Switzerland flags importance of international law after tariff hit

(Reuters) - The Swiss government on Wednesday underlined the importance of respecting international law after U.S. President Donald Trump put higher tariffs on the export-oriented Alpine country than the European Union in a major trade policy announcement.

Trump presented figures saying the United States would apply a 31% tariff on imports from Switzerland compared with 20% on goods from the European Union and 10% from Britain.

In a statement on X, Swiss President Karin Keller-Sutter said her government took note of the U.S. tariff decisions and would quickly determine its next steps.

"The country's long-term economic interests are paramount. Adherence to international law and free trade remain core values," Keller-Sutter said in her post.

The United States is Switzerland's single-biggest export market, and the government has been at pains to stress the Swiss contribution to the U.S. economy. Switzerland is the sixth-biggest foreign investor in the United States.

Switzerland has abolished industrial tariffs but its agricultural sector is one of the most heavily subsidised among members of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) industrialised countries.

Analysts regard agriculture, which makes up a very small fraction of the Swiss economy, as one of the sectors most exposed to U.S. demands for countries to open up their markets.

(Reporting by Dave Graham and Rajveer Singh Pardesi in Bengaluru; Editing by Stephen Coates)

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