×
GreekEnglish

×
  • Politics
  • Diaspora
  • World
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Culture
  • Sports
  • Cooking
Thursday
11
Dec 2025
weather symbol
Athens 18°C
  • Home
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • World
  • Diaspora
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Culture
  • Sports
  • Mediterranean Cooking
  • Weather
Contact follow Protothema:
Powered by Cloudevo
> World

G-20 Forges Trade compromise as U.S. Tariff threat lingers

Trump is weighing whether to impose tariffs & quotason steel imports under national security grounds

Newsroom July 8 05:26

World leaders reached a compromise on trade at the Group of 20 summit as officials agreed to fight protectionism while tacitly recognizing U.S. President Donald Trump’s concerns about excess steel capacity and what he says are unfair trade practices.

Hours after the agreement was struck early on Saturday, the final statement nonetheless left the U.S. isolated on climate change, according to officials from three G-20 countries. At the same time, the statement refers to the use of “trade defense instruments,” leaving the shadow of tariffs hanging over the world.

Talks ran into a major rift over global economic policy on Friday as Trump, who spent much of his election campaign complaining about “unfair” trade hurting the U.S., held firm to his America First doctrine. G-20 officials are concerned about a trade war over steel as Trump gears up for a decision on whether to impose punitive tariffs amid ongoing complaints about dumping on global markets.

trp

German Chancellor Angela Merkel, the summit’s host, said Friday that leaders need to find a common solution to steel overproduction, otherwise the risk of “bilateral actions” increases. In its communique, the G-20 pledged renewed efforts to combat excess capacity in the steel industry, according to a leaked copy of the text.

“We will keep markets open, noting the importance of reciprocal and mutually advantageous trade and investment frameworks,” according to the draft statement. The G-20 will “continue to fight protectionism including all unfair trade practices and recognize the rule of legitimate trade defense instruments in this regard.”

Trump’s administration is weighing whether to impose tariffs, quotas or a combination of both on steel imports under national security grounds through Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act, even though only a fraction of U.S. steel is used for defense. Trump’s Commerce Department launched its review in April, missed a self-imposed deadline for a decision last month and is expected to announce a verdict soon.

“We stand united in opposition to protectionism, that I think will be a positive outcome from this meeting,” Canadian Finance Minister Bill Morneau told reporters in Hamburg. “What I believe to be the case is we all recognize the importance of trade to our economies, the importance of trade to growth, and the difficulties protectionism presents. That’s a subject that has reached consensus.”

The final statement underlined Trump’s lone stand on climate change, saying that all G-20 members except for the U.S. “state that the Paris Agreement is irreversible,” according to several officials.

In the statement, the U.S. announced that “it will immediately cease the implementation of its current nationally-determined contribution and affirms its strong commitment to an approach that lowers emissions while supporting economic growth and improving energy security needs.”

The first day of the two-day summit was marred by disagreement on free trade and climate change as Trump’s protectionist stance was blamed by other participants for causing an impasse. During a working lunch, Trump stressed that he would always defend the American worker, according to a western diplomatic official familiar with the closed-door session.

French President Emmanuel Macron challenged Trump’s view that the U.S. is losing out on trade, the official said. Taking out his mobile phone, Macron said that when he bought it, he created a trade deficit with the U.S., but that when America built it, it created a trade deficit with China. His point was that it doesn’t make sense to talk about bilateral trade deficits in a multilateral world, the official said.

>Related articles

Lavrov: There is not even a thought of attacking Europe, but we will respond if they deploy in Ukraine

Zelensky: Talks today with Americans on 20-point peace plan

France: Controversial social security budget passed by the National Assembly, Le Corneille’s position strengthened

The exchange illustrates the world’s struggle to come to terms with the Trump era and his administration’s determination to remold the postwar global consensus in favor of the U.S. The last major summit, of G-7 leaders in May, ended with the U.S. isolated on climate change.

Saturday’s sessions were dedicated to tackling migration and a “partnership with Africa,” digitalization, empowering women and employment.

Source

Ask me anything

Explore related questions

#Angela Merkel#France#G-20#germany#Macron#President Donald Trump#usa
> More World

Follow en.protothema.gr on Google News and be the first to know all the news

See all the latest News from Greece and the World, the moment they happen, at en.protothema.gr

> Latest Stories

Digital Health Assistant of MyHealthApp officially presented

December 11, 2025

Earlier payments of pensions, dates for the Christmas bonus and allowances

December 11, 2025

Real Polls: 28.5% ahead for ND, 16 points behind for PASOK

December 11, 2025

Pierre’s (and Greece’s) moment, the blue nerves and the prayers for the farmers, Giuseppe is ready, a new golden deal is coming for EpsilonNet

December 11, 2025

Heating allowance: who will receive up to 1,200 euros, when the first payments will be made

December 11, 2025

Farmers from Crete will meet today with Hatzidakis and Tsiaras

December 11, 2025

Trump calls for the sale of CNN: Extension of the dispute over the acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery

December 11, 2025

Tsiaras on ProtoThema: “The party with OPEKEPE is over, we have a de-escalation strategy but it takes two to tango”

December 11, 2025
All News

> World

Trump calls for the sale of CNN: Extension of the dispute over the acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery

The US President refers to the need to change the ownership of CNN and supports the Paramount Skydance proposal, while attacking big media

December 11, 2025

“The last time I saw my mother”: The story of 11-year-old Roman from Ukraine and his experience with an Interpreter in Strasbourg

December 11, 2025

Show of force by the US and Japan after the China-Russia drills

December 11, 2025

The dark legacy of Stakeknife: A spy who operated as torturer and executioner under UK protection

December 11, 2025

Traveling to the US becomes more difficult: Tourists from 42 countries – including Greece – will need to show a five-year social media history to enter the country

December 10, 2025
Homepage
PERSONAL DATA PROTECTION POLICY COOKIES POLICY TERM OF USE
Powered by Cloudevo
Copyright © 2025 Πρώτο Θέμα