Europe Retaliation on hold as White House blinks first

The EU has suspended its retaliatory 25% tariffs on US goods for 90 days after Donald Trump's dramatic climb-down in his trade war.

- Jennifer Rankin Brussels Sam Jones Madrid

The president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, said the EU would put on hold for 90 days the countermeasures - 25% tariffs on €21bn (£18bn) of US goods - that it had agreed on Wednesday.

"We want to give negotiations a chance," she said. "If negotiations are not satisfactory, our countermeasures will kick in."

In an earlier statement that did not mention the EU countermeasures, von der Leyen had welcomed the US president's 90-day pause on his highest tariffs, as she reiterated that the EU was ready to negotiate a trade deal with the US.

The chaotic U-turn by the White House on Wednesday means that until July the EU will face a 10% duty on exports to the US, rather than the 20% "reciprocal tariff" rate that was in force for just a matter of hours. Trump's 25% tariffs on steel, aluminium and cars remain in place.

Von der Leyen said Trump's announcement to pause the higher rates of tariffs he had imposed on many countries was "an important step towards stabilising the global economy".