Sputnik: The EU is imposing what seems to be a tit for tat tariff, or in any case that was the motive, tit for tat tariffs on US imports to Europe. Do you feel that the measures proposed are in fact equal as far as the impact that they will have on US markets compared to those imposed by the Trump administration?
Yaroslav Lissovolik: Well this is certainly the intention and that is likely to be largely the case. We know that the overall impact of the US trade restrictions is larger and we are talking here in terms of 2.8 billion euros in measures undertaken by the European Union.
So basically this is all about reciprocity and I think depending on the actions of the US, depending on their response, we will see what further measures may be contemplated by the EU.
Sputnik: Why do you think the Trump administration is actually focused on stealing aluminum imports to the US?
Yaroslav Lissovolik: Well I think part of the reason is simply that the localization or the concentration of these industries in the US is such that a significant portion of this industry is located in what you may call [swing] states in terms of the US electoral process. Some of these states tend to be very important in terms of political outcomes so yes basically we have seen it before and not just now that the Trump administration is targeting such restrictions.
Sputnik: Who benefits from the higher tariffs both in the US and in the countries that have imposed them in response?
Yaroslav Lissovolik: I really don’t see any substantial benefits quite frankly because you shouldn’t look at this situation only as one round effect. Clearly there is the second; there is the third round in terms of reciprocal measures by the EU, by other developing economies. So the overall sum of all of these effects not just the unilateral imposition of these tariffs but also the impact of the response from trading partners, I think that tends to bring the overall […] to the negative territory both for the US and the world economy and the main, largest economies in the world as well.
The views and opinions expressed by Yaroslav Lissovolik are those of the speaker and do not necessarily reflect those of Sputnik.