logo
Manchester United make improved bid worth up to $94 million for Mbeumo

Manchester United make improved bid worth up to $94 million for Mbeumo

Qatar Tribune17-07-2025
PA Media/dpa
London
Manchester United have made an improved bid worth up to £70 million ($94 million) for Brentford forward Bryan Mbeumo, the PA news agency understands.
The 25-year-old has been a key target for Ruben Amorim's Red Devils, who made a first approach of £45 million plus £10 million in potential add-ons six weeks ago.
United followed that up with an improved proposal exceeding £60 million a few weeks later but talks stalled as Brentford held on for a greater fee for Mbeumo.
The Old Trafford club have now made a new offer that PA understands to be worth £65 million plus an additional £5 million in potential add-ons as they attempt to sign the player before their pre-season tour.
Amorim's men head to the United States on Tuesday and have so far only signed Brazil international Matheus Cunha from Wolves for a fee of £62.5 million. Mbeumo joined Brentford from Troyes in 2019 and has a year left on his deal, albeit there is an option to extend by a further year.
Tottenham Hotspur, managed by former Bees boss Thomas Frank, have shown interest but the Cameroon international is understood to have expressed a desire to move to Old Trafford.
United are looking to rebuild after slumping home 15th last season and losing the Europa League final to Tottenham, meaning they missed out on Champions League qualification and European football entirely.
Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho, Alejandro Garnacho, Antony and Tyrell Malacia are searching for new homes.
Christian Eriksen and Victor Lindelof have left on free transfers, while Jonny Evans has retired.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Fact check: Did US go from ice cream trade surplus to deficit under Biden?
Fact check: Did US go from ice cream trade surplus to deficit under Biden?

Al Jazeera

time5 hours ago

  • Al Jazeera

Fact check: Did US go from ice cream trade surplus to deficit under Biden?

