Economics

Europe Says It Could Clinch Trade Deal With Trump This Year

  • EU’s Malmstrom says she expects greenlight for talks in March
  • Commerce ministers discuss plan for industrial-tariff cuts

Operations at the HHLA Container Terminal Altenwerder (CTA) in the port of Hamburg.

Photographer: Krisztian Bocsi/Bloomberg
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European Union Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom said a trans-Atlantic trade deal could be achieved before year-end, stressing a readiness to work speedily as the bloc tries to keep at bay the threat of U.S. automotive tariffs.

Malmstrom said she expects EU governments to give her the go-ahead in March to start negotiations with the U.S. to cut tariffs on industrial goods. A final agreement with President Donald Trump’s administration could be reached before the European Commission’s term ends on Oct. 31, she said.