Eu Financial News

The European Union launched countermeasures on Wednesday against new U.S. metals tariffs, with plans to impose its own duties on up to €26 billion (US$28.3 billion) worth of American goods.

Global markets have endured some severe volatility this month as the president looks to ramp up pressure on global partners by imposing or threatening hefty duties on their goods, citing huge trade imbalances.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. The White House granted a temporary reprieve for many of its tariffs on Canada and Mexico last week, but a similar pause seems less likely for revamped global steel and aluminum tariffs set to go into effect Wednesday. President Trump’s team has repeatedly said there would be no exceptions or exemptions from the 25% tariffs on steel and aluminum.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. At the first cabinet meeting of his second term in office, US President Donald Trump declared his intention to impose a sweeping 25% tariff on all imports from the European Union.

Defence stocks, once the darlings of the market in 2024, are roaring back to life after a brutal correction. The sector, which witnessed a blistering rally last year amid rising global tensions and surging exports, saw a sharp selloff as high valuations, budget disappointments, and profit-booking took hold. Just when investors were questioning the long-term growth trajectory, Europe’s stunning $850 billion defence rearmament plan has flipped the script in Dalal Street’s favour. With Europe scrambling to fortify its military capabilities, Indian defence giants are in prime position to ride this global wave of rearmament.

Apple and Meta Platforms are set to face modest fines for allegedly breaching landmark rules aimed at reining in their power, people with direct knowledge of the matter said on Monday. Both companies have been in the European Commission's crosshairs since last year for potential breaches of the Digital Markets Act which could cost companies as much as 10% of their global annual sales. The act, which became law in May 2023, seeks to make it easier for people to move between competing online services like social media platforms, internet browsers and app stores, allowing smaller companies to compete with Big Tech.

The Czech National Bank (CNB) recently launched an investigation into whether to invest in cryptocurrency or other digital assets. 

environmental regulations, particularly the carbon tax, deforestation rules, and supply chain due diligence laws are one of the biggest hurdles in the negotiations for a proposed trade pact with India, economic think tank GTRI said on Sunday. It said that these regulations could impose additional costs on Indian exports. Under the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), Indian exports of steel, aluminum, and cement to the EU could face tariffs of 20-35 per cent, even if an FTA is signed, the Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI) said in its report. This raises concerns that while EU goods would enter India duty-free, Indian exports would still face these indirect barriers in Europe, it added.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. The success of European Commission (EC) President Ursula von der Leyen’s visit to India must not be measured merely in terms of the progress made on free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations. The new ground covered by our bilateral ties should also be considered.

United States officials are searching across oceans to find enough eggs to ease a shortage that’s sent prices soaring, forcing grocery stores to limit customer purchases and restaurants to add surcharges.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. As international conflicts go, none did so little to disrupt the global order as the “whisky wars" that pitted Canada against Denmark for four decades. Flaring up in 1984, the unlikely spat involved a one-square-kilometre island in the middle of an icy Arctic channel marking the border between Greenland (now a self-ruling part of Denmark) and the Canadian territory of Nunavut.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Days after Russia began its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Kyiv’s allies united to deploy a weapon against the Kremlin: freezing Russia’s overseas assets. The question of what to do with the $300 billion in frozen funds has divided European countries ever since.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. This week, the new US president addressed the US Congress in what turned out to be the longest speech in history. Apart from talking about immigration, geopolitical conflicts and making America great again, Donald Trump reiterated his strong stance on tariffs.

Standing alongside top EU chiefs, including Ursula von der Leyen and Antonio Costa, Zelenskyy said it meant Ukraine was not «alone» in its fight to repel Russia's invasion. «We are very thankful that we are not alone. And these are not just words,» Zelenskyy said, standing alongside EU chiefs Ursula von der Leyen and Antonio Costa. «It's very important you made a strong signal to the Ukrainian people.»

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Early indicators suggest the US economy is slowing even as US President Donald Trump’s additional import tariffs on China, Canada and Brazil kicked in on Tuesday. Trump also paused military aid to Ukraine on 4 March following a televised clash with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy at the Oval office last week.

oversold market after early indications that the US may soften its stance on trade tariffs. The NSE Nifty gained 1.15%, or 254 points, to finish at 22,337. The BSE Sensex rose 1.01%, or 740 points, to close at 73,730.

Donald Trump has set April 2 as the date for implementing reciprocal tariffs on a range of imports from several major trading partners. The tariffs, he said, are a response to what he considers unfair trade practices by countries like Canada, Mexico, China, the European Union, and India. This move is part of Trump’s broader agenda to reshape U.S. trade policies and create a more balanced global trading environment.

European Commission's proposal to ease emission targets would enable struggling automakers to keep profits flowing from fossil fuel models but could potentially stall Europe's shift to electric vehicles and climate progress. European car companies, already beset by Chinese competition, had been warning that they would struggle to meet the ambitious 2025 carbon dioxide (CO2) reduction target, which exposed the sector to hefty fines. The European Union's executive arm proposed on Monday to give automakers three years to meet the target, a change that must now be approved by EU states and the bloc's parliament.

China on Wednesday increased its defense spending by 7.2% this year, the same growth rate as in the prior two years, as Beijing seeks to «firmly safeguard» its national security.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. After America announced on March 3rd that it is suspending military aid to Ukraine, it looks increasingly likely that Ukraine will have to depend on Europe. Donald Trump might be persuaded to reverse the suspension, for instance if Volodymyr Zelensky agrees to sign a deal on its minerals industry.

Non-tariff measures being announced by developed economies such as European Union's carbon tax and deforestation regulation limit market access for Indian goods in those markets, a senior government official said on Tuesday. Addressing a post-Budget webinar, Director General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) Santosh Kumar Sarangi said that the other challenges before Indian exports include insufficient integration with global value chains, high import duties, technology disadvantage, and high cost of logistics (about 8-9 per cent of GDP against 5-6 per cent in developed nations). He added that the export window is also narrowing because of aggressive industrial policies of advanced nations like USA's Inflation Reduction Act and Chips Act, and UK's advanced manufacturing plan. Most non-tariff measures (NTMs) are domestic rules created by countries with an aim to protect human, animal or plant health and the environment. NTM may be technical measures like regulations, standards, testing, certification, pre-shipment inspection or non-technical measures like quotas, import licensing, subsidies, and government procurement restrictions.