August 25, 2025

 

New trade agreement grants US seafood preferential entry into EU Markets 

 

 

The United States and the European Commission have unveiled a joint framework outlining their latest trade agreement, which grants preferential market access to various goods, including seafood.

 

The EU agreed to a trade deal with the US on 28 July, just days before the  August 1 deadline that US President Donald Trump set for achieving some form of agreement. Without the deal, goods from the EU entering the US would have faced tariffs as high as 30 percent.

 

As part of the deal, Trump said the EU agreed to increase its investment in the US by more than US$ 600 billion (€517 billion) over its current levels. However, at the time, the exact details of the trade agreement were not released.

 

Now, just under a month after the announcement, the US and EU released more details as part of a joint statement, revealing US seafood will receive preferential market access in the bloc.

 

"This Framework Agreement represents a concrete demonstration of our commitment to fair, balanced, and mutually beneficial trade and investment," the White House and EU said in a joint statement. "This Framework Agreement will put our trade and investment relationship – one of the largest in the world – on a solid footing and will reinvigorate our economies' reindustrialization."

 

After the agreement is fully implemented, the average effective US tariff on imports from EU countries will range from 10% to 14%, according to Eurasia Group, a consulting firm focused on political risk. Together, the US and the EU account for 44% of the global economy. Part of the framework includes the following:

 

    •  The EU will "provide preferential market access" for US agricultural goods and seafood, including dairy products, fresh and processed fruits and vegetables, soybean oil and pork and bison meat.

-      CBS News/ Seafood Source