ZURICH: Switzerland’s president and economy minister were due to fly to Washington on Tuesday in a last-minute push to stop steep new tariffs that have blindsided the Alpine country.
Switzerland faces a 39-percent duty, one of the highest among the dozens of economies that will be hit by new tariffs expected to come into force from Thursday.
President Karin Keller-Sutter and Economy Minister Guy Parmelin were heading to Washington “to facilitate meetings with the US authorities at short notice and hold talks with a view to improving the tariff situation for Switzerland,” the government said in a statement.
“The aim is to present a more attractive offer to the United States in a bid to lower the level of reciprocal tariffs for Swiss exports, taking US concerns into account.”
US President Donald Trump had originally threatened in April to slap a 31-percent tariff on Switzerland.
