(MENAFN) Swiss business leaders presented luxury gifts to US President Donald Trump just days before Bern and Washington unveiled a trade agreement easing steep American import tariffs, according to media reports.

The deal, announced Friday, reduces the Trump administration’s 39% tariff on Swiss goods to 15% and includes Swiss companies’ pledge to inject $200 billion into the US economy. The tariff increase was imposed in August following Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’ speech in April outlining a global trade strategy overhaul.

Reports indicate the agreement came after a November 4 visit by Swiss executives to the White House, during which they presented Trump with high-value items, including a personalized gold bar and a gold Rolex desk clock. According to media, the bar, valued at over $130,000, was engraved with 45 and 47 in reference to Trump’s presidential terms and was accepted on behalf of his library under US gift regulations. The delegation included top officials from MKS, Rolex, Richemont, and commodity trader Mercuria.

The gift-giving drew sharp criticism in Switzerland. The Green Party labeled the deal a “surrender agreement,” accusing the nation’s economic elite of bowing to Trump’s demands. Party leader Lisa Mazzone warned that consumers and farmers would ultimately “pay the price” for the concessions and questioned the “questionable methods and gifts of gold.”

Swiss Economy Minister Guy Parmelin dismissed the criticism, asserting that the country has not “sold its soul to the devil” and that the delegation’s visit advanced negotiations. Parmelin added that the executives had “good contacts in the US” and some were friends of Trump “because they play golf with him.”

The outcome was welcomed in Washington. US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer highlighted that the Swiss investment commitments would bolster domestic industry.

The agreement is part of Trump’s wider effort to reset US trade relations, under which several nations have renegotiated tariffs. In July, the EU accepted a 15% tariff on most goods and promised substantial energy purchases and investments.

Trump’s administration has imposed broad tariffs over the past year on imports from trade partners to address what he describes as unfair economic imbalances, although critics argue these measures have increased costs for US consumers.

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