High Stakes in Transatlantic Trade Tug-of-War

In the escalating trade tensions between the United States and the European Union, German politician Juergen Hardt expressed optimism on Sunday that a partial agreement could be reached to postpone the U.S.'s planned tariff hikes.

U.S. President Donald Trump had earlier threatened to raise tariffs to 30% on EU imports, further aggravating the trade standoff. Juergen Hardt, a senior member of Germany's CDU/CSU parliamentary group, maintained that an agreement could be made ahead of the August 1 deadline.

Highlighting the unequal trade scenario, Hardt argued against the U.S.'s belief that its trade deficit with the EU stems from protectionism, stressing the U.S.'s services surplus driven by its powerful IT sector.

(With inputs from agencies.)