Americans may have to cut their intake of booze as all US importers of alcoholic beverages have stopped taking deliveries from Portugal, and the rest of the European Union.
This is part of the tariff war started by President Trump who happens to be a teetotaller. He has created a “terrible problem” tor a “gigantic business,” according to a very sobering statement from the President of the Portuguese National Association of Traders and Exporters of Wines and Spirits, Paulo Amorim.
President Trump, recently threatened a heavy tariff on all forms of heady hooch, but, of course, like a normal drunk, his thoughts can suddenly and illogically change.
The American booze ban follows the Trump Administration’s decision to impose 20% tariffs on all popular inebriants. It also seems to have something to do with a proposed EU 50% tariff on bourbon, which, for those not familiar with it, is a strong American whiskey.
Last year, Portugal exported well over 100 million euros worth of wine to the US. And last year, the EU exported 4.8 billion euros worth of wine to the US, but now the EU, hoping for well over five billion exports this year, is expected to lose 100 million euros per week.
It is said that there is no other market in the short or medium term that can fully absorb those who have never suffered the hangovers of too much such as American whiskey.
The loss of exports to the US has until now been accepting 28% of EU wine shipments. Alternatives that are surely being looked into are sending greater than current amounts of wine to Canada, Mexico, Japan and China.
Actually, it is all so complex and unpredictable that you might need a glass of wine or a wee dram of whiskey to keep up with what’s going on with subjects such as duty-free allowances for travellers. Who knows in this fast-changing world, but you can probably still enter the EU with duty-free allowances of one litre of spirits or two litres of other alcoholic drinks.
Cheers!
Written by Len Port - Photo courtesy of Depositphotos.com
