#switzerland-us-trade

#switzerland-us-trade

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio will visit India in May, focusing on trade and security to limit the impact of the US-Israel war with Iran.

"The start of the year has been extremely sluggish for German industry," said Elmar Voelker, an analyst at the bank LBBW, noting that "the fleeting hopes of a recovery that had emerged last autumn have evaporated for now."

"The influx of visitors will likely generate billions of dollars in economic activity, benefiting the hospitality, transportation, and retail sectors. Host city hotels anticipate record occupancy, and local businesses will benefit from increased visitor traffic."

"In the era of great powers, our freedom is no longer a given. It is under threat," said German Chancellor Friedrich Merz at the opening of the Munich Security Conference earlier in February. Merz explicitly mentioned China. "China has the ambition to shape global affairs, laying the foundations for this over many years with strategic patience. In the foreseeable future, Beijing could draw level with the US in terms of military might. China is systematically exploiting the dependencies of others, reinterpreting the international order on its own terms," he said.

Europe is our most important trading partner,

We want to achieve stability and predictability in trade relations. A united stance within the European Union is important in this regard. Businesses need planning security, and that applies on both sides of the Atlantic. We therefore expect clarity from the US government on the next steps.

We begin with a deliberately ambitious question. What would it take for every person on Earth to live at least as well as someone in Switzerland does today-by 2100? Not culturally Swiss, but economically empowered with high incomes, long lives, strong education, and social cohesion. Achieving this would require global GDP to be about 8.5 times higher than it is today. That figure alone is enough to trigger skepticism. Will we have enough energy, materials, food, and innovation?

The European Union and the Mercosur bloc of South American countries formally signed a long-sought landmark free trade agreement on Saturday, capping more than a quarter-century of torturous negotiations to strengthen commercial ties in the face of rising protectionism and trade tensions around the world. The signing ceremony in Paraguay's capital, Asunción, marks a major geopolitical victory for the EU in an age of American tariffs and surging Chinese exports, expanding the bloc's foothold in a resource-rich region increasingly contested by Washington and Beijing.

For the European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, the EU's trade pact with India was the mother of all deals. Seen from the other end of the telescope, it looked like the mouse of all deals, with just 4bn (3.5bn) in tariff reductions a rounding error in a 180bn trading relationship. But that misses the point: this is about economic heavyweights resetting the terms of their cooperation because of Donald Trump's use of tariffs as a tool of economic and political compulsion.

The agreement will "drive a massive reshoring of America's semiconductor sector," the US Commerce Department said. In an interview to news channel CNBC, US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said the objective was to bring 40% of Taiwan's entire chip supply chain and production to the United States. Had Taipei not agreed to manufacture in the US, the tariffs would likely be 100%, Lutnick added.

Australia and the EU are on the brink of striking a long sought after free trade agreement, with both sides talking up significant progress during talks in Brussels overnight. Ahead of a planned visit to Australia by European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen, due within months, a joint statement issued after the latest talks attended by the trade minister, Don Farrell, signalled major progress. The two sides said they had been able to converge on key differences which have dogged the deal for years.

The United States is reportedly in discussions with Russia on a range of high-stakes infrastructure and trade projects, including a nuclear-powered datacenter and a tunnel under the Bering Strait, according to The Economist. Sources close to the talks indicate that associates within the orbit of former President Donald Trump are exploring potential stakes in Russian energy assets. In addition, negotiations are reportedly ongoing over rare-earth metals, oil, and gas projects in the Arctic region.

US President Donald Trump announced a 32 percent reciprocal tariff on Taiwanese exports in April, before lowering the rate to 20 percent in August pending further negotiations. Countries have made pledges to boost investments in the US in exchange for tariff relief since Trump launched his trade war last year. Japan and South Korea last year agreed to invest $550bn and $350bn, respectively, to see their tariff rates cut from 25 to 15 percent.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio reassured a nervous Europe on Saturday that Washington wants to "revitalise" the transatlantic alliance. "We do not seek to separate, but to revitalise an old friendship and renew the greatest civilisation in human history," Rubio said. "What we want is a reinvigorated alliance." Rubio stressed that the US and Europe "belong together" and must act as partners to defend shared values.

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.