“Switzerland lost almost four months and, for the export industry, this means a lot. If the country becomes part of the European Union (EU)goods will be taxed at 15% at the end of July, the same rate as that imposed by EU member states.”said Swiss commercial diplomacy observers, after the agreement was obtained, Friday, November 14, in Washington, by Guy Parmelin, Minister of Economy.
This ended a tense period for the Swiss economy, whose trade surplus with the United States amounted to about 40 billion dollars. It was this imbalance that earned the Alpine country special treatment from the Trump administration: Switzerland was by far the worst-hit European country, a blow they did not anticipate, believing that America’s tropicalism protected the country from unpleasant surprises.
However, since August 7, and the entry into force of the punitive tariffs, not a day has passed without representatives of the Swiss companies most vulnerable to the American market (cheese producers, luxury goods manufacturers, and precision machinery manufacturers), worrying about order cancellations, and asking the Federal Council to be passive. The government was accused of, at best, naivety, and at worst, lacking the imagination or courage to force disclosure of the dossier.
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