ofSwiss billionaires— who visited Trump in the Oval Office — that made the president agree to cut the levies in return for a $200 billioninvestment pledgefrom Swiss businesses.
The USA will apply an across-the-board tariff ceiling of 15% on imports from Switzerland, reducing the previous additional tariff of 39%.
In return, 🇨🇭 will reduce import tariffs on certain fish and agricultural products from the 🇺🇸. — Swiss Federal Government (@SwissGov)
Until the Dec. 10 announcement, it was unclear from when the reduction would take effect.
On Dec. 9, the Swiss governmentrejecteda report saying that the U.S. had already agreed to the retroactive implementation. It said there were various scenarios, but couldn’t confirm any details.
Swiss business lobby economiesuisse called the lower tariffs a long-awaited relief because the surcharges posed an existential thread for some companies.
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“Thanks to the U.S. deal, thousands of jobs in Switzerland can be saved,” Luc Schnurrenberger, the organization’s deputy head of foreign trade, said in an email to Bloomberg.
As the trade deal between the two countries is a preliminary agreement, the lower rate that’s taking effect still hinges on the outcome of Swiss-U.S, talks to finalize the details. Those conversations are ongoing, with both sides aiming to conclude them within the first quarter, according to .
