U.S., EU announce tariff agreement on lobsters, other products

WASHINGTON, Aug. 21 (Xinhua) -- The United States and the European Union (EU) on Friday announced a tariff agreement on lobsters and other products in a bid to increase trans-Atlantic market access, calling "the first U.S.-EU negotiated reductions in duties in more than two decades."

Under the agreement, the EU will eliminate tariffs on imports of U.S. live and frozen lobster products for five years, retroactive to begin Aug. 1, according to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR). U.S. exports of these products to the EU amounted to over 111 million U.S. dollars in 2017.