Morning Brief: July 28

• Donald Trump and Ursula von der Leyen announced a trade agreement between the US and the EU. The US is introducing 15% tariffs on European goods, including cars, instead of the previously discussed 30%. The EU has agreed to increase purchases of US energy by $750 billion and invest an additional $600 billion in the US economy. Thus, the EU will completely abandon Russian energy as part of the trade deal with the US.

• The US plans to introduce 50% tariffs against Brazil, citing a state of emergency. These tariffs will come into effect on August 1. Unlike other countries against which similar measures are being introduced, Brazil has a trade deficit with the US, while most other countries show a positive balance in bilateral trade.

• The US and China plan to extend the tariff truce for 90 days as part of trade talks that will begin on Monday in Stockholm. The temporary suspension of tariffs, which came into effect in May, expires on August 12. The third round of talks will focus on clarifying positions on contentious issues, including industrial overproduction in China, without expecting immediate breakthroughs.

• France demands the exclusion of alcohol from the EU-US trade deal. French Trade Minister Laurent Saint-Martin said he expects the alcoholic beverages sector to be excluded from the EU-US trade deal. He called the deal «unbalanced», which coincides with the opinion of other members of the French government. The exemption will protect alcohol producers from new tariffs.

• Ethereum continues to grow steadily, approaching the $4,000 mark. In one day, the second-largest cryptocurrency by capitalization has risen in price by 3.68%, reaching a level of about $3,930. The last time such values were recorded was in mid-December last year. Since the beginning of the year, Ethereum has shown an increase of about 62%, demonstrating impressive dynamics.