(Reuters) – The European Union will impose counter tariffs on 26 billion euros ($28.33 billion) worth of U.S. goods from next month in response to U.S. tariffs on steel and aluminium, the European Commission said in a statement on Wednesday.
The commission said it will end the current suspension of tariffs on U.S. products on April 1 and will also put forward a new package of countermeasures on U.S. goods by mid-April.
“This matches the economic scope of the U.S. tariffs. Our countermeasures will be introduced in two steps. Starting with 1 April and fully in place as of 13 April,” Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, said in a statement.
“We are ready to engage in meaningful dialogue. I have entrusted Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic to resume his talks to explore better solutions with the U.S.,” von der Leyen added.
U.S. President Donald Trump’s increased tariffs of 25% on steel and aluminium imports took effect on Wednesday as prior exemptions, duty free quotas and product exclusions expired.
($1 = 0.9178 euros)
(Reporting by Shubham Kalia in Bengaluru; Editing by Jacqueline Wong and Kim Coghll)