WASHINGTON: Switzerland’s president was in Washington on Tuesday in a last-minute push to stop steep new tariffs, but with no appointment to plead her case to US President Donald Trump.
Switzerland faces a 39-percent duty, one of the highest among the dozens of economies that will be hit by new tariffs expected to come into force from Thursday.
President Karin Keller-Sutter and Economy Minister Guy Parmelin were visiting Washington “to facilitate meetings with the US authorities at short notice and hold talks with a view to improving the tariff situation for Switzerland,“ the government said in a statement.
“The aim is to present a more attractive offer to the United States in a bid to lower the level of reciprocal tariffs for Swiss exports, taking US concerns into account.”
But a White House official told AFP there was “no meeting with the President scheduled at this time.”
Trump had originally threatened in April to slap a 31-percent tariff on Switzerland.
But he surprised the export-driven country last week when he decided to hike the rate to 39 percent despite numerous discussions between Swiss and US officials aimed at reaching a deal.
The Swiss government noted that the country will be hit by much higher tariffs than what other wealthy economies, such as Britain, Japan or the European Union, are facing.
The government “reaffirmed that it was keen to pursue talks with the United States on the tariff situation,“ and the president and economy minister were visiting Washington “for this reason,“ Tuesday’s statement said.
US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, however, told CBS television on Sunday that the tariffs on global trading partners, which are coming into force this week, “are pretty much set.”
Trump signaled that a separate initially “small” tariff on imports of pharmaceuticals from around the world -- a key sector for Switzerland -- could come “within the next week.”
But the sector-specific tariff could rise to 150 percent in a year and eventually be as high as 250 percent, he added, saying the delay was to allow companies to shift production to the United States.
Pharmaceuticals represented 60 percent of Swiss goods exports to the United States last year.
Swiss surplus
Keller-Sutter and Parmelin were accompanied by a small delegation, including the heads of the economy and international finance departments, a Swiss government official said.
But the official declined to give details about the potential meetings.
The government said it will “issue a statement as soon as there are any relevant developments for the public.”
The United States is a key trading partner for Switzerland, taking 18.6 percent of its total exports last year, according to Swiss customs data.
Keller-Sutter has said Trump believes that Switzerland “steals” from the United States by enjoying a trade surplus of 40 billion Swiss francs ($50 billion).
Swiss companies have urged the government to negotiate a lower tariff.
“I am convinced that Donald Trump wants to make a deal and show it to his US voters,“ Nik Hayek, the head of watch firm Swatch, told Le Temps newspaper in an interview published late Monday.
But, Hayek added, “President Karin Keller-Sutter has to react and find a solution in person there.” - AFP
