The inevitable USA - EU trade war

[velik_m]

EU Expects Most US Tariffs to Stay as Talks Make Little Progress

The European Union and US made scant progress bridging trade differences this week as officials from President Donald Trump’s administration indicated that the bulk of the US tariffs imposed on the bloc will not be removed.

The EU’s trade chief, Maros Sefcovic, left the meeting with little clarity on the US stance, struggling to determine the American side’s aims, according to people familiar with the discussions. He met for about two hours with US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer in Washington Monday.

The US officials indicated that the 20% “reciprocal” tariffs — which have been reduced to 10% for 90 days — as well as other tariffs targeting sectors including cars and metals would not be removed outright, said the people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
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https://www.bloomberg.com/news/artic...ittle-progress

[velik_m]

EU gives staff 'burner phones, laptops' for US visits

The European Commission is giving staffers visiting the US on official business burner laptops and phones to avoid espionage attempts, according to the Financial Times.

The use of clean and locked-down hardware is common practice for anyone visiting China, Russia, and other states where aggressive electronic surveillance is expected. Apparently the European Union has added the United States to that list.

"The transatlantic alliance is over," an EU official told the newspaper, which reported the commission "is issuing burner phones and basic laptops to some US-bound staff to avoid the risk of espionage — a measure traditionally reserved for trips to China."

Next week, officials from the EU are due in Washington DC for the spring meetings of the World Bank Group and the International Monetary Fund. Four sources told the FT the EC had changed its guidance to ensure that visitors to America take serious precautions against cyber-espionage.

"They are worried about the US getting into the commission systems," said one.
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https://www.theregister.com/2025/04/...urner_devices/

[ChumpDumper]

THAT'S WHY WE NEED TO MANUFACTURE ALL BURNER PHONES IN THE US!

TINY SCREWS FTW

[velik_m]

EU dismisses US demands on food standards and ties to China

The European Union will not agree to sweeping changes to its food safety rules to suit American farmers and nor will the bloc agree to cut ties with China as the United States wants it to do, according to senior sources in Dublin and Brussels.

This suggests that agreement between the EU and US on trade, following the imposition of tariffs by Donald Trump, will be hard to reach.

The European Commission, which is the EU’s executive arm that sets trade policy, publicly repeated that the union’s high food safety standards are not on the table in any negotiations with the US.

“EU standards, particularly as they relate to food health and safety, are sacrosanct. That’s not part of the negotiation, it never will be, not with the US or anyone else,” a commission spokesman said on Tuesday.

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https://www.irishtimes.com/politics/...ties-to-china/

[ChumpDumper]

"Take our hormone riddled monopoly meat" is somehow unappetizing to Europeans.

[Thread]

"Take our hormone riddled monopoly meat" is somehow unappetizing to Europeans.

Yet they've had boundless appe e to consume our MIC, huh, Sport?

[velik_m]

EU says it will enforce digital rules irrespective of CEO and location

BRUSSELS (Reuters) -The European Union is determined to enforce its full digital rule book no matter who is in charge of companies such as X, Meta, Apple and Tiktok or where they are based, Commission President Ursula von der Leyen told Politico.

"That's why we've opened cases against TikTok, X, Apple, Meta just to name a few. We apply the rules fairly, proportionally, and without bias. We don't care where a company's from and who's running it. We care about protecting people," Politico quoted von der Leyen as saying on Sunday.

The EU's Digital Markets Act has been strongly criticised by the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump.

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https://finance.yahoo.com/news/eu-sa...121614185.html

[velik_m]

EU hits Apple and Meta with nearly $800 million in fines amid U.S. trade tensions

The European Union on Wednesday fined Apple and Meta hundreds of millions of euros each for breaching the bloc’s digital compe ion laws.

The European Commission, which is the executive body of the EU, said it was fining Apple 500 million euros ($571 million) and Meta 200 million euros ($228.4 million) for breaches of the Digital Markets Act (DMA).

Officials said that Apple failed to comply with so-called “anti-steering” obligations under the DMA. Under the EU’s tech law, Apple is required to allow developers to freely inform customers of alternative offers outside its App Store.

