Top EU trade negotiator to speak to US counterpart Wednesday
"The EU's primary focus is on achieving a negotiated outcome with the U.S. Intensive technical and political level contact is ongoing," said European Commission trade spokesman Olof Gill.
AFP
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But in comments to reporters on the sidelines of a U.N. food security conference in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, she said that details still needed to be worked out and that she's still unclear what exemptions are carved out for particular industries. "I always thought, I continue to think that a trade escalation between Europe and the United States would have unpredictable, potentially devastating consequences," she said. Meloni said that she needed to understand what the exemptions might be, including on agricultural products, which are of concern to Italy, given its wine exports in particular. "So there are a number of elements that are missing as well, as I don't know exactly what we are referring to when we talk about investments, gas purchases." She noted that the deal in its current form is legally nonbinding in principle, "so there is still, let's say, room to fight." Hungary: Trump 'ate EU for breakfast' Major exports to the U.S.: Packaged medicines and batteries. 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"The European agreement is worse than the British one, so portraying it as a success will be difficult." Economists: Less growth, many blank spots Jon Harrison at TS Lombard: "It is no surprise to find that trade deals agreed under duress in weeks rather than the usual years of careful negotiation leave a mass of detail incomplete and open to interpretation." Jack Allen-Reynolds, deputy chief eurozone economist at Capital Economics: "We think this will reduce EU GDP (gross domestic product) by about 0.5%, which is worse than we had previously assumed." "While the deal has avoided a much worse outcome for now, it remains to be seen whether it will last." Julian Hinz, trade expert at the Kiel Institute for the World Economy: "The deal agreed yesterday is not a good deal — it is appeasement. "While the EU may avert a trade war in the short term, it is paying a high price in the long term by abandoning the principles of the multilateral, rules-based world trade system of the World Trade Organization."
