EU-US Trade Talks Enter New Phase After Trump's Latest Threat
The US-EU tariff talks were thrown another curveball after President Donald Trump warned the bloc would face a 30% rate next month if better terms can't be negotiated. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said the tariff would hit exporters in Europe's largest economy 'to the core' if a negotiated solution can't be found. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen struck a conciliatory tone by extending the suspension of trade countermeasures against the US until Aug. 1 to allow for further negotiations, while continuing to prepare further retaliatory steps. The EU's bazooka anti-coercion instrument won't be used at this point, she said. Meanwhile, the bloc is also preparing to step up its engagement with other countries targeted by Trump's tariff threats, including Japan and Canada, for possible coordination, we've been told. 'Europe has the economic power to make its position heard and to reach an equitable and fair deal,' Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said. So for now, negotiations continue.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
22 minutes ago
- Yahoo
June produces mixed freight trends, recovery remains ‘elusive'
Freight volumes remained pressured in June, but expenditures stepped higher again on a year-over-year comparison. Uncertainty around trade policy continues to cloud shippers' decision making, extending an already prolonged freight downturn, according to a Monday report from Cass Information Systems. Freight shipments captured by the multimodal index fell 2.4% y/y during the month and were off 0.2% from May (with and without a seasonal adjustment). June marked 29 straight months of y/y declines for the dataset. The y/y decline in June was the smallest in seven months. On a two-year-stacked comparison, volumes were down 8.3%. June 2025y/y2-yearm/mm/m (SA)ShipmentsExpendituresTL Linehaul Index Cass' outlook calls for a 5% y/y decline in shipments during July, but noted a recent rise in imports could produce better-than-normal seasonal trends in the month. The report warned that inventory buildup by shippers to get ahead of tariffs will eventually lead to a destocking period, and that 'the effects of tariffs may worsen, as higher goods prices reduce affordability and real incomes.' 'With this outlook, the cycle upturn for the transportation industry remains elusive.' Conversely, Cass' freight expenditures dataset, which measures total freight spend including fuel, increased 2.6% y/y, a third consecutive y/y increase. The index was off 1.2% from May, 2.9% lower when seasonally adjusted. Netting the decline in shipments from the increase in expenditures shows actual freight rates were 5.2% higher y/y during the month. A higher percentage of truckload shipments with a lower mix of less-than-truckload moves drove the change to the inferred rate index. While a mix shift toward TL can be a positive indicator for the freight cycle, the report cautioned it is 'more likely a head-fake related to pre-tariff shipping.' Cass' TL linehaul index, which tracks rates excluding fuel and accessorial surcharges, increased 1.9% y/y, up 0.4% from May. June marked the sixth consecutive y/y increase in linehaul rates. The dataset is forecast to increase slightly this year after 10% and 3.4% declines in 2023 and 2024, respectively. Data used in the indexes comes from freight bills paid by Cass (NASDAQ: CASS), a provider of payment management solutions. Cass processes $36 billion in freight payables annually on behalf of customers. More FreightWaves articles by Todd Maiden: Carrier Logistics automates LTL shipment data entry ArcBest touts results from EV semi pilot Yellow Corp. selling 4 terminals for $4M The post June produces mixed freight trends, recovery remains 'elusive' appeared first on FreightWaves. 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
28 minutes ago
- Yahoo
June inflation expected to show tariff-driven uptick as Trump escalates trade threats
June's Consumer Price Index (CPI) is expected to show prices rose at a faster clip compared to May. The report, due Tuesday at 8:30 a.m. ET, comes as investors closely monitor whether President Trump's tariffs are starting to filter through to what consumers pay, even as inflation data has so far remained more resilient than expected. According to Bloomberg data, headline CPI is expected to have increased 2.6% year over year in June, up from a 2.4% rise in May. On a monthly basis, prices are forecast to climb 0.3%, marking an acceleration from the 0.1% gain the prior month. On a "core" basis, which strips out volatile food and energy prices, the annual inflation rate for June is expected to come in at 2.9%, a slight pickup from May's 2.8%. Core prices are also projected to climb 0.3% month over month, outpacing the previous 0.1% rise seen in May. In May, falling car and apparel prices, categories seen as early indicators of tariff impacts, contributed to a cooler-than-expected core CPI reading. But economists expect those trends to reverse in June, potentially pushing core inflation higher. Read more: How to protect your savings against inflation The report lands amid renewed trade tensions between the US and other countries. President Trump has unveiled new letters to over 20 countries outlining tariffs ranging from 20% to 50%, including a 35% duty on Canadian goods and 30% tariffs on imports from Mexico and the European Union. He has also floated sweeping 15% to 20% tariffs on most trading partners. The EU, in response, is scrambling to negotiate while preparing potential countermeasures. The back-and-forth raises fresh questions about the Federal Reserve's rate-cutting path. Markets still expect the central bank to hold rates steady at its policy meeting in two weeks, largely due to uncertainties on how tariffs will trickle through to prices. "The June CPI report is likely to show inflation beginning to strengthen again, albeit not enough to alarm Fed officials at this juncture," Wells Fargo economist Sarah House wrote in a note. "The next three months will mark a key stretch of inflation data," she added, noting that while inventory front-running has so far limited price hikes, "it will become increasingly difficult for businesses to absorb higher import duties as pre-tariff stockpiles dwindle." Wells Fargo expects core goods prices to continue rising in the second half of the year as those buffers wear off, although House noted the pass-through to consumers may be limited: "Amid a softer labor market and services inflation dissipating a bit more, the pickup in core inflation stemming from tariffs is likely to look more like a bump than a spike." Bank of America economists Stephen Juneau and Jeseo Park also expect core CPI inflation to accelerate, driven by a rebound in used car prices and broad-based hikes likely linked to tariffs. On the services side, they see inflation firming due to rising medical costs, travel-related prices, and stronger shelter price increases. And Goldman Sachs echoed similar concerns, writing, "Going forward, tariffs will likely provide a somewhat larger boost to monthly inflation," while projecting core CPI gains of 0.3% to 0.4% in the coming months. The firm expects a sharp pickup in core goods inflation but sees only limited effects on services. Still, Goldman anticipates inflation pressures to ease later this year as housing and labor market dynamics cool. Allie Canal is a Senior Reporter at Yahoo Finance. Follow her on X @allie_canal, LinkedIn, and email her at 登入存取你的投資組合
CNN
30 minutes ago
- CNN
Analysis: Could Trump convince MAGA to support Ukraine?
