Responding to the EU-US trade agreement reached yesterday, the S&D Group warns that while a 15% tariff is an improvement on 30%, it remains an unjustified and illegal tax on European consumers and businesses. While it would bring some welcome relief and predictability to European industries, the broader agreement seems imbalanced.

Brussels 17 July 2025: Luis Cabra, President of FuelsEurope and Deputy CEO at Repsol, called during the Strategic Dialogue on the Sustainable Transport Investment Plan (STIP), hosted by Commissioner for Transport, Apostolos Tzitzikostas, for a STIP that goes beyond sector-specific regulations to deliver an integrated approach across all transport modes, including road, maritime, aviation, and non-road mobile machinery.

Frankfurt, July 15, 2025 – VDMA Chief Executive Thilo Brodtmann comments on the European Commission's draft for the next multiannual financial framework (MFF) expected this week:

• "The European Union needs an appropriate budget to achieve its goals and meet its growing challenges. To this end, the budget must be modernized and prioritized with a view to investment spending and competitiveness. This also means breaking with old habits."

As the EU faces the Trump administration’s 30% tariff threat, the S&D group urges the European Commission to adopt new, firm, and intelligent countermeasures. They stress that, in order to achieve a good agreement that provides certainty for the European market, the EU needs to build leverage during the negotiations.