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Today’s agenda: Apple in talks with Formula 1; Reform UK on council spending; Gaza aid being resold; US government job cuts plan; the euro’s double-edged sword; and the world’s fastest-warming continent
Good morning. We begin in Brussels where EU negotiators are closing in on a trade deal with Donald Trump that would cement higher tariffs than those granted to the UK, a Brexit dividend that has rattled some European capitals.
EU’s inferior deal: Brussels is ready to sign a temporary “framework” agreement that sets the US president’s “reciprocal” tariffs at 10 per cent while talks continue, matching the baseline duty imposed on the UK. But the EU is not expecting the same access to the US market on products subject to sectoral duties, diplomats said. Trump is also demanding 17 per cent tariffs on EU agrifood products.
“The UK agreement was better than this,” said one diplomat. “It’s a surprise given how long we have negotiated.”
Contrasting styles: EU negotiators have been scolded over their approach throughout the talks by both business and some European capitals.
When London struck the first deal in May, EU diplomats and officials made clear they believed London jumped at an agreement and locked in disadvantageous terms. Brussels was more confident its bigger economic clout would over time give it leverage but it has hesitated to retaliate in kind against US measures.
Sir Keir Starmer, UK prime minister, by contrast gambled on moving early on a deal. One British official said: “We approached it like a business deal not a trade negotiation.” Read how the UK’s approach might have given it the edge.
Here’s what else we’re keeping tabs on today:
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Economic data: OECD publishes its employment outlook report.
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Central banks: The Bank of England publishes its twice yearly Financial Stability Report. Philip Lane, ECB executive board member, delivers a speech on monetary policy agenda in Brussels. In the US, the Federal Open Market Committee issues minutes from its June meeting.
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UK: British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron meet for a UK-France summit.
How can Africa balance growth with the shift to cleaner energy? Register for free to join policymakers, experts and leaders in an online discussion today.
Five more top stories
1. Exclusive: Apple is in talks to acquire the US rights to screen Formula 1 in a challenge to Disney’s ESPN — the race car series’ current American broadcaster. The interest from the tech group follows the success of its movie F1, starring Brad Pitt at the box office. Here’s what a deal might look like.
2. Exclusive: Reform UK is planning to attack the “broken” system of council spending on special educational needs as part of its Elon Musk-inspired cost-cutting initiative, wading into an issue that is already threatening to divide Sir Keir Starmer’s Labour party.
3. Traders are reselling aid brought into Gaza by the controversial new US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, with desperate shortages and the killings of people travelling to collect supplies fuelling a black market for vital goods. Malaika Kanaaneh Tapper has more from Beirut.
4. Russian long-range drones have hit five military draft offices across Ukraine in the past two weeks, in what officials believe is an attempt to exploit resentment over the compulsory draft and derail troops being mobilised to fight the Kremlin’s invasion.
5. The US Supreme Court has allowed Trump’s administration to proceed with job cuts that could reshape the federal government. Its justices blocked a lower court order that had frozen cuts in federal staff nationwide, while the case moved through the appeals process. Read the immediate reaction to the decision.
The Big Read
When blockbuster medicines lose intellectual property protection it can wipe out billions of dollars in revenue, putting pressure on pharma companies to refill their pipelines before their bestsellers lose patent protection.
We’re also reading and listening to . . .
Graphic of the day
Western Europe officially experienced its hottest June on record, as scientists warned such an “exceptional heatwave” was likely to become more frequent and intense.
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Take a break from the news
Writing about our green spaces has taken on a life of its own since the pandemic — when we turned back to nature for solace in those lockdown years. Nilanjana Roy explains why gardening memoirs have become a growing genre.
