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Switzerland says US tariff reduction statement published in error
Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on December 9, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 20, 2026
Global Banking & Finance Review®
Company
Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on December 9, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 20, 2026
Switzerland retracted a statement on US tariff reduction, citing an error. The trade agreement details remain unconfirmed, affecting Swiss businesses.
By Oliver Hirt
ZURICH, Dec 9 (Reuters) - Switzerland withdrew an announcement on Tuesday on when a planned reduction of U.S. tariffs on Swiss goods would take effect, saying it had been published in error and that its content could not be confirmed.
"The federal administration has prepared content for various scenarios, but we cannot confirm any of them at this time," said a government spokesperson, adding that the economy ministry would "communicate actively" on the matter in due course.
According to the now-withdrawn statement on the government's website, U.S. tariffs on Switzerland would be lowered to 15% from 39% and take effect retroactively from November 14.
The statement later disappeared from the government website, and it remains unclear whether the information is correct.
The United States and Switzerland sealed a preliminary agreement on November 14 under which Washington would cut the tariffs on Swiss goods, while Swiss companies pledged to invest $200 billion in the U.S. by the end of 2028.
U.S. President Donald Trump imposed the duties on Switzerland in August, saying they were justified by the United States' trade deficit with Switzerland.
TARIFFS STUNNED SWISS BUSINESS
The tariffs were the highest the Trump administration put on any European country, and stunned the Swiss business community.
"The regulation on import duties for goods from the United States will come into force retroactively on November 14, 2025," the Swiss government said in its statement on Tuesday.
"This provides for the reduction of import duties on goods originating in the United States within the scope of Annexes 1 and 2 of the Regulation," it added.
Swiss industrial groups have welcomed the new deal, saying it would put them on a level playing field with competitors from the European Union, which has agreed to a 15% tariff on EU exports to the U.S.
Switzerland had a $38.3 billion goods trade surplus with the U.S. in 2024, according to U.S. Census Bureau data. This rose to $55.7 billion in 2025 through July, reflecting primarily the front-loading of U.S. imports from Switzerland during the first quarter, before Trump imposed his "reciprocal" tariffs in early April.
(Reporting by Ludwig Burger in Berlin and Oliver Hirt in ZurichWriting by Madeline Chambers and Dave Graham and Miranda MurrayEditing by Kirsti Knolle, Ludwig Burger and Susan Fenton)
A trade surplus occurs when a country's exports exceed its imports, resulting in a positive balance of trade. This can indicate a strong economy and competitiveness in international markets.
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