Norway considers cruise tax
Though the legislation previously targeted hotels, campsites and short-term rentals, the country's ruling Labour Party now intends to include cruises and campervans in the tax, the English-language outlet reported.
The Labour Party has not yet determined a desired tax rate, and the Centre Party is not on board with the change, according to the report.
The tax would not apply nationwide but would rather be one that municipalities could opt into.
A version of the bill submitted last month would have set the rate at 3% for overnight stays, according to Forbes.
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Associated Press
11 minutes ago
- Associated Press
US-EU trade deal wards off further escalation but will raise costs for companies, consumers
FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — President Donald Trump and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen have announced a sweeping trade deal that imposes 15% tariffs on most European goods, warding off Trump's threat of a 30% rate if no deal had been reached by Aug. 1. The tariffs, or import taxes, paid when Americans buy European products could raise prices for U.S. consumers and dent profits for European companies and their partners who bring goods into the country. Here are some things to know about the trade deal between the United States and the European Union: What's in the agreement? Trump and von der Leyen's announcement, made during Trump's visit to one of his golf courses in Scotland, leaves many details to be filled in. The headline figure is a 15% tariff rate on 'the vast majority' of European goods brought into the U.S., including cars, computer chips and pharmaceuticals. It's lower than the 20% Trump initially proposed, and lower than his threats of 50% and then 30%. Von der Leyen said the two sides agreed on zero tariffs on both sides for a range of 'strategic' goods: Aircraft and aircraft parts, certain chemicals, semiconductor equipment, certain agricultural products, and some natural resources and critical raw materials. Specifics were lacking. She said the two sides 'would keep working' to add more products to the list. Additionally, the EU side would purchase what Trump said was $750 billion (638 billion euros) worth of natural gas, oil and nuclear fuel to replace Russian energy supplies, and Europeans would invest an additional $600 billion (511 billion euros) in the U.S. What's not in the deal? Trump said the 50% U.S. tariff on imported steel would remain; von der Leyen said the two sides agreed to further negotiations to fight a global steel glut, reduce tariffs and establish import quotas — that is, set amounts that can be imported, often at a lower rate. Trump said pharmaceuticals were not included in the deal. Von der Leyen said the pharmaceuticals issue was 'on a separate sheet of paper' from Sunday's deal. Where the $600 billion for additional investment would come from was not specified. And von der Leyen said that when it came to farm products, the EU side made clear that 'there were tariffs that could not be lowered,' without specifying which products. What's the impact? The 15% rate removes Trump's threat of a 30% tariff. It's still much higher than the average tariff before Trump came into office of around 1%, and higher than Trump's minimum 10% baseline tariff. Higher tariffs, or import taxes, on European goods mean sellers in the U.S. would have to either increase prices for consumers — risking loss of market share — or swallow the added cost in terms of lower profits. The higher tariffs are expected to hurt export earnings for European firms and slow the economy. The 10% baseline applied while the deal was negotiated was already sufficiently high to make the European Union's executive commission cut its growth forecast for this year from 1.3% to 0.9%. Von der Leyen said the 15% rate was 'the best we could do' and credited the deal with maintaining access to the U.S. market and providing 'stability and predictability for companies on both sides.' What is some of the reaction to the deal? German Chancellor Friedrich Merz welcomed the deal which avoided 'an unnecessary escalation in transatlantic trade relations' and said that 'we were able to preserve our core interests,' while adding that 'I would have very much wished for further relief in transatlantic trade.' The Federation of German Industries was blunter. 'Even a 15% tariff rate will have immense negative effects on export-oriented German industry,' said Wolfgang Niedermark, a member of the federation's leadership. While the rate is lower than threatened, 'the big caveat to today's deal is that there is nothing on paper, yet,' said Carsten Brzeski, global chief of macro at ING bank. 'With this disclaimer in mind and at face value, today's agreement would clearly bring an end to the uncertainty of recent months. An escalation of the US-EU trade tensions would have been a severe risk for the global economy,' Brzeski said. 'This risk seems to have been avoided.' What about car companies? Asked if European carmakers could still sell cars at 15%, von der Leyen said the rate was much lower than the current 27.5%. That has been the rate under Trump's 25% tariff on cars from all countries, plus the preexisting U.S. car tariff of 2.5%. The impact is likely to be substantial on some companies, given that automaker Volkswagen said it suffered a 1.3 billion euro ($1.5 billion) hit to profit in the first half of the year from the higher tariffs. Mercedes-Benz dealers in the U.S. have said they are holding the line on 2025 model year prices 'until further notice.' The German automaker has a partial tariff shield because it makes 35% of the Mercedes-Benz vehicles sold in the U.S. in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, but the company said it expects prices to undergo 'significant increases' in coming years. What were the issues dividing the two sides? Before Trump returned to office, the U.S. and the EU maintained generally low tariff levels in what is the largest bilateral trading relationship in the world, with some 1.7 trillion euros ($2 trillion) in annual trade. Together the U.S. and the EU have 44% of the global economy. The U.S. rate averaged 1.47% for European goods, while the EU's averaged 1.35% for American products, according to the Bruegel think tank in Brussels. Trump has complained about the EU's 198 billion-euro trade surplus in goods, which shows Americans buy more from European businesses than the other way around, and has said the European market is not open enough for U.S.-made cars. However, American companies fill some of the trade gap by outselling the EU when it comes to services such as cloud computing, travel bookings, and legal and financial services. And some 30% of European imports are from American-owned companies, according to the European Central Bank.
