In June 2018 Trump installed steep import tariffs on raw materials, which resulted in retaliation tariffs on various products including American whiskey by Mexico, Canada and the EU which have now been revoked.
Chris Swonger, president and CEO of the Distilled Spirits Council, said: “With this critical issue now resolved, we look forward to joining the various efforts to support the prompt congressional passage of US-Mexico-Canada agreement, which includes important benefits for our industry.
“We are very encouraged by today’s news and we hope the US and our trading partners can build on this positive momentum to resolve all of the remaining retaliatory tariffs that our US distilled spirits exports face, particularly the European Union’s 25% tariff on American whiskey.”
It has been reported that global sales of American whiskey for the first half of 2018 were up 28%, but dropped 11% in the second six months after the tariffs were enforced.
The EU made up around 60% of whiskey exports from the US in 2018 and recorded 33% growth in the first half of 2018, before dropping 13.4% in the second half post tariffs.
The 25% export tariff imposed by the EU on American whiskey last year remains in place and if it is not revoked, it will still be a big problem for the category.
