EU, South Korea seek U.S. trade deals to ease tariff pain
BRUSSELS/SEOUL — The European Union and South Korea said on Monday they were working on trade deals with U.S. President Donald Trump that would soften the blow from looming tariffs as Washington threatens to impose hefty duties from Aug. 1.
Trump stepped up his trade war on Saturday, saying he would impose a 30 per cent tariff on most imports from the EU and Mexico from next month, adding to similar warnings for other countries including Asian economic powerhouses Japan and South Korea.
Speaking in Brussels, where EU trade ministers discussed the tariff threat, European Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic warned that a 30% tariff would practically eliminate trade between the U.S. and the 27-nation bloc, which are currently each other's largest trading partners.
He expressed optimism, however, that talks between Washington and the EU were approaching a positive outcome for both sides.
'We have to do, and I will definitely do, everything I can to prevent this super-negative scenario,' Sefcovic said.
White House Economic Adviser Kevin Hassett had said on Sunday that countries' trade deal offers so far had not satisfied Trump, adding that without improvements to their proposals 'the tariffs are real.'
'The president thinks that deals need to be better,' Hassett told ABC's This Week program. 'And to basically put a line in the sand, he sent these letters out to folks, and we'll see how it works out.'
The threatened duties sounded alarm bells in Germany, the EU's biggest economy.
After Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on Sunday that a 30% tariff would 'hit the German export industry to the core,' the head of the German Chamber of Commerce and Industry called for swift action.
'The escalating tariff conflict with the USA poses a serious threat to many German companies,' Volker Treier said on Monday. 'Tough negotiations are now needed to avert a collapse of transatlantic trade.'
The EU has so far held off on retaliatory measures to avoid a spiraling tit-for-tat escalation in the trade war while there remains a chance of negotiating an improved outcome.
But Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said the EU has already prepared a list of tariffs worth 21 billion euros (US$24.5 billion) on U.S. goods if the two sides fail to reach a trade deal.
European industries, meanwhile, are preparing for the worst.
Producers of Italy's renowned Chianti wine in Tuscany have demanded a new export strategy backed by the EU targeting alternative markets such as South America, Asia and Africa in response.
Markets left guessing
Since returning to the White House earlier this year, Trump has sought to use an array of tariffs to boost the U.S. economy, push companies to invest in the United States, and revitalize sectors including manufacturing.
His initial 'Liberation Day' tariff announcement in April, which set a baseline tariff of 10 per cent on all imports and higher duties on certain products or countries, raised fears of global supply chain disruptions, sending shockwaves through markets.
But subsequent U-turns and delays, including a 90-day pause on most duties aimed at allowing time for trade deal negotiations, have left investors largely inured to Trump's chaotic policy roll-outs.
European stocks fell on Monday, while U.S. futures pointed towards a lower Wall Street open in response to the latest salvo. European autos and alcohol stocks were among those hardest hit.
Scramble for deals
The looming Aug. 1 deadline has set off a scramble by governments around the world to seal trade agreements.
South Korea's top trade envoy said on Monday it may be possible to strike an 'in-principle' deal by the deadline and signaled that Seoul may be open to allowing the U.S. greater access to its agriculture markets, local media reported.
Minister for Trade Yeo Han-koo, who held high-level talks with U.S. officials last week, said South Korea was seeking to avoid 'unfair' U.S. tariffs on sectors key to its industrial prowess that would undermine industrial cooperation with its main security ally and trading partner, media reports said.
'I believe it's possible to reach an agreement in principle in the U.S. tariff negotiations, and then take some time to negotiate further,' the Newsis news agency quoted Yeo as telling local media reporters.
'Twenty days are not enough to come up with a perfect treaty that contains every detail,' he added.
South Korea is in a race to reach a compromise trade pact in the hope of avoiding a 25 per cent tariff slapped on its exports, the same level faced by Japan.
