U.S. customs duties on Swiss products will be reduced to 15% with retroactive effect from November 14, the date a draft agreement was signed, Bern announced on Wednesday, December 10. In return, Switzerland will lower its customs duties on selected U.S. fishery and agricultural products, the Swiss Ministry of Economy said in a statement.
“The retroactive implementation of the U.S. tariff concessions will provide significant relief for Swiss exporters,” Economy Minister Guy Parmelin said at a press conference in Bern, noting that most had been facing duties of 39% since August.
This reduction to 15% places Swiss products on an equal tariff footing with those from the European Union or South Korea, for instance.
In August, the United States imposed these tariffs on Swiss goods, though not uniformly across all sectors. The 39% rate hit the watchmaking industry particularly hard, as its production is concentrated in Switzerland, as well as industrial SMEs that lack the means to shift parts of their manufacturing to the United States. Certain products, such as pharmaceuticals, remained exempt — and those exemptions continue to apply.
The United States also plans to lift additional tariffs on a range of products, including aircraft, certain aircraft components, rubber goods, cosmetics, and generic medicines, the statement added. However, supplemental tariffs of varying levels on steel, aluminum, automobiles, and copper will remain in force.
However, several details of the agreement still need to be negotiated. The status of pharmaceutical products — an important component of Switzerland’s trade balance — remains unresolved, as they are currently under review in the United States. Mr. Parmelin noted that, should they be subjected to tariffs in the future, “we have obtained a commitment that the rate will not exceed 15%.”
