Latest news with #Elisabeth Svantesson
South China Morning Post
2 days ago
- Business
- South China Morning Post
China and the US wanted Sweden to host their next round of trade talks – why?
Chinese and American negotiators will gather in Stockholm for a much-anticipated third round of trade talks on Monday, putting the Swedish capital in the spotlight and prompting questions as to why the Scandinavian country was the venue of choice for the world's two biggest economies. It began at a meeting of finance chiefs from the Group of 20 countries in South Africa earlier this month, where Sweden had been invited for the first time. Both China and the US approached the delegation from Stockholm about holding the talks in the capital, said Swedish Finance Minister Elisabeth Svantesson in a July 22 social media post. 'That the world's largest economies turn to us shows that Sweden enjoys great international trust – and that we play an important role in fostering dialogue and cooperation.' Hosting US-China trade negotiations in third countries is a marked change from the dialogues that put a temporary freeze on the bilateral trade war during the first term of US President Donald Trump. Those talks were principally held in Washington, with then-Vice-Premier Liu He making regular visits to the White House. Now, neutral territory has been selected in Europe – Geneva in May, London in June and Stockholm for the coming negotiations – suggesting a more level playing field between the two economies, according to Niklas Swanstrom, director of the Institute for Security and Development Policy in Stockholm.
Reuters
18-07-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Germany, Netherlands, Sweden oppose EU common borrowing
DURBAN, South Africa, July 18 (Reuters) - Germany, the Netherlands and Sweden oppose European Union joint borrowing despite mounting global challenges, while Denmark is sceptical, finance ministers from those countries said on the sidelines of a G20 meeting in Durban, South Africa. Dutch Finance Minister Eelco Heinen said that a 2 trillion euro ($2.31 trillion) EU budget for 2028 to 2034 proposed on Wednesday by the European Commission was way too large and was "dead on arrival". "I'm not in favour of joint borrowing. The Netherlands has never been and will continue on that path," he told Reuters. Some members of the 27-country bloc argue that joint debt could help fund the massive EU-wide spending plans that the Commission is seeking, allowing cheap borrowing. Common borrowing was first used by the EU to help countries pay for the recovery from the coronavirus pandemic. But then, as now, countries such as the Netherlands, Germany and the Nordics resented having to pay for poorer southern countries that they see as lacking fiscal discipline. Swedish Finance Minister Elisabeth Svantesson said the joint debt to deal with the pandemic was exceptional. "For us and for the whole parliament, from left to right, it was that we did that once. And that was not to be repeated," she told Reuters. Danish Minister of Economic Affairs Stephanie Lose said joint borrowing was sometimes presented as being the answer to all problems, but that it was important to remember the money would have to be repaid. German Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil told Reuters on Thursday that the EU had joint debt in what was a crisis situation but this was not appropriate for resolving the bloc's finances. "Fortunately, we are not in such a crisis right now," he said. The 27 nations agreed in 2020 to jointly borrow 800 billion euros for the Next Generation EU programme, the bloc's pandemic recovery plan. Heinen agreed that fund was a one-off, adding, "never again". "When that fund was being set up, the Netherlands already said, be careful, because one day that bill will be presented, and that's the moment we're in right now." ($1 = 0.8589 euros)
Yahoo
17-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Nordic Finance Heads Urge EU to Stand Firm in US Trade Talks
(Bloomberg) -- Scandinavian finance chiefs said the European Union needs to stand firm in its tariff talks with the US as the bloc seeks to end the costly uncertainty triggered by the protracted trade talks. The Dutch Intersection Is Coming to Save Your Life Advocates Fear US Agents Are Using 'Wellness Checks' on Children as a Prelude to Arrests LA Homelessness Drops for Second Year Manhattan, Chicago Murder Rates Drop in 2025, Officials Say The EU should act swiftly and remain open to using all available tools as it approaches the negotiation deadline, Swedish Finance Minister Elisabeth Svantesson said. 'We shouldn't rule out any options, but we need to be tough,' Svantesson told Bloomberg Television in an interview on Thursday. 'We have to be quite frank, quite quick now, to reach a deal because we have waited so long.' The US has set a deadline of August 1 after which it has said tariffs of 30% will be imposed on EU goods triggering a scramble by the bloc's leaders to strike a better deal before that date. EU Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic has expressed frustration at the US administration for its move as Brussels believed it was very close to an agreement before the latest salvo. The Nordic nations have had the least favorable view of the US in western Europe after Donald Trump got re-elected as the president, according to public opinion polls. A growing number of EU member states want to trigger its most powerful trade tool, the so-called anti-coercion instrument, against the US should the two sides fail to reach an agreement, Bloomberg reported on Wednesday. The US has resisted lowering agricultural tariffs, exemptions for cars and wine. While it's important the EU remains constructive in the trade talks and seeks to find solutions, the bloc should be firm that it is ready to defend its own interests, Denmark's Minister for Economic Affairs Stephanie Lose said in a separate interview on Thursday. 'The European Union will not stand up for everything,' Lose said. 'We will of course be ready to take the necessary countermeasures.' She added it's still too early to say what such measures might look like. The EU has already prepared a list of countermeasures to target US goods worth €72 billion ($84 billion), including Boeing Co. aircraft, automobiles and bourbon if it decides to retaliate against Trump's tariff policy. How Starbucks' CEO Plans to Tame the Rush-Hour Free-for-All Forget DOGE. Musk Is Suddenly All In on AI How Hims Became the King of Knockoff Weight-Loss Drugs The Quest for a Hangover-Free Buzz What the Tough Job Market for New College Grads Says About the Economy ©2025 Bloomberg L.P. 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
