Reuters
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump [Source: Reuters]
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump said on Friday the European Union should step up U.S. oil and gas imports or face tariffs on the bloc’s exports that include goods such as cars and machinery.
The EU already buys the lion’s share of U.S. oil and gas exports, according to U.S. government data.
No extra volumes are currently available as the United States is exporting at capacity, but Trump has pledged to further grow the country’s oil and gas production.
The European Commission said it was ready to discuss with Trump how to strengthen what it described as an already strong relationship, including in the energy sector.
The United States already supplied 47% of the European Union’s liquefied natural gas imports and 17% of its oil imports in the first quarter of 2024, according to data from EU statistics office Eurostat.
Trump, who takes office on Jan. 20, has vowed to impose tariffs of 10% on global imports into the U.S. along with a 60% tariff on Chinese goods – duties that trade experts say would upend trade flows, raise costs and draw retaliation against U.S. exports.
The U.S. ran a $208.7-billion goods trade deficit with the EU in 2023, according to U.S. Census Bureau data. Although the U.S. runs a surplus with the EU on services, Trump has focused mainly on goods trade, frequently complaining about the bloc’s car exports to the U.S. with few vehicles shipped east across the Atlantic.