President Donald Trump's administration dished out a cold burn to Trump's ice-cream-loving predecessor, Joe Biden, saying he led the US ice cream industry down an economic rocky road. 'America had a trade surplus in ice cream in 2020 under President Trump's leadership, but that surplus turned into a trade deficit of $40.6 million under President Biden's watch,' the Office of the US Trade Representative wrote July 20 on X. The post included a chart that shows the US ice cream trade deficit with Japan, South Africa, the European Union, Brazil, Canada and Turkiye. The US ice cream trade balance did change dramatically in 2021, the year Biden took office. The trade balance officially flipped negative – which means imports outnumber exports – in 2022 and has remained so since then. But industry experts caution that US ice cream imports account for a minuscule fraction of all the US ice cream consumed in the US, and exports account for a tiny fraction of all US ice cream produced. The trade change was driven mostly by a jump in imports. Exports have remained largely unchanged since 2020. And the cherry on top? Disagreement over which products to classify as 'ice cream' also affects data, experts say. For example, the data referenced by the office of the US Trade Representative also includes 'edible ice', which some experts (and dairy defenders) say doesn't qualify as ice cream. Removing edible ice shows that 'the US is a net exporter by a significant margin of ($193 million) or +85% larger by value,' International Dairy Foods Association Executive Vice President Matt Herrick told PolitiFact via email. Ice cream imports increase causes US trade deficit From 1995 to 2020, the US had an ice cream trade surplus, ranging from about $20m to about $160m, according to the Observatory of Economic Complexity, an online economic data platform. Longtime customers include Mexico, followed by Saudi Arabia and Canada. In 2021, that surplus nearly vanished, and in 2022 and 2023, the US notched up an ice cream trade deficit of $92m and $33m, respectively. At first glance, importing frozen foods doesn't seem practical. 'Shipping refrigerated and frozen products overseas is expensive,' dairy economist Betty Berningat of HighGround Dairy said. 'Mexico is the top destination for US dairy exports.' But many US and European companies have tapped into global markets. 'Consumers may also want a specific treat that is styled after or known to be from another country,' Herrick said. Italy, the birthplace of gelato, is now the United States' largest single source of imported ice cream. Italian ice cream imports more than quintupled from about $12m to almost $65m between 2020 and 2021 alone, before decreasing somewhat in 2023, the last year for which data is available. Some of this stems from increased consumer demand for specialty pints. A report by Mordor Intelligence, a global market research firm, said 'product innovation and premiumisation' have become key in the US ice cream industry. 'This trend is particularly evident in the growth of premium pint offerings and individually wrapped novelties that cater to both indulgence and portion control preferences,' the report said. The US produces far more ice cream than it imports or exports To get to the pint: The vast majority of ice cream consumed in the United States is made there, not overseas. The Trump administration is cherry-picking stats from a fraction of a sliver of the US ice cream industry. According to US Agriculture Department data, US ice cream makers churned out 1.31 billion gallons of ice cream in 2024. This includes regular ice cream, low-fat and nonfat ice cream, sherbet and frozen yoghurt. By comparison, the US imported 2.35 million gallons of traditional ice cream in 2024 – that's 0.18 percent of the amount produced domestically, Herrick said. The US exported 16.4 million gallons of that domestic production, which is also a tiny fraction of 1.31 billion gallons of ice cream – a little more than 1 percent. Factoring in ice cream mixes, excluding 'edible ice' products Another caveat about the international trade data: It does not include 'mixes', which skews the totals, said Herrick of the International Dairy Foods Association. Mixes are used to make ice cream shakes and soft-serve products, and they account for a significant portion of US ice cream exports. 'Inclusion of such data points would change the picture quite significantly,' said Herrick. 'While it is true that traditional ice cream and edible ice exports have seen decreased exports, the same cannot be said for exports of mixes.' US milk-based drink exports increased 621 percent over the past five years, he said. In 2024, the US exported nearly $35m in mixes to the European Union. Americans and dairy-based ice cream: A centuries-old love affair melting away? The White House has churned out plenty of ice cream devotees. George Washington stocked the capital with ice cream-making equipment. Thomas Jefferson is credited as being the first American to record an ice cream recipe. Ronald Reagan declared July National Ice Cream Month in 1984. Barack Obama even slung scoops back in the day. Biden, who was often sighted with a cone in hand, proclaimed while visiting Jeni's Splendid Ice Cream headquarters in 2016: 'My name is Joe Biden, and I love ice cream.' But consumption of regular dairy ice cream – a category that does not include frozen yoghurt, sherbet or nonfat and low-fat ice creams – has been trending down for years. In 1975, Americans ate an average of 18.2 pounds each of ice cream per year. That figure fell to 11.7 pounds by 2023. Our ruling The office of the US Trade Representative purported a summertime scoop: 'America had a trade surplus in ice cream in 2020 under President Trump's leadership, but that surplus turned into a trade deficit of $40.6 million under President Biden's watch.' It's accurate that the US ice cream trade balance had a surplus for a quarter of a century before turning negative while Biden was president. But the US Trade Representative's statement makes the US ice cream deficit appear out of cone-trol. There are three scoops of context on this trade sundae: The change was driven mostly by a jump in imports. Exports have remained largely unchanged since 2020. US ice cream imports and exports are a negligible amount compared to domestic production. There's also disagreement over which products should or shouldn't be included in the data set, which can skew trend interpretations. Excluding edible ice products and factoring in ice cream mixes leaves the US with a surplus. The statement is accurate but needs a sprinkling of clarification and additional details, so we rate it Mostly True. Louis Jacobson contributed to this report.

