You spoke, they listened: US cancels proposed 100% European wine tariffs

Thank you to all our readers, friends, and colleagues who weighed in last month to oppose additional U.S. tariffs on some wines from the European Union. On the evening of August 12 the U.S. administration announced it would not levy a proposed 100% tariff on all European Union-origin wines, but would keep in place for now the 25% tariffs it levied last year on most still wines from France, Spain, Germany, and the UK.

Thousands of you contacted the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative and members of the U.S. Congress to make the point that both the existing and proposed new tariffs were a big loser for American jobs and businesses.

It may seem counter intuitive, but the realities of the U.S. distribution system are such that the tariffs represent a big net hit to the US economy. Most of the ultimate price of foreign wines sold in the United States goes to American businesses and workers such as importers, distributors, retailers, restaurateurs, sommeliers, waiters, and others in the huge array of support industries that comprise the wine world. 

Thank you to all who went on record to make that point. It is heartening that a bipartisan group of a dozen US Senators told the American administration the same thing.

American jobs and businesses are already struggling with the COVID-19 pandemic. We’re talking billions of dollars of economic loss and tens of thousands of lost American jobs.

But, for now, we have avoided catastrophic tariff increases that would have snuffed out the transatlantic wine trade.

Please keep your eyes on this story as it evolves and be ready to stand up again for common sense, American jobs, and the consumer’s right to drink great wine at a price they can afford.

The decades-old trade dispute over the EU’s subsidized loans to Airbus – to which the U.S. wine tariffs are a response – is serious for both sides. It needs to be resolved by our governments without inflicting massive new damage to the unrelated wine industry.

Here’s to hoping our experts can rise to our interests and get this right. I am drinking a good bottle of European wine tonight in celebration to the relatively good news on tariffs this week. Cheers and thank you again everyone!

– James Suckling, CEO & editor

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Previous stories on this topic:

U.S. wine industry must speak out (again) against proposed tariffs

Why industry stakeholders must continue to oppose the wine tariffs

U.S. wine tariff fight must continue

Leave wine out of the trade wars