Trump Announces Outline of a Trade Deal With EU

The US has reached the outline of a trade deal with the European Union, President Trump announced Sunday in Scotland, that includes a 15% tariff on American imports—half the hit he had said would go into effect on Aug. 1. The deal halts, at least for now, the months of tense negotiations with the US' biggest trading partner. Trump made the announcement after meeting with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Sunday, the Washington Post reports. "It was a very interesting negotiation," Trump said in appearing with von der Leyen at Trump Turnberry, a golf course he owns in Scotland, per the AP. "I think it's going to be great for both parties."

Such trade deals typically follow years of negotiations and are laid out in documents hundreds of pages long. White House officials did not release details of this one, but known and unknown aspects include:

• Spending in US: The EU will buy energy totaling $750 billion, raise its investment in the US by more than than $600 billion, and buy more military equipment, Trump said. Details about when and how that spending will be measured were not released, the New York Times points out, though von der Leyen said the time frame is "during his term."
• Affected goods: The 15% tariffs are "across the board, all inclusive," von der Leyen said, adding that "indeed, basically the European market is open." Trump said, "We are agreeing that the tariff straight across for automobiles and everything else will be a straight across tariff of 15%."
• Vehicles: European carmakers will be dealing with levies raised from 2.5% before Trump took office to up to 15%. Asked how they'll feel about that, von der Leyen just said it could have been worse.
• Tariff zero: Both sides will drop tariffs on aircraft, plane parts, certain chemicals, certain generics, semiconductor equipment, certain agricultural products, and critical raw materials, per the Times.
• Who pays: US importers will get the bill for the tariffs, per the Post, but those costs are often passed along to their customers: American businesses and consumers.

• Hit hardest: Germany will bear the brunt, to economists with the Kiel Institute for the World Economy found. They figure that production will drop 15% in Germany, Europe's largest economy. Overall, the EU will drop 11%, the economists said. Germany is a top exporter of vehicles, machinery, and steel to the US.
• Reaction: Ireland's government said the agreement brings clarity and stability, while adding cautions, per CNBC. "It does mean that there will now be higher tariffs than there have been and this will have an impact on trade between the EU and the US, making it more expensive and more challenging," the statement says.
• Bigness: "It's a very powerful deal, it's a very big deal, it's the biggest of all the deals," Trump said Sunday. "It's a good deal, it's a huge deal, with tough negotiations," von der Leyen said.