Published by Global Banking and Finance Review
Posted on July 28, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 22, 2026
Chancellor Merz is disappointed with the EU-US trade deal, citing significant economic impact due to a 15% import tariff on EU goods.
BERLIN (Reuters) -German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on Monday he was not satisfied with the result of trade talks with the United States, but "more simply wasn't achievable" and added the German economy would suffer "significant" damage due to the agreed tariffs.
The trade deal announced on Sunday imposes a 15% import tariff on most EU goods - lower than the 30% once threatened by U.S. President Donald Trump but well above initial hopes of a zero-for-zero agreement.
The rate almost halves the existing tariff rate on Europe's auto sector, a cornerstone of the German economy, from 27.5%, Merz pointed out.
"But I am fully aware that the tariffs that remain — particularly the 15% versus 0% for imports into the EU — pose a serious burden for Germany’s export-oriented economy," he told a press conference in Berlin.
"I am not satisfied with this result in the sense of: 'This is good.' But I do say that, given the starting point we had with the United States, more simply wasn’t achievable," he said.
The German chancellor thanked the European Commission for its "tireless negotiations" with its U.S. counterparts, with involvement in particular of the German, French, and Italian governments.
"I personally did not expect more than this result," he said.
(Reporting by Sarah MarshEditing by Rod Nickel)
Economic growth refers to an increase in the production of goods and services in an economy over time, typically measured by the rise in GDP.
The European Commission is the executive branch of the European Union responsible for proposing legislation, implementing decisions, and managing the EU's day-to-day operations.
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