The US and the EU have reached a trade agreement that foresees 15% tariffs on European exports, President Donald Trump announced after a meeting with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen at Trump's golf resort in Turnberry, Scotland. According to the US president, who spoke with the European leader for an hour, the EU has committed to purchasing energy worth $750 billion and to additional investments in the US in the amount of $600 billion, writes BTA.
The 15% tariff on most imports will also apply to the automotive industry, Trump stressed, defining the energy agreement as an important component of the deal. Steel and aluminum tariffs to remain at 50%.
Europe will be flooded with American cars and energy after Brussels signs a trade deal with Donald Trump, writes the British newspaper "Telegraph".
"Trump knows how to pose for a TV shot. Placing his chair with his back to huge paintings, he ensured that the talks were accompanied by incredible views of his vast golf course, the vegetation-covered dunes and the sea beyond," the newspaper commented. "He even provided three rows of seats for spectators, including his sons Eric and Don Jr. in the front row. Every meeting becomes an event not to be missed," adds "Telegraph".
According to another British newspaper – The deal creates a divide between Britain and Ireland, as Northern Ireland traders can sell to the US with a 10% tariff, setting the stage for difficult diplomatic negotiations over guarantees to maintain stability on the entire island.
On the other hand, the Guardian predicts that the deal will likely be greeted with relief by financial markets after turbulent months in which nervous investors were spooked by the prospect of Trump's trade wars destroying the global economy.
"For Trump, the trade deal with the EU was a must", the American newspaper "New York Times" headlined. After all the talk about trade, the Trump administration needed a big win. It looks like he just got it, the publication adds.
"90 days ago, Donald Trump promised the world that his tariffs would lead to 90 deals in 90 days", Democratic Senator Chuck Schumer recalled earlier this month, adding: "By my calculations, he is about 88 behind". "So yesterday, when Trump announced the trade deal with the EU, it was not only his biggest trade deal yet, but also his most politically necessary," the New York Times noted.
According to the publication, the deal with the European Union, at least on the surface, seems to give Trump much of what he wants.
"I was very surprised by how the European Union caved in to Trump's demands," said Douglas Irwin, a professor at Dartmouth College. "I thought the EU would be the most likely to retaliate, but it didn't. It did cave in to most of Trump's demands," he added.
Like many of the preliminary agreements announced by Trump, this one was not very detailed, the newspaper commented. Regarding some of the "deals", as the publication ironically calls them, the other side seems to be not quite aware of the exact content of the agreements and does not yet know which tariff rates for which products will apply from August 1.
"Although the agreement leaves many questions to be resolved, it could bring some stability to one of the most important economic relationships in the world - between the EU and the US - and calm fears of an escalation of the trade war," notes the "New York Times".
Another American newspaper - "Washington Post" - commented that from the end of World War II until Trump's election in 2016 The United States has largely crafted trade agreements to reduce the cost of doing business with other countries, often by eliminating tariffs.
"But Trump's protectionist trade strategy would reverse decades of U.S. globalization efforts in a way that could raise the prices of many goods for American consumers," the publication added. "The Washington Post" also commented that reducing tariffs on European car exports has been a stumbling block in the negotiations, especially for Germany, the largest exporter of EU goods to the United States.
The European edition of "Politico" commented that there was "something very ironic about the fact that top EU leaders had to fly to Britain to conclude the bloc's biggest deal since Brexit. But that's what Donald Trump wanted, and that's what happened".
The magazine commented that for Ursula von der Leyen, the deal was "a much-needed personal triumph after a difficult start to her second term, accompanied by criticism from across the political spectrum".
To conclude the deal, she had to go to his golf resort in Turnberry, Scotland, where he enjoys peace and quiet and his summer break from world affairs, "Politico" wrote. However, von der Leyen had to wait until the US president spent most of his day walking in the green spaces, and then, in front of the assembled media representatives, vented her anger at the "terrible" wind turbines, the magazine added.
"The way the EU handles trade policy - with a commission that negotiates on behalf of the bloc's 27 members and must consult with them - has also hindered Trump's adventurous style of deal-making, which has destroyed the multilateral trading system of the post-World War II era," Politico emphasizes.