Iran reaffirms right to enrich uranium ahead of key talks in Turkiye
Iran reaffirms right to enrich uranium ahead of key talks in Turkiye

Al Jazeera

time17 hours ago

  • Al Jazeera

Iran reaffirms right to enrich uranium ahead of key talks in Turkiye

Iran has reaffirmed its right to enrich uranium on the eve of a key meeting with European powers threatening to reimpose nuclear sanctions. Friday's meeting, set to take place in Istanbul, will bring Iranian officials together with officials from Britain, France and Germany – known as the E3 nations – and will include the European Union's foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas. It will be the first since Israel's mid-June attack targeting key Iranian nuclear and military sites led to a 12-day war that ended in a ceasefire on June 24. 'Especially after the recent war, it is important for them [European countries] to understand that the Islamic Republic of Iran's position remains unshakable, and that our uranium enrichment will continue,' the Tasnim news agency quoted Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi as saying on Thursday. The United States joined its ally Israel in the offensive, striking three Iranian nuclear facilities overnight between June 21 and 22. Israel launched its attack on Iran just two days before Tehran and Washington were set to resume negotiations on Iran's nuclear programme. Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said on Thursday that Tehran would be prepared to engage in further talks on its nuclear programme with the US if Washington takes meaningful steps to rebuild trust. In a social media post, Gharibabadi also said that for talks to take place with the US, Tehran would seek 'several key principles' to be upheld. These include 'rebuilding Iran's trust – as Iran has absolutely no trust in the United States', he said, adding there could be no room 'for hidden agendas such as military action, though Iran remains fully prepared for any scenario'. Britain, France and Germany – alongside China, Russia and the US – are parties to a 2015 nuclear deal with Iran, which placed major restrictions on its atomic activities in return for the gradual lifting of United Nations sanctions. However, in 2018, the US unilaterally withdrew from the agreement during Donald Trump's first term as president and reimposed its own sanctions. Britain, France and Germany maintained their support for the 2015 accord and sought to continue trade with Iran. But they have since accused Tehran of failing to uphold its commitments and are threatening to reimpose sanctions under a clause in the agreement that expires in October – something Iran is eager to avoid. The IAEA, the UN's nuclear watchdog, says Iran is the only non-nuclear-armed country currently enriching uranium to 60 percent – far beyond the 3.67 percent cap set by the 2015 accord. Ninety percent enrichment is required for a nuclear weapon. Western powers, led by the US and backed by Israel, have long accused Tehran of secretly seeking nuclear weapons. Iran has repeatedly denied this, insisting its nuclear programme is solely for civilian purposes such as energy production. Tehran and Washington had held five rounds of nuclear talks starting in April, but a planned meeting on June 15 was cancelled after Israel launched its strikes on Iran.

European stocks hit 6-week highs
European stocks hit 6-week highs

Qatar Tribune

time18 hours ago

  • Qatar Tribune

European stocks hit 6-week highs

QNA Brussels European stocks rose to a six-week high on Thursday, amid optimism about a possible EU-US trade agreement, while investors awaited the European Central Bank's rate decision later. The pan-European STOXX 600 index rose 0.6 percent in morning trading, reaching its highest level since June 11. Germany's DAX index jumped 0.9 percent, while UK's FTSE 100 index rose 0.6 percent to reach an all-time high, extending its gains for the sixth consecutive session. Bank stocks led the gains among European sectors, rising 2.3 percent, supported by gains at Deutsche Bank and BNP Paribas. German Deutsche Bank shares climbed 4.4 percent after reporting better-than-expected second-quarter profit. French bank BNP Paribas gained 1.9 percent after reporting a smaller-than-expected decline in second-quarter profit. Shares of Swiss drugmaker Roche advanced 2 percent, giving the STOXX 600 a boost after the company reported better-than-expected first-half operating profit. Conversely, shares of Swiss consumer goods giant Nestlé fell 4.5 percent after it announced first-half results and a strategic review of its business. Interest rate futures markets reflected this shift in sentiment, with traders scaling back bets on a September rate cut. The yield on the 2-year German bond also spiked, and weighed on equity markets. At 2 percent, rates remain squarely to the middle of the ECB's 1.5 percent to 2.5 percent neutral range,' said Marchel Alexandrovich, an economist at Saltmarsh Economics. The central bank's cautious stance comes as eurozone inflation has returned to the ECB's 2% target alongside signs of economic resilience. Advertisement · Scroll to continue

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store