After Juncker's visit: what's the point of the Trump affair? – Economy



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Midwestern American farmers took over Donald Trump. Also for her, the US president has engaged in a compromise with the Europeans: the Americans are giving up tariffs for the moment, but Europeans are buying more soya and liquefied gas in the United States. Above all, the German automaker responded with relief, their shares have risen sharply. This is an important signal of deesklation, it is said to the VDA industry association. "There is now a real chance to prevent additional tariffs or even a trade war between the United States and the EU."

Indeed, the agreement, which Trump and the President of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, agreed on Wednesday night in Washington. To be mutually beneficial.

What Trump May Have

The President of the United States has come under increasing pressure in recent months. Many farmers gave him their vote in 2016 – but felt betrayed last. Because they were the first to feel the punitive tariffs. Their most important export product is the soybean they sold a lot in China. But then Beijing – as a reaction against Trump's tariffs – introduced a penalty on soy. Since then, the Chinese have preferred to buy beans containing protein in Brazil.

Trump even promised compensation to farmers – but that's not enough for them. The promise that Europeans will buy them more soy in the future is a big relief for them as well as for Trump

The EU and the United States avoided at the moment

The advantage of the EU

At the same time, Europeans also have a part of the EU. agreement. Because if Americans grow much more soy than they consume, it is the opposite in the EU. The international community relies on the importation of soybeans – especially animal feeds, to which much of the soybeans are processed. In the EU, pastoralists keep as much livestock, that is to say chickens, pigs or cattle, that they simply can not produce enough rich foods. in proteins in the fields. Just last year, Europeans bought 33 million tonnes of soybeans from North and South America, equivalent to about 64 kilograms per capita.

Moreover, economists say that Europeans will eat more soy in the US in the coming months. had bought – even without the Trump Deal. Because the Chinese are turning to Brazil, prices are rising – while soy is cheaper in the United States.

The Role of LPGs

Americans pump more gas every year, thanks in part to the fracturing that has occurred Chemicals are released from the rock. They now produce more than they consume. The International Energy Agency is even expecting the United States to become the second largest exporter of liquefied gas by the end of 2022 (behind Australia). in the first place). As a result, Trump's efforts to find client countries are also high. While the EU is proposing to buy more liquefied gas in the United States, it meets it.

Would you like to meet someone who answers your questions quite differently from you? "Germany Speaks.

Europeans, in turn, may become less dependent on Russian gas." Stefan Kapferer of the Federal Association of Energy and Water explains that natural gas import sources in Europe are even more diverse and flexible. Although German ports do not yet prepare there, there are simply no terminals for tanks It is said in the industry that trade could be managed by the ports of Zeebrugge in Belgium or Rotterdam in the Netherlands.

But that will eventually pay off. "The pipeline is currently much cheaper in Europe," says Kapferer.

What questions are still open

As well as the agreement with the United States now sounds, completely canceled i The commercial war does not stop there. Until now, these are pure statements of intent, which must still be written down. It is also unclear how the EU can keep its promises. How many gas or soy companies make their purchases in the world depends on the market, not politics.

At the same time, Europeans only bought time with this agreement. The agreement only applies as long as the negotiations are ongoing. And what will come out at the end of these negotiations is still not clear. Especially that Trump imagines a radical solution: in talks with the EU, they want to try to reduce tariffs and subsidies to zero – saying: abolish them. However, many in Europe are likely to have something, especially farmers, who benefit from Brussels' high subsidies.

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