The tech giant was ordered by the EU to remove technical and commercial restrictions on steering and to refrain from perpetuating its non-compliant conduct in the future.
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https://www.cnbc.com/2025/04/23/eu-f...ust-rules.html

[velik_m]

UK and EU to defy Trump with ‘free and open trade’ declaration

BRUSSELS — Britain and the European Union are set to sign a formal declaration committing to “free and open trade” in defiance of Donald Trump’s tariff agenda.

A leaked draft seen by POLITICO promises a “new strategic partnership” between London and Brussels based on “maintaining global economic stability and our mutual commitment to free and open trade.”

It comes as Keir Starmer’s U.K. government is locked in negotiations with the Trump administration to try to get a carve-out from the U.S. president’s new tariffs.

The draft U.K.-EU agreement, dated April 25, is one of several being drawn up ahead of a May 19 summit, which is seen as a key moment in resetting post-Brexit relations.

Officials are also negotiating U.K.-EU agreements on defense and security, fishing and energy, as well as a “common understanding” of which topics will be covered by intensive Brexit reset negotiations this year.

EU ambassadors are set to meet on Wednesday in Brussels to review progress on talks.
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https://www.politico.eu/article/uk-e...e-declaration/

[velik_m]

Microsoft gets twitchy over talk of Europe's tech independence

Microsoft is responding to mounting "geopolitical and trade volatility" between the US administration and governments in Europe by pledging privacy safeguards for customers worried about using American hyperscalers, and vowing to fight the US government in court to protect Euro customers' data if needed.

Under Trump 2.0, some Europeans fear that storing their data in the bit barns of Microsoft, Google and AWS is no longer safe, a concern voiced to The Register in late February by Bert Hubert, a part time technical advisor to the Dutch Electoral Council.

Dutch Parliamentarians have since passed eight motions that urge the government to abandon US-made technology for local alternatives. European techies and lobbyists are pressing the European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Executive Vice-President for Tech Sovereignty Henna Virkkunen, to create a sovereign infrastructure.

Microsoft President Brad Smith acknowledges this, and the importance of the region for his employer in a blog post today, saying "our economic reliance on Europe has always run deep.

"We recognize that our business is critically dependent on sustaining the trust of customers, countries, and governments across Europe. We respect European values, comply with European laws, and actively defend Europe's cybersecurity. Our support for Europe has always been – and always will be – steadfast.
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https://www.theregister.com/2025/04/...about_europes/

[velik_m]

[Thread]

- "Careful."

- "John Coffey" - "The Green Mile"

[velik_m]

EU Eyes €100 Billion of US Goods With Tariffs If Talks Fail

The European Union plans to hit about €100 billion ($113 billion) in US goods with additional tariffs in the event ongoing trade talks fail to yield a satisfactory result for the bloc, according to people familiar with the matter.

The proposed retaliatory measures will be shared with member states as early as Wednesday and consultations will last for a month before the list is finalized, said the people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the plans are private. The list could change in that time.

Separately, the European Commission, the bloc’s executive arm that handles trade matters, is expected to share a paper with the US this week to try to kick-start the negotiations, Bloomberg reported earlier. Proposals from the EU are expected to include lowering trade and non-tariff barriers and boosting investments in the US.

Negotiations between the EU and US, which began in earnest last month, have made scant progress and the expectation is that the bulk of the American tariffs will remain in place. The EU said on Tuesday that Trump’s ongoing trade investigations will boost the amount of the bloc’s goods facing tariffs to €549 billion.
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https://www.bloomberg.com/news/artic...-if-talks-fail

[velik_m]

As the US Cuts Scientific Talent, Europe Launches an Initiative to Attract It

The European Commission has launched a new initiative to attract researchers and scientists to the European Union—especially those from the United States. The Choose Europe for Science program, backed with more than half a billion dollars, is designed to offer an alternative to researchers who have been forced to seek new opportunities following cuts in scientific funding imposed by President Donald Trump’s administration.
The program will invest €500 million ($568 million) between 2025 and 2027 to recruit specialists in various fields of knowledge to come and work in Europe. The initiative also includes a target for member states to allocate 3 percent of their GDP to R&D projects by 2030.

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In March, the US government canceled more than 200 federal grants for research on HIV. It also reduced NIH funding for Covid-related studies, and imposed a $400F million cut in funding to Columbia University, in retaliation for pro-Palestinian protests on its campus amid the conflict with Israel. In April, an NIH facility tasked with studying Ebola and other infectious diseases was ordered to stop research.

