Buenos Aires — The US sought to woo Europe and Japan with free trade deals on Saturday to gain leverage in an escalating tariff war with China but its overtures faced stiff resistance from France at a Group of 20 (G-20) finance ministers meeting dominated by trade tension. US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin told reporters at the gathering of the financial leaders of the world’s 20 largest economies in Buenos Aires that he was renewing President Donald Trump’s proposal that Group of Seven allies drop trade barriers between them. "If Europe believes in free trade, we’re ready to sign a free trade agreement," Mnuchin said, adding that such a deal would require the elimination of tariffs, nontariff barriers and subsidies. "It has to be all three issues." Trump has angered European allies by imposing import tariffs of 25% on steel and 10% on aluminium, causing the EU to retaliate with similar amounts of tariffs on products such as Harley-Davidson motorcycles. Trump, who frequently crit...
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Subscribe now to unlock this article.
Support BusinessLIVE’s award-winning journalism for R129 per month (digital access only).
There’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in SA. Our subscription packages now offer an ad-free experience for readers.
Cancel anytime.
Questions? Email helpdesk@businesslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00. Got a subscription voucher? Redeem it now.