(Additional reporting by Milan Strahm, Cristina Carlevaro, David Lawder, John Revill, Andreas Rinke, Wayne Cole and Emma RumneyWriting by Keith WeirEditing by Joe Bavier)
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Winnipeg Free Press
15 minutes ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Trump's bid to claw back $9B in foreign aid and public broadcasting funds nears Senate vote
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump's request to cancel about $9 billion in foreign aid and public broadcasting spending is nearing passage in the Senate, an action that would have a tiny impact on the nation's rising debt but could have major ramifications for future spending fights in Congress. Spending bills generally need bipartisan support to advance in the Senate. But the legislation before the Senate gives Republicans the opportunity to undo some of the previously approved spending without Democratic support as they follow through on Trump's efforts to target the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and roll back help for nations suffering from conflict, drought and disease. The Trump administration is promising more rescission packages to come if the first effort is successful. Democrats say doing so jeopardizes a process that requires lawmakers from both parties to work together to fund the nation's priorities. The move to cut a sliver of previously approved spending comes after Republicans muscled Trump's big tax and spending cut bill to approval in both chambers without any Democratic support. The Congressional Budget Office has projected that measure will increase future federal deficits by about $3.3 trillion over the coming decade. Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said Republicans were using the president's rescissions request to target 'wasteful spending.' 'It's a small but important step for fiscal sanity that we all should be able to agree is long overdue,' Thune said as the Senate opened on Wednesday. Lawmakers clash over cuts to public radio and TV stations In opposing the bill, Democrats said Congress was ceding its spending powers to the executive branch with little idea of how the White House Office of Management and Budget would apply the cuts. Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer of New York called the legislation a 'terrible bill that guts local news, defunds rural radio stations and makes America less safe on the world stage.' The legislation would claw back nearly $1.1 billion from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which represents the full amount it's due to receive during the next two budget years. The White House says the public media system is politically biased and an unnecessary expense. The corporation distributes more than 70% of the money to more than 1,500 locally operated public television and radio stations, with much of the remainder assigned to National Public Radio and the Public Broadcasting Service to support national programming. Some Republicans had expressed worries about how local radio and televisions stations would be able to survive without federal assistance. Sen. Mike Rounds, R-S.D., said he secured a deal from the White House that some funding administered by the Department of the Interior would be repurposed to subsidize Native American public radio stations in more than a dozen states. Democrats are not assured by the side agreements. Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., said in some rural areas of his state pubic radio is the most reliable ways to get news and emergency alerts during wildfire season. 'These cuts will lead to rural public radio stations laying off staff, reducing programming, or even shutting down entirely,' Kelly said. Kate Riley, president and CEO of America's Public Television Stations, a network of locally owned and operated stations, said the side deal was 'at best a short-term, half-measure that will still result in cuts and reduced service at the stations it purports to save, while leaving behind all other stations, including many that serve Native populations.' 'Simply providing a one-time payment to Tribal stations will not ensure they can continue their current service or even survive,' Riley said. Slashing billions of dollars from foreign aid The legislation would also claw back about $8 billion in foreign aid spending. Among the cuts are $800 million for a program that provides emergency shelter, water and sanitation and family reunification for those forced to flee their own country and $496 million to provide humanitarian assistance such as food, water and health care for countries hit by natural disasters and conflicts. There's also a $4.15 billion cut for programs that aim to boost the economies and democratic institutions in developing and strategically important countries. Republicans said they winnowed down the president's request by taking out his proposed $400 million cut to a program known as PEPFAR. That change increased the prospects for the bill's passage. The politically popular program is credited with saving millions of lives since its creation under then-President George W. Bush, a Republican, to combat HIV/AIDS. Democrats said the changes Republicans made to save PEPFAR funding were not enough. They said that the Trump administration's animus toward foreign aid programs would hurt America's standing in the world and create a vacuum for China to fill. Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, said the amount of money it takes to save a starving child or prevent the transmission of disease is miniscule, even as the investments secure cooperation with the U.S. on other issues. But the cuts being made to foreign aid programs through Trump's Department of Government Efficiency were having life-and-death consequences around the world, he said. Monday Mornings The latest local business news and a lookahead to the coming week. 'People are dying right now, not in spite of us but because of us,' Schatz said. 'We are causing death.' Republicans are facing a Friday deadline Republicans providing just enough votes to take up the bill, with Vice President JD Vance breaking a 50-50 tie on Tuesday night. Three Republicans joined with Democrats in voting against advancing the measure. That sets up on Wednesday what's known as a vote-a-rama, in which lawmakers will vote on scores of proposed amendments to the bill. Once the amendment process is over, the Senate will vote on final passage. The House has already shown its support for the president's request with a mostly party line 214-212 vote, but since the Senate is amending the bill, it will have to go back to the House for another vote. The bill must be signed into law by midnight Friday for the proposed rescissions to kick in. If Congress doesn't act by then, the spending stands.
