Latest news with #Ursula von der Leyen
BreakingNews.ie
16 hours ago
- Business
- BreakingNews.ie
Ireland wants EU-US trade deal as soon as possible
Ireland wants to see a trade deal between the European Union and the US agreed as soon as possible, Europe Minister Thomas Byrne has said. Mr Byrne is to take part in a meeting of the Foreign Affairs Council on Trade in Brussels on Monday. Advertisement It comes after Donald Trump threatened that the EU and Mexico will face a 30 per cent tariff on imports to the US from August. The US president warned he would impose even higher import taxes if either of the US trading partners decided to retaliate. European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen has responded by stating the EU prefers a negotiated solution on trade with the United States and that the bloc would extend its suspension of countermeasures to US tariffs until early August. Commissioner for Trade and Economic Security Maros Sefcovic will update ministers in Brussels on the negotiations. Advertisement Mr Byrne said: 'We want to see a deal between the EU and the US agreed as soon as possible, including if possible, in advance of the 1 August deadline. 'The Irish Government strongly supports the efforts of Trade Commissioner Sefcovic. 'We remain cautiously optimistic about reaching agreement in principle on a framework agreement in the coming days.' Other items on the agenda at the summit include a discussion on ongoing bilateral trade negotiations and EU-China trade relations. Advertisement Mr Byrne said: 'Now, more than ever, we need to expand our trade and diversify our markets. 'An ambitious trade agenda, with new partners around the globe, is in our overall interests. 'But in pursuing this agenda, we must maintain EU standards on food safety, animal and plant health, as well as remain faithful to our European values of supporting better environmental and human rights standards around the world.'
Zawya
16 hours ago
- Business
- Zawya
Euro slips after Trump threatens 30% tariffs on EU
SINGAPORE: The euro fell to a three-week low early on Monday while the Mexican peso also came under pressure after U.S. President Donald Trump threatened to impose a 30% tariff on imports from two of the largest U.S. trading partners beginning August 1. Trump on Saturday announced the latest tariffs in separate letters to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum that were posted on his Truth Social media site. Both the European Union and Mexico described the tariffs as unfair and disruptive, while the EU said it would extend its suspension of countermeasures to U.S. tariffs until early August and continue to press for a negotiated settlement. Reaction in the currency market to Trump's latest tariff threats was largely muted in Asian trade, though the euro did slip to a roughly three-week low early in the session. The single currency later regained some ground and last traded 0.12% lower at $1.1679. Against the Mexican peso, the dollar rose 0.25% to 18.6699. Elsewhere, however, the dollar made limited gains, with sterling down just 0.07% at $1.3481, while the Japanese yen rose 0.1% to 147.28 per dollar. Investors have grown increasingly desensitised to Trump's slew of tariff threats, with his latest upheaval in the global trade landscape doing little to prevent U.S. stocks from scaling record highs and offering just a slight boost to the dollar. "It seems like financial markets have become insensitive to President Trump's tariff threats now, after so many of them in the past few months," said Carol Kong, a currency strategist at Commonwealth Bank of Australia. "Judging by the limited market reaction, markets might think that the latest threat from Trump is actually a manoeuvre to extract more concessions." In other currencies, the Australian dollar fell 0.14% to $0.6565, while the New Zealand dollar slid 0.4% to $0.5984. Outside of tariff news, Trump on Sunday said that it would be a "great thing" if Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell stepped down, again threatening to undermine the central bank's independence as he called for interest rates to be lowered. Traders could get a better clue on the future path for U.S. rates when inflation data for June comes due on Tuesday, where expectations are for U.S. consumer prices to have picked up slightly last month. Markets are currently pricing in just over 50 basis points worth of Fed easing by December. In Asia, data on Monday showed China's exports regained momentum in June while imports rebounded, as exporters rushed out shipments to capitalise on a fragile tariff truce between Beijing and Washington ahead Trump's August deal deadline. Still, the figures did little to move the yuan, with the onshore unit little changed at 7.1704 per dollar. Its offshore counterpart edged up slightly to 7.1713 per dollar. Investors will be eyeing the release of Chinese gross domestic product figures on Tuesday next for greater clarity on the health of the world's second-largest economy. Growth in China is widely expected to have slowed down in the second quarter from a solid start to the year as trade tension with the United States added to deflationary pressure. (Reporting by Rae Wee; Editing by Lincoln Feast and Christopher Cushing)
Al Jazeera
18 hours ago
- Business
- Al Jazeera
EU delays retaliatory tariffs against US amid hopes for trade deal
The European Union has delayed retaliatory tariffs on exports from the United States as officials scramble to reach a trade deal with Washington ahead of US President Donald Trump's August 1 deadline. Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission, said on Sunday that the bloc would extend its suspension of countermeasures as it continued negotiations with the Trump administration. 'At the same time, we will continue to prepare for the countermeasures, so we're fully prepared,' von der Leyen said during a news conference in Brussels. 'We have always been very clear that we prefer a negotiated solution,' she added. 'This remains the case, and we will use the time that we have now until the 1st of August.' The EU's announcement comes after Trump on Saturday unveiled plans to slap a 30 percent tariff on European and Mexican exports from August 1. The EU in March announced retaliatory tariffs on 26 billion euros ($30bn) of US exports in response to Trump's duties on steel and aluminium. The bloc paused the measures for 90 days the following month after Trump announced he would delay the implementation of his so-called 'reciprocal tariffs'. The EU's pause had been due to expire at midnight on Monday. EU trade ministers are scheduled to convene in Brussels on Monday to discuss options for responding to Trump's latest tariff threats. On Sunday, White House Economic Adviser Kevin Hassett said that Trump was not happy with the 'sketches of deals' presented by US trade partners and that their offers 'need to be better'. 'These tariffs are real if the president doesn't get a deal that he thinks is good enough, but, you know, conversations are ongoing, and we'll see where the dust settles,' Hassett told ABC News's This Week. Taken together, EU member countries are the US's largest trading partner. US-EU trade in goods and services amounted to 1.7 trillion euros ($2 trillion) in 2024, according to EU statistics agency Eurostat.
