Tit-for-Tat Tariffs Over Aircraft Subsidies

A long-term feud between Boeing in the U.S. and Airbus in Europe is coming to a head. Tuesday the U.S. threatened to impose $11.2 billion of retaliatory tariffs on European goods in response to the continued subsidization of the Airbus manufacturer.

“This case has been in litigation for 14 years, and the time has come for action,” U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said in a statement. “The Administration is preparing to respond immediately when the WTO issues its finding on the value of U.S. countermeasures. Our ultimate goal is to reach an agreement with the EU to end all WTO-inconsistent subsidies to large civil aircraft. When the EU ends these harmful subsidies, the additional U.S. duties imposed in response can be lifted.”