EU Official: EU Believes Trade Talks with the US Are Accelerating

Poland's Deputy Minister of Economy, Baranowski, said on Thursday that negotiations between the EU and the US are accelerating, but the EU prefers to reach a good agreement rather than a quick trade deal. Trump imposed a series of industry tariffs affecting European car, steel, and aluminum manufacturers, but later reduced the tariffs to 10% for 90 days to allow for negotiations. "We see some optimistic factors because we see elements of de-escalation from the US side," said Baranowski, who chaired the EU trade officials meeting. "This is a good sign that negotiations with the EU are accelerating." European Commission Vice President Šefčovič also told reporters before the meeting that he had a "constructive call" with US Commerce Secretary Lutenik on Wednesday. Šefčovič said, "Our goal is to address the immediate challenges while also laying the foundation for deeper cooperation." (Jin10)