Winnipeg Free Press
15 minutes ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
The EU chief unveils a new $2.3 trillion budget. Lawmakers say the math doesn't ‘add up'
BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union needs a new budget that would allow it to respond to crises like Russia's war on Ukraine or climate change, fund railways and energy grids, and protect farmers' livelihoods, the EU chief said Wednesday while unveiling her proposal totaling 2 trillion euros ($2.3 trillion). European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who heads the EU's executive branch, said that under her budget plan, spending on defense and space would increase five-fold, while investment in migration and border management would triple. The proposal kicks off two years of wrangling between the 27 member states which fund most of the budget and the European Parliament. The spending package — which runs from 2028 to 2034 — is seen as a statement about Europe's ambitions in the world. Von der Leyen described her plan for the budget – known as the Multiannual Financial Framework – as 'the most ambitious ever proposed.' 'It is more strategic, more flexible, more transparent, and we are investing more in our capacity to respond and more in our independence,' she told reporters in Brussels. But in an early sign of the troubles ahead, von der Leyen conceded that even within her own team of policy commissioners — which worked through the night to finalize the proposal – 'not everyone was satisfied with the amount.' EU lawmakers who will chaperone the commission's proposal through parliament over the next year and 2027, and who were briefed on it, said that the budget math doesn't 'add up.' 'However you try to package this, what we have is a real-terms investment and spending freeze,' they said in a statement. 'It is the status quo, which the Commission has always insisted is not an option.' Part of the numbers confusion is due to von der Leyen's insistence that national contributions to the budget will not increase. Extra funds would be found through 'a step change' in the way the commission raises its own money, she said. The EU as a bloc is not allowed to levy its own taxes, but it does earn revenue from things like customs duties and value added tax. The plan now is to get money through the carbon emissions trading system and a new tobacco duty, among other measures. At the same time, the EU must also pay off billions of euros in debt incurred by measures introduced to stop the spread of COVID-19 and to help revive economies after the pandemic. As for security, von der Leyen said 100 billion euros ($116 billion) should be set aside to help Ukraine rebuild from the ravages of the war, now in its fourth year. Monday Mornings The latest local business news and a lookahead to the coming week. 'We are suggesting 100 billion euros … to support recovery, resilience, and of course their path to the EU membership,' she said. Outside the commission headquarters, as von der Leyen's team debated the plan, around 200 farmers gathered and threw boots at the building. 'Everybody is talking about security for Europe. Everybody is talking about a stronger Europe. Well ,let me tell you, you can't get stronger with an empty stomach,' said Lode Ceyssens, head of the Belgian farmers trade union Boerenbond. ___ Associated Press journalist Sylvain Plazy in Brussels contributed to this report.
Globe and Mail
15 minutes ago
- Globe and Mail
Deadline Approaching: iRobot Corporation (IRBT) Investors Who Lost Money Urged To Contact Law Offices of Howard G. Smith
Law Offices of Howard G. Smith reminds investors of the upcoming deadline to file a lead plaintiff motion in the case filed on behalf of investors who purchased iRobot Corporation ('iRobot' or the 'Company') (NASDAQ: IRBT) securities between January 29, 2024 and March 11, 2025, inclusive (the 'Class Period'). IF YOU ARE AN INVESTOR WHO SUFFERED A LOSS IN IROBOT CORPORATION (IRBT), CONTACT THE LAW OFFICES OF HOWARD G. SMITH TO PARTICIPATE IN THE ONGOING SECURITIES FRAUD LAWSUIT. Contact the Law Offices of Howard G. Smith to discuss your legal rights by email at howardsmith@ by telephone at (215) 638-4847 or visit our website at What Happened? On March 12, 2025, iRobot released its fourth quarter and full year 2024 financial results, reporting a loss of $2.06 per share on revenue of $172 million, representing a 44% year-over-year decline and stating that 'there can be no assurance that [iRobot's] new product launches will be successful due to potential factors, including, but not limited to consumer demand, competition, macroeconomic conditions, and tariff policies.' Accordingly, '[g]iven these uncertainties and the implication they may have on the Company's financials, there is substantial doubt about the Company's ability to continue as a going concern for a period of at least 12 months from the date of the issuance of its consolidated 2024 financial statements.' On this news, iRobot's stock price fell $3.255, or 51.6%, over two consecutive trading days, to close at $3.055 per share on March 13, 2025, thereby injuring investors. What Is The Lawsuit About? The complaint filed in this class action alleges that throughout the Class Period, Defendants made materially false and/or misleading statements, as well as failed to disclose material adverse facts about the Company's business, operations, and prospects. Specifically, Defendants failed to disclose to investors that: (1) iRobot overstated the extent to which the Restructuring Plan would help the Company maintain stability after the termination of the Amazon Acquisition; (2) as a result, it was unlikely that iRobot would be able to profitably operate as a standalone company; (3) accordingly, there was substantial doubt about the Company's ability to continue as a going concern; and (4) as a result, Defendants' positive statements about the Company's business, operations, and prospects were materially misleading and/or lacked a reasonable basis at all relevant times. If you purchased or otherwise acquired iRobot securities during the Class Period, you may move the Court no later than September 5, 2025 to ask the Court to appoint you as lead plaintiff if you meet certain legal requirements. Contact Us To Participate or Learn More: If you wish to learn more about this class action, or if you have any questions concerning this announcement or your rights or interests with respect to these matters, please contact us: Law Offices of Howard G. Smith, 3070 Bristol Pike, Suite 112, Bensalem, Pennsylvania 19020, Telephone: (215) 638-4847 Email: howardsmith@ Visit our website at: To be a member of the class action you need not take any action at this time; you may retain counsel of your choice or take no action and remain an absent member of the class action. This press release may be considered Attorney Advertising in some jurisdictions under the applicable law and ethical rules.
