France gets the European Commission to postpone tariffs on American bourbon

The change represents a slight adjustment to the timeline and does not diminish the impact of our response,

Gill said

The EU countermeasures that were announced on 12 March will all take effect in mid-April,

EU trade spokesman Olof Gill said in a statement

The Commission has decided to align the timing of the two sets of EU countermeasures against US 232 tariffs on EU steel and aluminum,

the spokesperson told CNBC

Maroš ŠefčovičeU trade commissioner

We are now considering to align the timing of the two sets of EU counter-measures so we can consult with member states on both lists simultaneously, and this would also give us extra time for negotiations with our American partners,

European Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic told a hearing at the European Parliament on Thursday

I don’t think that the U.S. thinking is in that direction,

he said,

This provides additional time for discussions with the U.S. administration,

Mr. Gill said

Only then may partners be able to engage on possible negotiations,

he said

We must be careful not to push this into a vicious circle of retaliation that will harm our economy and the wider European Union."

Urging a more careful approach to avoid damaging European businesses, she said

François Bayroufrench President

We need to find a way to stand united without harming the sectors that are most vital to our economy."

Mr Bayrou added

We cannot afford to allow the US to undermine our industries without taking action."

She nevertheless acknowledged the challenges of balancing the interests of all member states while stressing that

Further escalation could cause irreparable harm to our key sectors, and we must avoid that at all costs.

He added

Not all European countries are exposed in the same way to these tariffs, and some will quickly turn against retaliatory measures when they see the impact on their domestic industries."

She said

It was always to be expected that there would be cracks in European unity when it comes to trade, because not all European countries are exposed in the same way to [a] potential trade war or U.S. tariffs,

said Agathe Demarais, a senior policy fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations

Every country will be very happy to have retaliatory measures against the U.S. until they realize that they harm their domestic economy. That is going to be the challenge for the EU Commission, to go for the toughest possible measures while keeping everyone on board,

she added

I am not certain that responding to tariffs with more tariffs is necessarily a good deal,

Meloni said Tuesday, urging