Yahoo
39 minutes ago
- Yahoo
EU urges Ukraine to uphold independent anti-corruption bodies; Zelenskiy signals swift action
BRUSSELS (Reuters) -European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called on Sunday for President Volodymyr Zelenskiy to uphold independent anti-corruption bodies, with the Ukrainian leader signaling that supporting legislation could be adopted within days. "Ukraine has already achieved a lot on its European path. It must build on these solid foundations and preserve independent anti-corruption bodies, which are cornerstones of Ukraine's rule of law," von der Leyen said in a post on X after a call with Zelenskiy. After a rare outburst of public criticism, Zelenskiy on Thursday submitted draft legislation to restore the independence of Ukraine's anti-corruption agencies - reversing course of an earlier bill aimed at stripping their autonomy. "I thanked the European Commission for the provided expertise," Zelenskiy said in a post on X after his Sunday call with von der Leyen. "We share the same vision: it is important that the bill is adopted without delay, as early as next week." Von der Leyen also promised continued support for Ukraine on its path to EU membership. "Ukraine can count on our support to deliver progress on its European path," she added.
Yahoo
39 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Rough deal: Social media roasts Trump's golf game after clip appears to show alleged cheating in Scotland
Social media users pounced on a clip that appears to show Donald Trump cheating on the golf course during his ongoing trip to Scotland, the latest in a long line of accusations that the president cheats on the fairway. In the video circulated by liberal commentators, a caddy appears to walk ahead of the golf-loving president in his golf cart and drop a ball behind him as the president approaches. 'Trump working hard to bring down grocery prices,' the caption says, making a satirical reference to the president's campaign promises to tackle inflation and costs 'For the morons that think Trump doesn't cheat at golf and wins all those club championships fair and square….watch his caddie here,' another account wrote. The phrase 'commander in cheat' was soon trending on the social media site. 'The video of Trump's caddy doing an Oddjob Slazenger drop isn't a big deal; cheating at golf isn't nearly the worst thing about Trump,' wrote The Atlantic's Tom Nichols. 'But watching the cult of personality try to explain it away is really some creepy North Korean level stuff.' The Independent has requested comment from the White House. The president has faced a long list of accusations that he doesn't play fair from figures ranging from actor Samuel Jackson to LPGA player Suzann Pettersen. Trump's alleged cheating, which has always denied, is even the subject of a book: Rick Reilly's Commander in Cheat. 'At Winged Foot, where Trump is a member, the caddies got so used to seeing him kick his ball back onto the fairway they came up with a nickname for him: Pele,' Reilly writes in the book. Controversy has always followed Trump, an avid golfer and developer of golf resorts, when he hits the 18 holes. The president has golfed at least 45 days out of his 189 days in office this year, or roughly 24 percent of his second term thus far. In April, the president faced criticism for attending an event from Saudi Arabia-backed LIV Golf while missing the return ceremony for the remains of four dead American soldiers. Others have criticized the president's promotion of his business interests on his own properties. During the Scotland trip, Trump met with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen at his Turnberry golf course to announce an EU trade deal, and the president plans to attend a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Tuesday for a new course in Aberdeenshire. The White House described the Scotland tour as a 'working trip' while touting that Trump 'has built the best and most beautiful world-class golf courses anywhere in the world, which is why they continue to be used for prestigious tournaments and by the most elite players in the sport.' The president's Mar-a-Lago club and estate in Florida, near one his golf courses, has also emerged as a key hub for lobbying and fundraising, home to visits from tech billionaires and $1-million-per-head fundraising dinners. In the Middle East, meanwhile, the president's family company, the Trump Organization, recently struck a deal to build a golf resort in Qatar, weeks before the nation announced the gift of a $400 million Boeing 747 plane to be used for the new Air Force One. Despite the administration's insistence on cutting government spending, the president has also reportedly drained taxpayers of over $10 million in costs related to his many golf trips, while the Secret Service has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars for the use of golf carts and port-a-potties at Trump's New Jersey golf club. Since retaking office, Trump and his family businesses have taken in hundreds of millions of dollars on business ventures including cryptocurrency, real estate, and branded merchandise. 'He is president and is supposed to be working in the public's interest,' James Thurber, an emeritus professor at American University, told The Associated Press last month. 'Instead, he is helping his own personal interest to grow his wealth. It's totally not normal.'
