#tariff-negotiations

#tariff-negotiations

To save time, we have decided to send some of the units to the Mediterranean ahead of schedule so as not to lose any time once we have the mandate.

"We worked hard," WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala said, adding that the US and Brazil in particular "need more time" to work out their differences over the agreement to impose levies on cross-border online orders.

Stability. Consistency. Ever-changing complexity. With language like that, deployed in separate meetings in three Asian capitals this week, government leaders forged closer ties driven in part by a figure halfway around the world: the president of the United States. And much of the time, they didn't even mention Donald Trump's name. IN BEIJING: The U.K. and Chinese leaders called Thursday for a "long-term, stable, and comprehensive strategic partnership" between their two countries. The important words are long-term and stable. The two countries committed a decade ago to building a comprehensive strategic partnership but progress has been halting at best.

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.

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.