Hungarian Foreign Minister on his Country's Agenda and Ukraine's Bid to Join the E.U.
Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó on Hungary's agenda, and Ukraine's bid to join the E.U.
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How Trump Uses Oil As An Economic Weapon In The Ukraine-Russia War
One of U.S. President Donald Trump's foremost campaign promises was to end the war between Russia and Ukraine. It's now August, the eighth month of the administration, and the war rages on. It appears that the administration has chosen the field on which it wishes to fight this battle, it's in China and India. Early in the conflict, the Biden Administration placed sanctions on Russia's oil. According to the Center for Research on Energy and Clean Air, these sanctions were largely ineffective, as the oil was simply redirected to China, India, and Turkey. If that wasn't bad enough, Turkey's Ceyhan port then took those Russian oil products and sent them to the EU. At the end of 2022, the G7 chose to impose a $60 price cap on Russian oil. According to the U.S. Treasury, the purpose of the price cap was to restrict the price Russians could fetch for their oil without removing those barrels from the market. This would reduce Russia's profits while still maintaining oil flows and preventing a price shock. The response from China and India to the oil price cap was to purchase even more discounted oil from Russia. In May 2023, the Institute for Energy Research reported record purchases of oil by the two nations, a total of 110 million barrels for the month, which was up 10% from the prior month. China and India, being heavily dependent on oil imports and ranking first and third respectively, will seize any opportunity to purchase cheap oil in the market. Prior to Trump entering the White House, the Biden administration did make some efforts to discourage these countries from the continued purchases of the discounted oil. There was a renewed threat of sanctions coupled with offers to assist India in finding alternative sources, but these attempts never panned out. The sanctions on Russian oil, combined with the price caps, were not a failure, they just did not bring about an end to the conflict. Although sanctions on Russian oil did not end the war in Ukraine, the impact was felt throughout the country as oil revenues declined by 50% year over year, according to Bruegel, a think tank specializing in economic policy research. This significant revenue decline brought about cuts to social services like healthcare and education, in addition, public pensions were frozen, and inflation rose to 12%. This strain on social services has caused protests to break out around the country, most notably in 2024. How President Donald Trump Is Changing Oil Markets Donald Trump took office in January 2025, and by his third day in office, he was asking the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries to increase oil production. Most of the overt reasoning around this was about lowering gas prices and decreasing U.S. inflation. The secondary result was placing even more pressure on Russia. Trump threatened 100% tariffs on China on August 1 if the Chinese did not stop purchasing Russian oil. Then the U.S. president threatened India, via a Truth Social post, with more tariffs if India didn't follow suit as well. This is all possible because OPEC has just announced another production increase of 574,000 barrels of oil a day, which brings the total OPEC increase to 2.2 million barrels a day from the start. There is a myriad of ways all of this can play out, and none of them are good for most American consumers. We have now entered a phase of this negotiation where Trump's efforts to strong-arm Chinese and Indian leaders into redirecting their oil import flows could significantly impact the U.S. economy and U.S. consumers. Economists may debate the actual impact of these tariffs on the consumer, but there is no doubt it will be felt, it is only the degree and severity of it still in question. Much like in the Middle East in previous decades, oil markets now play a pivotal role in global military conflicts and their prospective resolution.
Yahoo
33 minutes ago
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White House keeps tariff pressure on EU car industry
US President Donald Trump doesn't appear willing to ease the pressure on German carmakers. The US executive order on reciprocal tariffs published just before 1 August stopped short of applying the 15% tariffs agreed by Trump and Commission president Ursula von der Leyen to US imports of EU vehicles. Since 2 April, EU cars have been hit with 25% US tariffs under the section 232 of the US Trade Expansion Act, which allows the US president to restrict imports of goods threatening US national security. The deal concluded last Sunday with President Ursula von der Leyen was meant to apply the 15% tariffs to EU cars, and to exempt certain strategic products such as aircraft from tariffs, but neither proviso appears in the executive order. The executive order imposes a blanket 15% tariff on EU goods to apply from 8 August. Goods already in transit before that date will enjoy the previous tariff rate of 10% until 5 October, the US order says. Any attempt to circumvent these tariffs will be penalized with a 40% duty on the goods concerned, the order adds. Despite the apparent omissions from the order, EU Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič welcomed 'the first results of the EU–US deal". 'This reinforces stability for businesses as well as trust in the transatlantic economy,' he said on X, adding: 'EU exporters now benefit from a more competitive position.' Šefčovič also said, however, that 'the work continues', referring to ongoing negotiations on a joint statement intended to formalise the political trade agreement reached on July 27. Diverging narratives The Commission and the US administration are struggling to agree on a joint text, and up to now have pushed diverging narratives on the deal. Uncertainty remains over the fate of steel and aluminium, currently hit by 50% US tariffs, which, according to the Commission, are expected to soon be subject to lower tariff-rate quotas. Negotiations are also ongoing over a series of exemptions, as pressure mounts from the EU wine and spirits industry. In a factsheet published on Monday, the US also claimed that the EU committed not to apply telecommunications network usage fees in an upcoming Digital Network Act, which is currently being disputed between EU telecom companies and US tech giants in Brussels. On Thursday the Commission noted that a white paper on digital networks published in February 2024 assessed that imposing a network fee was 'not a viable solution'. 'Such an exemption would not apply to US company only,' a Commission spokesperson said. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
33 minutes ago
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EU Commission 'surprised' by German finance minister's jibe on trade deal
The European Commission said on Tuesday it was surprised by comments German Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil in which he highlighted the EU's weakness in the ongoing tariff talks, despite Germany having been fully briefed ahead of the agreement reached on July 27 by Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and US President Donald Trump. 'It is most surprising to us,' Commission spokesperson Olof Gill said, adding: 'Nothing has happened here in terms of the Commission's approach, negotiation or outcome achieved without the clear signal received from our member states.' Klingbeil said on Monday, ahead of his meeting with US Treasury Secretary Scott Besant in Washington DC, that EU representatives 'have shown weakness' during trade negotiations with the US. 'Overall, as Europeans, we must become stronger," Klingbeil insisted, "then we can also stand up to the US with more self-confidence. Not against the US, but in dialogue with the US.' Germany 'had been fully briefed on the details of the agreement at a political level', Commission Deputy Spokesperson Arianna Podestà added on Tuesday. Negotiations continue Since the announcement of the EU-US tariff agreement on July 27, the Commission has maintained that the deal represents the least bad option, allowing the EU to avoid a further escalation in the transatlantic trade dispute. However, the details of the agreement are still under negotiation, just days after a US Executive Order set tariffs at 15%. Germany, in particular, continues to see its automotive industry heavily impacted by 25% US tariffs — contrary to the political deal, which aimed to reduce them to 15%. Negotiations also continue on which products may be eligible for exemptions. 'We fight for every product and every industry,' a senior EU official said, adding: 'We're really trying to get as many products into the list of exemptions.' A joint EU-US statement is expected to be released soon, aiming to reinforce the political commitments made on both sides of the Atlantic. Under the current framework, the US has agreed to apply a 15% tariff on EU goods, while the EU has committed to purchasing US energy and investing in the United States. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
