US and EU agree on 15% tariffs in new trade deal
Trump, who had earlier threatened to impose 30% tariffs on European products starting 1 August, confirmed that the agreement also includes $600 billion (£450 billion) in planned EU investments in the United States.
Additionally, the European bloc committed to purchasing $750 billion (£562.5 billion) worth of American energy exports.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
LeMonde
an hour ago
- LeMonde
Trump orders tariffs on dozens of countries to go into effect next week
President Donald Trump ordered the reimposition of tariffs on dozens of trading partners on Thursday, July 31, his cornerstone strategy for reshaping global trade to benefit the US economy. However, in a minor reprieve, the White House said the measures will take effect in a week, not this Friday as previously expected. The tariffs are a demonstration of raw economic power that Trump says will put US exporters in a stronger position while encouraging domestic manufacturing by keeping out foreign imports. But the muscular approach has raised fears of inflation and other economic fallout in the world's biggest economy. And with questions hanging over the effectiveness of bilateral trade deals already struck – including by the European Union and Japan – the outcome of Trump's plan remains uncertain. Trump's new measures in an executive order raised duties on dozens of economies up to a 41% rate. Frantic negotiations Most of these new tariff hikes were first announced in April when Trump slapped a minimum 10% levy on goods from almost every country in the world, citing unfair trade practices and US deficits. However, Washington then postponed implementation, amid a frantic series of negotiations, alongside announcements of new duties and deals with some partners. Just Thursday, Trump announced he was delaying a tariff hike on products from the major US trading partner Mexico. The postponement by 90 days came after talks with his counterpart Claudia Sheinbaum. The 79-year-old Republican has made tariffs core to his protectionist brand of hard-right politics. On Thursday, he claimed that the US economy had "no chance of survival or success" without tariffs. But the latest salvo came amid legal challenges against Trump's use of emergency economic powers. On Thursday, the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit heard arguments in cases brought against Trump's blanket tariffs targeting different countries. And questions linger over the effectiveness of Trump's grand plans, or even whether he will hold firm on his most drastic threats. While Trump has touted a surge in customs revenues since the start of the year, economists warn the duties could fuel inflation. Proponents of his policy argue that its impact will be one-off, but analysts are awaiting further economic data to gauge for more persistent effects. China? Among those who managed to strike deals with Washington were Vietnam, Japan, Indonesia, the Philippines, South Korea and the European Union. Britain also reached a pact with the United States, although it was not originally targeted by higher "reciprocal" tariffs. Washington did not finalize a deal with neighboring Canada, but Trump reached agreement with Mexico to maintain an existing 25% duty on its products. Partner service Learn French with Gymglish Thanks to a daily lesson, an original story and a personalized correction, in 15 minutes per day. Try for free Canada, however, was slapped with duties of 35% in the Trump executive order. An exemption for goods entering the country under a North American trade pact remained in place, according to the White House. But transshipped goods to evade the 35% duty would face even higher levels. Canada's trade relations with the United States came under renewed threat after Prime Minister Mark Carney announced plans to recognize a Palestinian state at the UN General Assembly in September. Notably excluded from the latest drama was China, which faces an August 12 deadline instead, when duties could bounce back to higher levels. Washington and Beijing had slapped tit-for-tat tariffs on each other's goods, bringing them to triple-digit levels before both countries reached agreement in May to temporarily lower these duties. The superpowers are now working towards extending their truce.
France 24
2 hours ago
- France 24
Trump orders tariffs on dozens of countries in push to reshape global trade
However in a minor reprieve, the White House said the measures will take effect in a week, not this Friday as previously expected. The tariffs are a demonstration of raw economic power that Trump says will put US exporters in a stronger position while encouraging domestic manufacturing by keeping out foreign imports. But the muscular approach has raised fears of inflation and other economic fallout in the world's biggest economy. And with questions hanging over the effectiveness of bilateral trade deals already struck -- including by the European Union and Japan -- the outcome of Trump's plan remained uncertain. Trump's new measures in an executive order raised duties on dozens of economies up to a 41 percent rate. Frantic negotiations Most of these new tariff hikes were first announced in April when Trump slapped a minimum 10 percent levy on goods from almost every country in the world, citing unfair trade practices and US deficits. However, Washington then postponed implementation, amid frantic series of negotiations, alongside announcements of new duties and deals with some partners. Just Thursday, Trump announced he was delaying a tariff hike on products from the major US trading partner Mexico. The postponement by 90 days came after talks with his counterpart Claudia Sheinbaum. The 79-year-old Republican has made tariffs core to his protectionist brand of hard-right politics. On Thursday, he claimed that the US economy had "no chance of survival or success" without tariffs. But the latest salvo came amid legal challenges against Trump's use of emergency economic powers. On Thursday, the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit heard arguments in cases brought against Trump's blanket tariffs targeting different countries. And questions linger over the effectiveness of Trump's grand plans, or even whether he will hold firm on his most drastic threats. While Trump has touted a surge in customs revenues since the start of the year, economists warn the duties could fuel inflation. Proponents of his policy argue that their impact will be one-off, but analysts are awaiting further economic data to gauge for more persistent effects. China question mark Among those who managed to strike deals with Washington were Vietnam, Japan, Indonesia, the Philippines, South Korea and the European Union. Britain also reached a pact with the United States, although it was not originally targeted by higher "reciprocal" tariffs. Washington did not finalize a deal with neighboring Canada, but Trump reached agreement with Mexico to maintain an existing 25 percent duty on its products. Canada, however, was slapped with duties of 35 percent in the Trump executive order. An exemption for goods entering the country under a North American trade pact remained in place, according to the White House. But transshipped goods to evade the 35 percent duty would face even higher levels. Canada's trade relations with the United States came under renewed threat after Prime Minister Mark Carney announced plans to recognize a Palestinian state at the UN General Assembly in September. Notably excluded from the latest drama was China, which faces an August 12 deadline instead, when duties could bounce back to higher levels. Washington and Beijing had slapped tit-for-tat tariffs on each other's goods, bringing them to triple-digit levels before both countries reached agreement in May to temporarily lower these duties. The superpowers are now working towards extending their truce.
