The U.S. struck a framework trade agreement with the European Union yesterday, Reuters reported. The deal, which comes after months of negotiations, imposes a 15% import tariff on most EU goods, which is half the rate U.S. President Donald Trump previously threatened. Trump said the deal calls for $750 billion of EU purchases of U.S. energy in coming years and "hundreds of billions of dollars" of arms purchases. A senior U.S.

The member states on Thursday approved the list of retaliatory tariffs proposed by the European Commission to counter US trade measures, with only Hungary voting against, EuroNews reported. The list includes an initial package of measures adopted in early April and targets products including aircraft, cars and car parts, orange juice, poultry, soybeans, steel and aluminium, yachts. Bourbon whiskey was also included in the list despite intense lobbying by France and Ireland which fear US retaliation on wine and spirits.

The European Commission plans to submit counter-tariffs on 93 billion euros ($109 billion) of U.S. goods for approval to EU members, while its trade chief will hold talks with U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Reuters reported. The Commission said on Wednesday that its primary focus was to achieve a negotiated outcome with the United States to avert 30% U.S. tariffs that U.S. President Donald Trump has said he will impose on the 27-nation bloc on August 1.

The European Union is exploring a broader set of possible counter-measures against the United States as prospects for an acceptable trade agreement with Washington fade, according to EU diplomats, Reuters reported. An increasing number of EU members, including Germany, are now considering using wide-ranging "anti-coercion" measures which would let the bloc target U.S. services and other sectors in the absence of a deal, diplomats say.

The European Union agreed to impose its toughest sanctions on Russia since its large-scale invasion of Ukraine, blocking attempts to revive the Nord Stream gas pipelines, lowering a price cap for Russian oil sales and hitting banks from third countries in a move that could exacerbate tensions with China, the Wall Street Journal reported. The sanctions package comes as President Trump has started increasing pressure on the Kremlin after months of seeking a peace deal between Ukraine and Russia. The White House now appears closer to the European view that the Kremlin won’t end the war.

The European Union began proceedings against Spain over its intervention in banking mergers after the government blocked the legal combination of BBVA BBVA 0.59%increase; green up pointing triangle and Sabadell SAB 0.24%increase; green up pointing triangle for at least three years, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Europe’s exports to the U.S. fell for the second consecutive month in May after a first-quarter boom, but remained higher than a year earlier, a sign of resilience that will be tested as higher tariffs look set to become a settled feature of trans-Atlantic trade, the Wall Street Journal reported. Exports to the U.S. from the European Union edged down to 46.2 billion euros, or around $53.6 billion, in May from 47.7 billion euros a month earlier, statistics agency Eurostat said Wednesday. Overall exports fell 0.8%, with the EU’s overall trade surplus rising to 13.4 billion euros.

President Donald Trump on Saturday threatened duties of 30% on products from Mexico and the European Union, two of America’s biggest trading partners, in an ongoing tariff campaign that’s upended global trade since he retook office in January, CNN.com reported. “The United States of America has agreed to continue working with the European Union, despite having one of our largest Trade Deficits with you.

The EU is preparing to step up its engagement with other countries hit by Donald Trump’s tariffs following a slew of new threats to the bloc and other US trading partners, Bloomberg News reported. The contacts with nations including Canada and Japan could include the potential for coordination. The move comes as talks between the EU and the US have dragged on and continue to be stuck on several issues, including cars and tariff rates on agriculture.