EU to partner with tariff-affected countries: The European Union (EU) is reportedly preparing to cooperate with several countries hit by US President Donald Trump’s tariffs, including Japan and Canada, Bloomberg reports, citing an unnamed source. The EU will also bolster trade agreements with India and other unnamed countries in the Asia-Pacific region. The move comes as the bloc faces US trade talk hold-ups over car and agriculture tariff rates.

The EU will also prepare countermeasures against the US in case no trade agreement is secured, the news outlet reports, quoting EU Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen. Up to EUR 21 bn (USD 24.5 bn) in US goods could be hit in these retaliatory measures.

The sticking points: While the EU is hoping for tariffs no higher than 10% on agricultural exports, it is now reportedly focused on car tariffs instead, as trade talks between the EU and the US continue into the rest of the week, according to the news report.

REMEMBER- The European Commission said it would extend its tariff suspension on the US until early August to allow for a negotiated solution to Trump’s latest protectionist threats. Trump is pushing a 30% blanket tariff on EU imports starting 1 August unless better offers are made, while the EU would “likely retaliate to a 30% across-the-board tariff in a gradual way starting on the day new US tariffs are implemented,” the news outlet says, citing Goldman Sachs economists.

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