Zurich (AFP) – A senior US official sounded a positive note Thursday about trade talks with Switzerland, as the Alpine nation’s economy minister Guy Parmelin visited Washington hoping to reduce steep tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump. Vice President Parmelin’s visit to the US capital marks his third since the Swiss were clobbered with huge tariffs after Trump returned to the presidency.
Trump shocked Switzerland in August when he imposed 39-percent duties on imports of goods from the country, among the highest in his global tariff blitz. Parmelin met with US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer during his trip, as Bern clings to hopes of easing the whopping tariff level. “The talks are very positive. They’re very focused,” a senior Trump administration official told reporters Thursday. “If this deal is accepted by the president and the Swiss people, we would see a reduction in tariffs into Switzerland,” the US official said.
While the country has fairly low tariffs already, there are some areas where levels are still high, the official added, noting that they expect to see “a meaningful reduction.” The wealthy European nation has been striving to negotiate a better deal, and has slashed its 2026 growth forecast as US tariffs weigh on its export-driven economy.
On Monday evening, Bloomberg News reported that Switzerland was close to an agreement on reducing tariffs to 15 percent — the same level as those applied to goods from the European Union, citing unnamed sources familiar with the matter. The Swiss economy ministry told AFP that Parmelin was in Washington “to continue discussions,” but said it would not be providing further details.
In early August, Parmelin and Swiss President Karin Keller-Sutter, who is also the finance minister, made an emergency trip to Washington to try to sway the White House, but returned empty-handed. Parmelin made a second trip in September. Last week, the heads of six top Swiss firms, including the chiefs of watchmaker Rolex and luxury goods giant Richemont, met with Trump to draw his attention to the toll his tariffs are taking on their companies.
The tariff rate jeopardises entire sectors of the export-heavy Swiss economy, notably watchmaking and industrial machinery, but also chocolate and cheese. The pharmaceutical industry, Switzerland’s largest export sector, could be living on borrowed time: medications are exempt from tariffs, but Trump regularly threatens to target them too.
Besides their own tariff rate impacting the viability of exports to the United States, Swiss businesses also worry that competitors in other wealthy economies will have an edge. The EU and Japan have negotiated a 15-percent tariff, and Britain secured a rate of 10 percent.
© 2024 AFP
