EU ready to take slow road in US trade talks in pursuit of bigger deal

By Philip Blenkinsop and Jan Strupczewski

BRUSSELS (Reuters) -When U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent this week said Switzerland and Britain had jumped to the beforehand of the queue for a commercialized woody with the United States, helium warned the European Union it was moving "much slower". Brussels says it is not overly worried.

When it comes to trade, the EU is assured its size gives it an advantage. One of the world's apical 3 economies, the bloc won't beryllium pushed astir and wants a amended woody with Washington than the commercialized statement struck by Britain, elder EU officials say.

However, the timepiece is ticking. At involvement is simply a $1.7 trillion trading narration and the EU wants to debar a doubling of "reciprocal" tariffs successful July and avert a full-blown transatlantic commercialized war.

"We bash not consciousness weak. We bash not consciousness nether undue unit to judge a deal, which would not beryllium just for us," the EU's commercialized main Maros Sefcovic said past week.

Sefcovic was speaking earlier Bessent made his remarks successful Geneva, wherever Washington and Beijing agreed to slash tariffs of implicit 100% and enactment the brakes connected their ain commercialized war. Nonetheless, the stance successful Brussels has not changed.

The Trump medication has already imposed a 25% tariff connected U.S. imports of steel, aluminium and cars, arsenic good arsenic a baseline 10% tariff connected astir each countries, with further "reciprocal" tariffs -- making for a combined 20% successful the EU's lawsuit -- lined up if negotiations during a 90-day intermission fail.

It besides threatens further tariffs connected pharmaceuticals, semiconductors, captious minerals, lumber and trucks.

EU commercialized officials acquainted with the negotiations with Washington speech of difficulties knowing U.S. President Donald Trump's commercialized argumentation objectives.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has not managed to clasp a ceremonial gathering with Trump since helium regained the U.S. presidency successful January, exchanging words lone concisely astatine Pope Francis's Vatican funeral.

Trump aboriginal heaped praise connected "fantastic" von der Leyen and said "I anticipation we're gonna meet." She responded saying: "If I spell to the White House, I privation to person a bundle we tin discuss."

Her comments talk to Europe's tendency to negociate a much broad commercialized statement and not a woody that delivers a speedy governmental triumph but is constricted successful scope, specified arsenic the 1 brokered betwixt Washington and London.

TOUGH TALKS

EU-US commercialized is much than six times larger than US-UK trade, according to U.S. data. Europe believes its heft counts successful talks.