The new checks, part of the EU's new Entry/Exit System (EES), collect digital personal records of third country nationals travelling to the Schengen area and replace the manual stamping of passports.
"We worked hard," WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala said, adding that the US and Brazil in particular "need more time" to work out their differences over the agreement to impose levies on cross-border online orders.
After Trump ended the de minimis exemption last year, purchasing an item straight from an international vendor, regardless of the item's value, meant incurring International Emergency Economic Powers Act tariffs. Now, thanks to a ruling by the Supreme Court that overturned Trump's IEEPA tariffs, and a ruling by the Court of International Trade ruled that all tariffs paid under IEEPA must be returned, buyers may be able to collect a refund.
In day-to-day operations, solid wood packaging is one of the most common inspection triggers. Compliance sits right at the point where your packing decisions, carrier handover, and border clearance all meet. When any of those three slip, you can end up with a shipment sitting in a depot while marks are verified or packaging is reworked.
The European Commission will "proceed with [the] provisional application" of the Mercosur trade deal with Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay, the commission's chief Ursula von der Leyen announced on Friday. The deal was signed in January after over 25 years of negotiations, despite opposition from some European farmers.
Panama Ports Company (PPC), part of the Hong Kong conglomerate CK Hutchison, said the Panamanian government acted in disregard for the rule of law. It decried what it called the latest steps to invade and take the property of PPC during a search on Thursday. It also accused authorities of entering a private storage site without notice and ignoring requests to safeguard sensitive corporate data.
The European Commission has launched a new antitrust probe into Google, expanding its long-running scrutiny of the tech giant's advertising practices. Regulators suspect the company may be manipulating the pricing of its search ad auctions, potentially inflating clearing prices "to the detriment of advertisers," according to a February 9 letter sent to affected businesses and seen by Bloomberg. The investigation marks the latest in a series of EU actions against Google,
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The sum of exports and imports between the two countries last year totalled 251.8 billion (roughly $296.6 billion), a 2.1% increase, according to Destatis. China was Germany's most important trading partner from 2016 all the way through to 2023. In 2024, the US briefly held the title. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz is also set to visit China next week, where he is set to discuss trade and other topics.
US President Donald Trump announced a 32 percent reciprocal tariff on Taiwanese exports in April, before lowering the rate to 20 percent in August pending further negotiations. Countries have made pledges to boost investments in the US in exchange for tariff relief since Trump launched his trade war last year. Japan and South Korea last year agreed to invest $550bn and $350bn, respectively, to see their tariff rates cut from 25 to 15 percent.
Stability. Consistency. Ever-changing complexity. With language like that, deployed in separate meetings in three Asian capitals this week, government leaders forged closer ties driven in part by a figure halfway around the world: the president of the United States. And much of the time, they didn't even mention Donald Trump's name. IN BEIJING: The U.K. and Chinese leaders called Thursday for a "long-term, stable, and comprehensive strategic partnership" between their two countries. The important words are long-term and stable. The two countries committed a decade ago to building a comprehensive strategic partnership but progress has been halting at best.
The upgrade places the EU on the same diplomatic footing as the United States, China and Russia and was announced during a visit to Hanoi by European Council President António Costa. "At a moment when the international rules-based order is under threat from multiple sides, we need to stand side by side as reliable and predictable partners," Costa said, adding that the partnership is about "developing spheres of shared prosperity."
After nearly two decades of negotiations, India and the European Union announced Tuesday they have reached a free trade agreement to deepen economic and strategic ties. The accord, which the EU chief described as the "mother of all deals," could affect as many as 2 billion people. The deal between two of the world's biggest markets comes as Washington targets both India and the EU with steep import tariffs, disrupting established trade flows and pushing major economies to seek alternate partnerships.
Australia and the EU are on the brink of striking a long sought after free trade agreement, with both sides talking up significant progress during talks in Brussels overnight. Ahead of a planned visit to Australia by European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen, due within months, a joint statement issued after the latest talks attended by the trade minister, Don Farrell, signalled major progress. The two sides said they had been able to converge on key differences which have dogged the deal for years.
The deal would forge a market of two billion people and nearly a quarter of global GDP, according to the European Commission. Follow DW for more. EU and India conclude trade negotiations after nearly two decades of on-off negotiationsImage: Altaf Hussain/REUTERS Skip next section What you need to know EU and India have finalized a trade deal after nearly two decades of negotiations
The European Commission, which concluded negotiations a year ago, and countries such as Germany and Spain argue it is a vital part of an EU push to unlock new markets to offset business lost from U.S. tariffs and to reduce reliance on China by securing access to critical minerals. Opponents led by France, the European Union's largest agricultural producer, say the agreement will jack up imports of cheap food products, including beef, poultry and sugar, undercutting domestic farmers.
