Japan's Kato Says Domestic Reform the Best Way to Fix Imbalances
'Japan said that tariffs aren't really the right tool to fix excessive current accounts imbalances,' Kato told reporters Thursday. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent did not attend the gathering.
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Yahoo
34 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. Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
40 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Key takeaways from the EU-US trade deal
EU head Ursula von der Leyen and US President Donald Trump on Sunday struck a deal on tariffs, just days before the August 1 deadline when Trump had threatened to impose steep levies on European goods had an agreement not been reached. These are the key takeaways from the deal: EU chief Ursula von der Leyen clinched an agreement Sunday with US President Donald Trump to avoid crippling tariffs from hitting the bloc, with both leaders hailing a 'good deal'. The stakes were high with a looming August 1 deadline and $1.9 trillion transatlantic trading relationship on the line. Many European businesses will breathe a sigh of relief after the leaders agreed the 27-country bloc will face a baseline levy of 15 percent instead of a threatened 30 percent – but the deal will not satisfy everyone. Here is what we know so far: What did EU, US agree on? Both sides confirmed there will be a 15-percent across-the-board rate on a majority of EU goods – the same level secured by Japan this month – with bilateral tariff exemptions on some products. Read moreTrump announces 'massive' trade deal with Japan, 15 percent tariff on exports The deal will bring relief for the bloc's auto sector, employing around 13 million people – and hit by Trump with 25-percent tariffs, on top of a pre-existing 2.5 percent. 'Obviously, it is good news for the car industry. So Germany will be happy. And all the EU members with auto supply chains, they go from 27.5 to 15 percent,' said Jacob Funk Kirkegaard of the Peterson Institute For International Economics. A 15-percent levy will remain 'costly' for German automakers, 'but it is manageable', said trade geopolitics expert Elvire Fabry at the Jacques Delors Institute. While 15 percent is much higher than pre-existing US tariffs on European goods – averaging 4.8 percent – it mirrors the status quo, with companies currently facing an additional flat rate of 10 percent imposed by Trump since April. The EU also committed to buy $750 billion of liquefied natural gas, oil and nuclear fuels from the United States – split equally over three years – to replace Russian energy sources. And it will pour $600 billion more in additional investments in the United States. Trump said EU countries – which recently pledged to ramp up their defence spending within NATO – would be purchasing 'hundreds of billions of dollars' worth of military equipment'. Are there exemptions? Von der Leyen said the 15-percent rate applied across most sectors, including semiconductors and pharmaceuticals – a critical export for Ireland, which the bloc has sought to protect. Trump in April launched probes that could lead to significantly steeper tariffs on the two key sectors, warning this month he could slap 200-percent levies on drugs. Brussels and Washington agreed a bilateral tariff exemption for key goods including aircraft, certain chemicals, semiconductor equipment, certain agricultural products and critical raw materials, von der Leyen said. The EU currently faces 50-percent tariffs on its steel exports to the United States, but von der Leyen said a compromise on the metal had been reached with Trump. 'Between us, tariffs will be cut and a quota system will be put in place,' she said. It is understood that European steel would be hit with 50-percent levies only after a certain amount of the metal arrived in the United States, but no details were initially provided on the mechanism. What happens next? The deal needs to be approved by EU member states, whose ambassadors will meet first thing Monday morning for a debrief from the European Commission. And there are still technical talks to come, since the agreement needs to be fully fleshed out. Von der Leyen described the deal as a 'framework' agreement. 'Details have to be sorted out, and that will happen over the next weeks,' she said. In particular, she said there has yet to be a final decision on alcohol, critical since France and The Netherlands have been pushing for carve-outs for wine and beer respectively. 'This is something which has to be sorted out in the next days,' von der Leyen said. (FRANCE 24 with AFP)
Bloomberg
an hour ago
- Bloomberg
Europeans, Not Trump, Ended Up Chickening Out
Donald Trump's world tour of arm-twisting on trade has landed its latest deal: A 15% baseline tariff on European Union goods, lowered from the recently threatened 30%, in return for an apparent smorgasbord of continental investments into the US and huge purchases of energy and military equipment. Japan sealed a similar deal last week while pushing back on some extravagant Trumpian claims. 'It was the best we could get,' European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said. Many will agree with her. The US is the EU's biggest trade partner and a dominant defense and technology supplier – a spiral of tit-for-tat tariffs is something Europeans simply can't afford, as LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE boss Bernard Arnault said last week. Sealing the deal before the Aug. 1 deadline at a level big companies say they find 'manageable' is market positive, lifting the tariff fog and avoiding a worst-case scenario drag on euro zone gross domestic product of 1.2%, according to Barclays Plc. From German autos to French aerospace, transatlantic trade is looking a little less stuck.
