Internal trade barriers in the European Union are equivalent to tariffs of 45% for manufacturing.

Omissions

• The MEP did not cite the IMF as the source of the 45% figure, which originates from an IMF estimate of about 44% for goods trade — not exactly 45% and not exclusively for manufacturing.
• The claim omits that the IMF's 44% estimate has been publicly challenged by academic economists (Fontagné, Yotov, and others) who argue the methodology is flawed and that the real tariff equivalent is substantially lower.
• The IMF estimate refers to 'goods trade' broadly, not manufacturing specifically. While manufacturing dominates goods trade, the two categories are not identical — goods trade also includes raw materials, agricultural products, and energy.
• The MEP could only have known the IMF estimate published in December 2024; the academic rebuttals from CEPR/VoxEU (November 2025) and Bocconi IEP were published before the session date and thus available context she did not address.

Sources

• PrimaryIMF — Europe's Choice: Policies for Growth and ResilienceOur estimates suggest that these barriers might be as high as a tariff equivalent of about 44 percent on average for goods trade—three times higher than conventional estimates based on direct measures of trade costs.
• SecondaryCEPR / VoxEU — No, the EU does not impose a 45% tariff on itselfA recent paper which has gathered significant attention estimates a 45% tariff equivalent of intra-EU border costs. This column argues that the methodology overstates these costs. The IMF estimates that the internal barriers within the Single Market are equivalent to a 45% tariff on goods. And a 110% tariff on services.
• SecondaryBocconi IEP — Europe's Internal Tariffs: Why the IMF's 44% Estimate Doesn't Hold UpThe assertion that 'internal EU barriers are equivalent to a 44% tariff' has gained the status of revealed truth—repeated so often that few question it. This article explains why the IMF's 44% estimate is misleading and does not hold up under scrutiny.
• SecondaryThe Conference Board — The cost to business of Europe's internal 'tariffs'A recent international study suggests that internal barriers to trade in manufacturing inside the EU are equivalent to a 45% tariff, while in the US the equivalent figure is just 15%.