EU issues tariff plan for US goods, including PE, if no deal reached by Aug 1

As negotiations between the EU and the US continue ahead of the August 1 deadline to avert a tariff war, the European Union has detailed its proposed rebalancing measures in response to Washington’s potential 30% tariffs on EU goods. A list of countermeasures the EU has approved against the US if a trade agreement is not reached with Washington was revealed on July 24, 2025.

This followed negotiations between the EU and the US, which have sped up recently, with both sides nearing a potential agreement to impose a 15% tariff on most traded goods.

Accordingly, the proposed measures will initially impose a 25% import tariff on US steel and aluminum shipments starting August 7, followed by a ban on ferrous and aluminum scrap exports to the US beginning September 7. Additional commodity trade restrictions would also take effect on September 7, December 1, and February 7, 2026, if parts fail to shake hands before August.

Importantly, the proposed regulation includes 25% duty additions on PE grades originating from the US, excluding metallocene PE, as well as 30% duties on certain engineering plastics and PP, EVA, PS, ABS, SAN, EPS, and PVC.

• HS Code 39012010 and 39012090 - HDPE


• HS Code 39011090 - LLDPE


• HS Code 39011010 - LDPE

Other polymers included in the proposed tariff lists are like below:

• HS Code 390210 PPH: 30%


• HS Code 390230 Copo: 30%


• HS Code 390311 EPS: 30%


• HS Code390319 PS: 30%


• HS Code 390320 SAN: 30%


• HS Code 390330 ABS: 30%


• HS Code 390410 EPVC+SPVC: 30%


• HS Code 390740 PC: 30%


• HS Code 390610 PMMA: 30%


• HS Code 390110 EVA: 25%

Meanwhile, PBT, PET, PA and POM are listed as %0 in the proposed list.

In April, the EU initially paused a set of countermeasures against the US to make room for negotiations.