Switzerland’s Vice President and Economy Minister, Guy Parmelin, said on Saturday that he held “constructive meetings” with senior US officials in Washington as Bern seeks to navigate steep new import tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump.
Parmelin, who met Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, said he sees “real opportunity ahead” for both countries, though he did not provide specifics.
The comments follow Trump’s surprise announcement that Swiss goods would face a 39% import tariff starting August 1, one of the highest levies among dozens of nations targeted. The move marked a sharp increase from the 10% “baseline” tariff introduced in April.
The tariffs threaten key Swiss export sectors, including watchmaking, industrial machinery, chocolate, and cheese. Businesses fear that competitors in the EU, Japan, and the UK, which have secured lower tariff rates of 15% and 10%, will gain an advantage.
Swiss officials say they have put forward an “optimized offer” in negotiations, stressing that the US already enjoys a significant trade surplus in services. At the same time, most American industrial goods enter Switzerland tariff-free. The State Secretariat for Economic Affairs recently downgraded its 2026 growth forecast to 0.8% from 1.2%, citing the impact of the US tariffs.
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