These decisions, together with concerns about future funding cuts, have led to an exodus of researchers from the United States, with scientists now seeking to continue their careers outside of the country. An analysis published in Nature found that 75 percent of American scientists surveyed were considering leaving the country. Meanwhile, data from Nature Careers, a global scientific employment platform, reveals that between January and March of this year, American professionals sent 32 percent more applications to foreign ins utions compared to the same period in 2024. Furthermore, the number of American users exploring opportunities outside the country increased by 35 percent.

At the same time, international interest in working in the United States has declined significantly. During the first quarter of the year, applications from scientists from Canada, China, and Europe to US research centers fell by 13 percent, 39 percent, and 41 percent, respectively.

Against this backdrop, European ins utions have intensified their efforts to attract US talent. Aix-Marseille University, in France, recently launched A Safe Place for Science, a program aimed at hosting US researchers dismissed, censored, or limited by Trump’s policies. This project is backed with an investment of approximately €15 million.

Along the same lines, the Max Planck Society in Germany has announced the creation of the Max Planck Transatlantic Program, whose purpose is to establish joint research centers with US ins utions. “Outstanding investigators who have to leave the US, we will consider for director positions,” the society’s director Patrick Cramer said in speech discussing the program.

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https://www.wired.com/story/us-cuts-...talent-europe/

[velik_m]

Europe and the UK ‘reset’ relations, almost a decade after Brexit nearly broke them

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The trade partners have decided to move toward “a common sanitary and phytosanitary area,” von der Leyen told reporters on Monday. “That means more certainty, more stability for farmers and food producers, and fishermen and fisherwoman, on both sides of the Channel.”

In any case, changes to the trading rules between the two sides are significant: The EU is the UK’s largest trading partner, with the bloc accounting for 41% of Britain’s exports and more than half of its imports last year, according to official figures covering both goods and services. The UK is also a top trading partner for Brussels, and was the second-largest destination for EU goods exports in 2024, Eurostat data shows.

The deal also included commitments to give the EU fishing boats access to British waters for a further 12 years beyond the current agreement, which is set to expire next year. Europe will also open up its electricity market to the UK, a move that von der Leyen praised as a step toward boosting energy security and lowering prices.

The agreement comes as US President Donald Trump’s barrage of tariffs have wreaked havoc on the global trading order. In a joint statement released Monday, the EU and UK said they shared a “commitment to free, sustainable, fair and open trade.”

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https://edition.cnn.com/2025/05/19/e...-deal-gbr-intl

[velik_m]

Greenland Signs Lucrative Minerals Deal with Europe in Blow to Trump

Greenland has allowed a Danish-French consortium to mine a rock which is key to the production of aluminum.

The permit granted to Greenland Anorthosite Mining (GAM) to extract anorthosite follows interest in the Arctic territory from U.S. President Donald Trump in acquiring the autonomous island which is part of the Kingdom of Denmark.

GAM, which is backed by French company Jean Boulle Group and real estate investment firms bodies from Denmark and Greenland, was granted a 30-year permit, Reuters reported.

Jesper Willaing Zeuthen, associate professor at Aalborg University, in Denmark, told Newsweek Trump's interest in Greenland's resources is likely to be more in securing long-term investment objects which is difficult under current Greenlandic legislation.

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https://www.newsweek.com/greenland-t...action-2075673

[ChumpDumper]

Trump gonna have to invade ing Greenland now.

[velik_m]

Canada commits to joining European defence plan in throne speech

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“The Government will protect Canada’s sovereignty by rebuilding, rearming, and reinvesting in the Canadian Armed Forces,” the King said.

“It will boost Canada’s defence industry by joining ReArm Europe, to invest in transatlantic security with Canada’s European partners. And it will invest to strengthen its presence in the North, which is an integral part of Canada, as this region faces new threats.”

The ReArm Europe plan, announced by the EU in March, would earmark up to the equivalent of C$1.25 trillion for defence over five years. It includes a loan program worth about $235 billion to be called Security Action For Europe (SAFE), which would allow countries to work with others outside the European Union to jointly buy or build arms.

EU members approved the loan program earlier Tuesday.
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The platform promised nearly $40 billion in new military spending over the next four years and to reach NATO’s target of spending two per cent of GDP by 2030. Those spending commitments were not included in the throne speech.

