The United States on Thursday lifted its preferential trade regime with Turkey, which allowed some exports to import their goods duty-free into the United States, but halved its tariffs on Turkish steel imports to 25 percent.
Last year, Donald Trump imposed 25 percent tariffs on steel and aluminum for a wide range of countries for national security reasons. But last summer, the US president decided to punish Turkey and its president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, after tensions erupted between the countries over the arrest of American pastor Andrew Brunson on espionage charges.
Tensions between Washington and Ankara escalated again in January over American-backed Kurdish forces in Syria, when Trump threatened to economically "devastate" Turkey if it attacks its allies.
Trump's decision sent the Turkish lira into a tailspin. Since then, ties between the two countries have remained tense due to differences ranging from Ankara's planned purchase of a Russian missile system to a divergence of interests in Syria.
On Thursday, the White House said it would be advisable to terminate Turkey's right to participate in the Generalized System of Preferences program, based on its level of economic development. The decision came into force on May 17, the Trump administration added.
The United States Trade Representative (USTR) said in early March that Turkey is no longer eligible to receive trade preferences because it is "sufficiently developed economically."
Ankara hoped Washington would not accept this decision, saying it would contradict the $ 75 billion goal of mutual trade set by President Donald Trump and President Tayyip Erdogan.
Turkey was one of 120 countries to participate in the preference program, the oldest and largest trade agreement program in the United States. It aims to promote economic development in beneficiary countries by eliminating duties on thousands of products.
According to the USTR website, the United States imported $ 1.66 billion in trade preferences from Turkey in 2017, accounting for 17.7 percent of total US imports from Turkey. The main categories of imports were cars and spare parts for them, jewelry and precious metals, as well as stone products.
