Italy Deputy PM calls for EU-U.S. deal to cut automotive tariffs

MILAN (Reuters) - The European Union needs to sign as soon as possible a deal with the United States to lower tariffs on the struggling automotive sector, Italian Deputy Prime Minister Luigi Di Maio said on Friday.

"Europe must sign an agreement with the United States on the automotive to lower some tariffs soon", Di Maio said.

Di Maio said that the European economy was suffering mostly due to Germany's economic slowdown, which in turn was being driven by U.S.-Chinese trade tensions and the problems of the automotive sector.

"I'm not looking for alibis but exports are one thing we can work on to boost growth," he said.

(Reporting by Francesca Landini, writing by Andrea Mandala, editing)