EU says it has settled 17-year dispute with US over Boeing & Airbus subsidies

Brussels and Washington have reached a settlement over state subsidies for aircraft manufacturers. Since 2004, the EU has accused the US of providing illegal aid to Boeing, while Washington claimed Brussels was subsidizing Airbus.

The two sides managed to resolve the issue during the meeting between US President Joe Biden and the European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen at a US-EU summit in Brussels.

“This meeting has started with a breakthrough on aircraft; this really opens a new chapter in our relationship because we move from litigation to cooperation on aircraft – after 17 years of dispute,” von der Leyen said, as quoted by Reuters.

The parties agreed to suspend tariffs imposed as part of the trade battle for a period of five years. The detailed information on “acceptable support” for the world’s two biggest aircraft manufacturers will reportedly be released later.

The deal is set to end trade tariffs introduced during the Donald Trump presidency in relation to the Airbus and Boeing dispute that first emerged in 2004. The US previous administration levied duties worth $7.5 billion on European products after the World Trade Organization ruled that Brussels had given unfair subsidies to Airbus.

The EU retaliated with tariffs worth $4 billion on US goods based on another WTO ruling that said the US had provided illegal aid to Boeing.

The news of a possible compromise pushed Airbus stock up by nearly 1.5% in European trading, while shares in Boeing rose around 1% during pre-market trading in the US.

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