Carney said last week that while Canada will look to partner with the U.S. on defence “where it can make sense” — including Trump’s “Golden Dome” concept for a space-based missile defence system — his government is also looking at “other options” among allies.

“You will see a very different set of partnerships, security and economic, going forward,” he said, and specifically mentioned the ReArm Europe negotiations.

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https://globalnews.ca/news/11198874/...-rearm-europe/

[DMX7]

It's hard to a see a trade deal getting done with the EU shortly unless Trump folds bigly. EU plays hardball but is also somewhat dysfunctional and has trouble concluding trade agreements with almost everyone.

[FrostKing]

Deport the trash. If things worsen and they try and push us to fight in the East I'll go radical. I'm listening.

[ChumpDumper]

You won't do .

[velik_m]

EU ‘prepared to impose countermeasures’ after Trump doubles steel tariffs to 50%


The European Union on Saturday criticized President Donald Trump’s move to double tariffs on steel imports, warning that it “undermines” efforts to reach a “negotiated solution” in the ongoing trade war.

“We strongly regret the announced increase of U.S. tariffs on steel imports from 25% to 50%,” an EU spokesperson said in a statement to NBC News.

“This decision adds further uncertainty to the global economy and increases costs for consumers and businesses on both sides of the Atlantic,” the spokesperson continued.

The spokesperson added that the EU is “prepared to impose countermeasures, including in response to the latest U.S. tariff increase.”

The United Steelworkers union (USW) also criticized Trump’s announcement and said it is a “direct attack on Canadian industries and workers.”
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https://www.cnbc.com/2025/05/31/eu-r...50percent.html

[velik_m]

Europe stocks stage world-beating rally as trade war backfires

Europe’s equities have emerged clear winners worldwide as the region’s economic outlook brightens at a time when President Donald Trump’s trade war hobbles US financial markets.

Five months into the year, eight of the world’s 10 best-performing stock markets are in Europe, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. That list features Germany’s DAX Index with a rally of more than 30% in dollar terms, as well as peripheral markets such as Slovenia, Poland, Greece and Hungary.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 Index is beating the S&P 500 by a record 18 percentage points in dollars, powered by Germany’s historic fiscal spending plans and a stronger euro. Market participants say there’s more to come as resilient corporate earnings and attractive valuations make the region a safer bet when concern over trade and fiscal debt grips the US economy.

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https://finance.yahoo.com/news/europ...070000153.html

[velik_m]

China Weighs Ordering Hundreds of Airbus Jets in Major Deal

China is considering placing an order for hundreds of Airbus SE aircraft as soon as next month, when European leaders visit Beijing to celebrate the countries’ long-term ties, according to people familiar with the matter.

Deliberations are underway with Chinese airlines about the size of a potential order, said the people, who asked not to be named discussing confidential matters. A deal could involve about 300 planes and include both narrowbody and widebody models, they said, with one person saying the order could range between 200 and as many as 500 aircraft.

Negotiations are fluid and could fall apart or take longer to reach a conclusion, the people said.

Airbus declined to comment. Representatives for the Civil Aviation Administration of China didn’t respond to a faxed request for comment.

The European planemaker rose as much as 2.3% in early Paris trading. Rolls-Royce Holdings Plc, which makes engines for Airbus’s widebody aircraft, rose as much as 0.7% in London.

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https://www.bloomberg.com/news/artic...-in-major-deal

[velik_m]

Trump blasts EU over ‘unfair’ trade offer

U.S. President Donald Trump criticized the European Union for not proposing a favorable trade deal to Washington — within hours of his first formal meeting with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.

“We’re talking, but I don’t feel that they’re offering a fair deal yet,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One, after leaving the G7 Summit in Canada early on Monday.

“They’re either going to make a good deal, or they’ll just pay whatever we say they have to pay,” he said. He reiterated his long-standing belief that the bloc was created to “hurt the United States on trade.”

The transatlantic partners are in talks to reach a deal to safeguard the €1.7 trillion transatlantic trade relationship. If they miss a July 8 deadline, Trump’s universal 10 percent tariff could jump to 50 percent — a level that would cripple EU exports. In addition, EU steel, aluminum and car exports are subject to 50 percent tariffs.

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https://www.politico.eu/article/dona...r-trade-offer/