TRADE DEALS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “The leaders of Japan and the European Union said Thursday [7-6-17] they had agreed terms of a broad, new trade deal, a convergence that comes on the eve of a Group of 20 leaders meeting where U.S. President Donald Trump is expected to clash with his counterparts on trade.
The political agreement, which remains far from implementation, is another sign of major world economies seeking to adapt to Mr. Trump’s ‘America First’ policies and would represent a significant opening of the once heavily-protected Japanese market. Japan is seeking to pursue new export opportunities following Mr. Trump’s withdrawal from the pending 12-nation regional Trans-Pacific Partnership trade pact.
‘Some are saying the time of isolationism and disintegration is coming again, we are demonstrating that this is not the case—that the world really doesn’t have to go 100 years back in time,’ European Council President Donald Tusk said at a press conference.
Thursday’s announcement comes after four years of negotiations but hurdles remain. European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said the two sides want to see the agreement ratified and entered into force by early 2019.”
-Emre Peker, Laurence Norman, and Alastair Gale, “EU, Japan Outline New Trade Deal,” The Wall Street Journal online, July 6, 2017 07:27am