France 24
2 hours ago
- France 24
Trump imposes 'reciprocal' tariffs on exports from dozens of countries
President Donald Trump on Thursday signed an executive order that set new tariffs on a wide swath of US trading partners to go into effect on Aug. 7 — the next step in his trade agenda that will test the global economy and sturdiness of American alliances built up over decades. The order was issued shortly after 7 p.m. on Thursday evening. It came after a flurry of tariff-related activity in the last several days, as the White House announced agreements with various nations and blocs ahead of the president's self-imposed Friday deadline. The tariffs are being implemented at a later date in order for the rates schedule to be harmonised, according to a senior administration official who spoke to reporters on a call on the condition of anonymity. The order capped off a hectic Thursday as nations sought to continue negotiating with Trump. It set the rates for 68 countries and the 27-member European Union, with a baseline 10% rate to be charged on countries not listed in the order. The senior administration official said the rates were based on trade imbalance with the US and regional economic profiles. On Thursday morning, Trump engaged in a phone conversation with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum on trade. As a result of the conversation, the US president said he would enter into a 90-day negotiating period with Mexico, one of the nation's largest trading partners, with the current 25% tariff rates staying in place, down from the 30% he had threatened earlier. 'We avoided the tariff increase announced for tomorrow and we got 90 days to build a long-term agreement through dialogue,' Mexican leader Claudia Sheinbaum wrote on X after a call with Trump that he referred to as 'very successful' in terms of the leaders getting to know each other better. The unknowns created a sense of drama that has defined Trump's rollout of tariffs over several months, with the one consistency being his desire to levy the import taxes that most economists say will ultimately be borne to some degree by US consumers and businesses. 'We have made a few deals today that are excellent deals for the country,' Trump told reporters on Thursday afternoon without detailing the terms of those agreements or nations involved. The senior administration official declined to reveal the nations that have new deals during the call with reporters. Trump said that Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney had called ahead of 35% tariffs being imposed on many of his nation's goods, but 'we haven't spoken to Canada today.' Trump imposed the Friday deadline after his previous 'Liberation Day' tariffs in April resulted in a stock market panic. His unusually high tariff rates unveiled in April led to recession fears, prompting Trump to impose a 90-day negotiating period. When he was unable to create enough trade deals with other countries, he extended the timeline and sent out letters to world leaders that simply listed rates, prompting a slew of hasty deals. Trump reached a deal with South Korea on Wednesday, and earlier with the European Union, Japan, Indonesia and the Philippines. His commerce secretary, Howard Lutnick, said on Fox News Channel's 'Hannity' that there were agreements with Cambodia and Thailand after they had agreed to a ceasefire to their border conflict. Going into Thursday, wealthy Switzerland and Norway were still uncertain about their tariff rates. EU officials were waiting to complete a crucial document outlining how the framework to tax imported autos and other goods from the 27-member state bloc would operate. Trump had announced a deal Sunday while he was in Scotland. Trump said as part of the agreement with Mexico that goods imported into the US would continue to face a 25% tariff that he has ostensibly linked to fentanyl trafficking. He said autos would face a 25% tariff, while copper, aluminum and steel would be taxed at 50% during the negotiating period. He said Mexico would end its 'Non Tariff Trade Barriers,' but he didn't provide specifics. Some goods continue to be protected from the tariffs by the 2020 US-Mexico-Canada Agreement, or USMCA, which Trump negotiated during his first term. But Trump appeared to have soured on that deal, which is up for renegotiation next year. One of his first significant moves as president was to impose tariffs on goods from both Mexico and Canada earlier this year. US Census Bureau figures show that the US ran a $171.5 billion trade imbalance with Mexico last year. That means the US bought more goods from Mexico than it sold to the country. The imbalance with Mexico has grown in the aftermath of the USMCA, as it was only $63.3 billion in 2016, the year before Trump started his first term in office.