Reuters
a day ago
- Business
- Reuters
Euro eases after Trump threatens 30% tariffs on EU
SINGAPORE, July 14 (Reuters) - The euro fell to a three-week low on Monday while the Mexican peso also came under pressure after President Donald Trump threatened to impose a 30% tariff on imports from two of the largest U.S. trading partners beginning August 1. Trump on Saturday announced the latest tariffs in separate letters to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum that were posted on his Truth Social media site. Both the European Union and Mexico described the tariffs unfair and disruptive, while the E.U. said it would extend its suspension of countermeasures to U.S. tariffs until early August and continue to press for a negotiated settlement. Reaction in the currency market to Trump's latest tariff threats was largely muted in the early Asian session, though the euro did slip to a roughly three-week low and last traded 0.15% lower at $1.1675. Against the Mexican peso , the dollar rose 0.2% to 18.6630. Elsewhere, however, the dollar made limited gains, with sterling down just 0.04% to $1.3485, while the Japanese yen rose 0.1% to 147.27 per dollar. Investors have grown increasingly desensitised to Trump's slew of tariff threats, with his latest upheaval in the global trade landscape doing little to prevent U.S. stocks from scaling record highs and offering just a slight boost to the dollar. "It is hard to say whether the muted market response over the week is best characterised by resilience or complacency," said Taylor Nugent, senior economist at National Australia Bank. "But it is difficult to price the array of headlines purportedly defining where tariffs will sit from August 1 when negotiations are ongoing and the key substantive development recently is that the earlier July 9 reciprocal tariff deadline came and went without an increase in tariff rates." In other currencies, the Australian dollar ticked up 0.02% to $0.6575, while the New Zealand dollar fell 0.07% to $0.6004. Outside of tariff news, Trump on Sunday said that it would be a great thing if Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell stepped down, again threatening to undermine the central bank's independence as he calls for interest rates to be lowered. Traders could get a better clue on the future path for U.S. rates when inflation data for June comes due on Tuesday, where expectations are for U.S. consumer prices to have picked up slightly last month. Markets are currently pricing in just over 50 basis points worth of Fed easing by December. Also on investors' radars will be the release of Chinese gross domestic product figures similarly out on Tuesday. The world's second-largest economy is expected to have slowed down in the second quarter from a solid start to the year as trade tensions with the United States added to deflationary pressures.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Euro eases after Trump threatens 30% tariffs on EU
By Rae Wee SINGAPORE (Reuters) -The euro fell to a three-week low on Monday while the Mexican peso also came under pressure after President Donald Trump threatened to impose a 30% tariff on imports from two of the largest U.S. trading partners beginning August 1. Trump on Saturday announced the latest tariffs in separate letters to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum that were posted on his Truth Social media site. Both the European Union and Mexico described the tariffs unfair and disruptive, while the E.U. said it would extend its suspension of countermeasures to U.S. tariffs until early August and continue to press for a negotiated settlement. Reaction in the currency market to Trump's latest tariff threats was largely muted in the early Asian session, though the euro did slip to a roughly three-week low and last traded 0.15% lower at $1.1675. Against the Mexican peso, the dollar rose 0.2% to 18.6630. Elsewhere, however, the dollar made limited gains, with sterling down just 0.04% to $1.3485, while the Japanese yen rose 0.1% to 147.27 per dollar. Investors have grown increasingly desensitised to Trump's slew of tariff threats, with his latest upheaval in the global trade landscape doing little to prevent U.S. stocks from scaling record highs and offering just a slight boost to the dollar. "It is hard to say whether the muted market response over the week is best characterised by resilience or complacency," said Taylor Nugent, senior economist at National Australia Bank. "But it is difficult to price the array of headlines purportedly defining where tariffs will sit from August 1 when negotiations are ongoing and the key substantive development recently is that the earlier July 9 reciprocal tariff deadline came and went without an increase in tariff rates." In other currencies, the Australian dollar ticked up 0.02% to $0.6575, while the New Zealand dollar fell 0.07% to $0.6004. Outside of tariff news, Trump on Sunday said that it would be a great thing if Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell stepped down, again threatening to undermine the central bank's independence as he calls for interest rates to be lowered. Traders could get a better clue on the future path for U.S. rates when inflation data for June comes due on Tuesday, where expectations are for U.S. consumer prices to have picked up slightly last month. Markets are currently pricing in just over 50 basis points worth of Fed easing by December. Also on investors' radars will be the release of Chinese gross domestic product figures similarly out on Tuesday. The world's second-largest economy is expected to have slowed down in the second quarter from a solid start to the year as trade tensions with the United States added to deflationary pressures. 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
