The European Union announced it is pausing retaliatory tariffs against the United States, allowing time for the bloc of nations to negotiate with the Trump administration.
The announced pause comes one day after the EU said it would impose 25 percent tariffs on goods from the U.S. The tariffs were in response to President Trump announcing a 25 percent steel and aluminum tariff in March.
On Wednesday, President Trump announced he was pausing "reciprocal" tariffs on more than 85 countries for 90 days. The European Union was not among those directly impacted by Wednesday's announcement, as the steel and aluminum tariffs are still in place.
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But President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen took notice of President Trump's decision to pause "reciprocal" tariffs and sees it as a sign the United States is open to negotiations.
"We took note of the announcement by President Trump," she said. "We want to give negotiations a chance. While finalizing the adoption of the EU countermeasures that saw strong support from our Member States, we will put them on hold for 90 days.
"If negotiations are not satisfactory, our countermeasures will kick in. Preparatory work on further countermeasures continues. As I have said before, all options remain on the table."
President Trump said he decided to pause the retaliatory tariffs after people began getting "yippy" amid the market turmoil. He also expressed confidence that "fair" trade deals will be made with countries, including China.
The Trump administration also predicted on Wednesday that the European Union would delay its tariffs.
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