President Donald Trump made an announcement Monday aligning him more firmly with Ukraine's defense against Russia's invasion than ever before. The US will send weapons to Ukraine through NATO, the president said during a meeting in the Oval Office with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte. Trump also laid out a new deadline for Russia — threatening trade consequences, including secondary sanctions, if a peace deal isn't reached in 50 days. Even before the weapons announcement, which the president had telegraphed last week, the hawks were celebrating. Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina previewed the announcement Sunday as a 'turning point' and added, 'The game, regarding [Vladimir] Putin's invasion of Russia, is about to change.' Trump's tougher tactic toward Russia – albeit with a 50-day deadline that's much more generous than the 'two weeks' he floated earlier this summer – follows days of him expressing newfound skepticism of Putin's intentions, after years of equivocations and a curiously kid-gloves approach to Russia. But the timing is also far from ideal for Trump, politically speaking. He is already dealing with a backlash from the MAGA base over his administration's botched handling of files related to Jeffrey Epstein. And the base in recent years has steadily moved away from Ukraine. It's too soon to know for sure how this new show of support for Ukraine will play. Will it be like the recent US strikes on Iran, when an initially skeptical MAGA base quickly embraced Trump's move? Or could it be another mark against Trump with his base? It's complicated. It seems quite possible MAGA could again come on board with Trump's approach, in large numbers – as they often have in similar situations. But some of the skepticism of Ukraine is pretty deep-seated. The most recent data show most of the Republican Party base thinks the US government is doing 'too much' to help Ukraine. A March poll from Marquette University Law School showed 59% of Republicans agreed with that sentiment. An earlier poll from Gallup pegged that number at 56%. Only about 1 in 10 Republicans wanted the US to do more. A poll from Reuters and Ipsos around the same time showed Republicans opposed continuing to send weapons and financial aid to Ukraine, 63-34%. A big reason why: Republicans just don't seem to think there is much at stake for the United States in Ukraine. Pew Research Center polling from March showed just 25% of Republican-leaning Americans were 'extremely' or 'very' concerned about Russia defeating Ukraine. Just 29% worried that much about Russia going on to invade other countries. And just 40% regarded Russia as an 'enemy' (down from 69% after Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022). The Reuters poll also showed 58% of Republicans tended to agree with the statement that 'the problems of Ukraine are none of our business, and we should not interfere.' Those numbers suggest most of Trump's base would not be on board with a hard pivot toward Ukraine. But that Reuters poll also hinted at how things could shift. For instance, it showed only 17% of Republicans 'strongly' agreed with the sentiment that Ukraine's problems were none of our business. Just 27% strongly opposed continuing to send weapons and financial aid. So most of those who sided against Ukraine weren't completely firm in their views – and could seemingly adjust them. And the data also point to how that could happen. Trump's argument for turning against Putin is essentially that he's not a reliable negotiator or serious about the president's much-desired peace deal. Trump last week decried the Russian leader's 'bullshit,' saying, 'He's very nice all of the time, but it turns out to be meaningless.' Trump has also criticized Russia's ramped-up offensives in recent days and weeks. Russia hawks and Trump's critics have expressed apoplexy that it took him this long to come to that supposed realization. But it's also an argument – Trump gave Putin a chance, but Putin failed to take advantage of it – that could land on the right. The Pew poll, for instance, showed just 27% of Republicans said Putin was committed to a lasting peace with Ukraine. The Gallup survey also got at this. Nearly half of Republicans (48%) were at least 'somewhat' worried that peace deal would be too favorable to Russia, and 69% worried that Russia would violate the terms of any agreement. In other words, there remains a lingering skepticism of Putin on the right that could come to the fore. Yes, only 40% labeled Russia an 'enemy' in that Pew poll, but we've also seen that number much higher very recently. Republicans' views on the war and on Russia have turned on a dime before — always in the direction Trump guided them. But it's also not clear it would happen to the extent it did with the Iran strikes, when a CNN poll after they were launched showed 8 in 10 Republicans approved of Trump's decision. While many Republicans' views on Ukraine appear soft, Trump's non-interventionist allies have spent years cultivating skepticism of Ukraine and its president, Volodymyr Zelensky, often using disinformation. Remember the backlash to Zelensky's Oval Office meeting in February, when Vice President JD Vance seemed to be baiting the Ukrainian president to create a scene, and MAGA turned sharply against Zelensky. These segments of Trump's base are likely more dug in against helping Ukraine than they were against striking Iran – a situation that sprung up rapidly and also allied the US with Israel. To the extent Trump does land firmly in Ukraine's corner, he'll likely bring most of his base with him. But he'll again be challenging a significant portion of his most ardent supporters to question whether this is what they voted for. Stay tuned.
