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US levels new tariff threat against EU
US levels new tariff threat against EU
Washington, 24 July (Argus) — President Donald Trump's administration is threatening to impose new tariffs on US imports from the EU, just a month after the European parliament approved the economic bloc's trade agreement with the US. "The European Union is at it again and, as usual, taking direct aim at GREAT American Companies," Trump said in a social media post. The US Trade Representative's office (USTR) complained that the European Commission has just imposed a $1bn fine on Google, following other recent anti-trust measures against US tech giants. The US will launch a "Section 301" investigation against the EU's "practice of 'ROBBING' American Companies and, in turn, the American Taxpayer," Trump posted. The US has just imposed a 10pc tariff on imports from the EU, following an investigation under Section 301 of the Trade Expansion Act of 301 into Europe's alleged lack of diligence in banning imports of products produced by forced labor in third party countries. There is another Section 301 investigation underway against the EU related to "structural excess capacity and production in manufacturing sectors." The US-EU trade deal last year capped potential punitive US tariff rates at 15pc for imports from the European bloc. Trump earlier this month said he would to cut off all trade with Spain , an EU member, for not supporting the US war effort against Iran, but he did not follow up on his threat. The EU mission in Washington did not immediately comment on Trump's threat. The European Commission on Thursday highlighted the benefits of the US-EU deal signed almost a year ago, highlighting that EU companies closed deals with US exporters worth €230bn ($262bn) of energy resources in the past year. The EU has refrained from retaliating in kind against Trump's tariff in order to preserve cooperation on defense and weapons sales to Ukraine. By Haik Gugarats Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Paraguay cuts biodiesel blend to 7pc after pushback
Paraguay cuts biodiesel blend to 7pc after pushback
Sao Paulo, 24 July (Argus) — Paraguay's industry and commerce ministry (MIC) has cut the country's mandatory biodiesel blend back to 7pc, reversing course four days after an 8pc mandate entered into force. Under a resolution published on Friday, the minimum biodiesel blend in diesel will be set at 7pc from 24 July through 31 December 2026, although the MIC said compliance checks will not begin for 60 days. The mandate will rise to a minimum of 8pc from 1 January 2027. The ministry said the change follows assessments of "new factors and studies" and aims to balance economic, quality and environmental considerations. The latest resolution represents a compromise between the government's biofuels objectives and concerns raised by downstream fuel suppliers. Fuel distributors and blenders have been arguing for weeks that most vehicle manufacturers represented in Paraguay's fleet do not recommend biodiesel blends above 7pc. The MIC's previous resolution increasing the mandatory blend to 8pc came into force on 20 July and was anchored in a broader strategy to displace imported fuels with domestically produced biofuels while also stimulating the local vegetable oils and biofuels industry. Fuel retailers and blenders said they repeatedly met with MIC officials before the June decision and warned that higher blend rates could pose technical risks for part of the country's diesel fleet. They said those concerns were largely disregarded after MIC decided on the 8pc minimum blend. Distributors have argued that increasing the blend above 7pc could raise the risk of engine and fuel system damage in vehicles that were not designed or certified for higher biodiesel concentrations. Higher blends could also increase maintenance costs by requiring more frequent replacement of components such as fuel filters, they said. By Flavia Alemi Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
VLCC takes Cape route to avoid Red Sea
VLCC takes Cape route to avoid Red Sea
London, 24 July (Argus) — South Korea's SK Energy has booked the VLCC DHT Stallion to carry Saudi crude from Egypt to South Korea around the Cape of Good Hope, avoiding the Red Sea and Bab el-Mandeb strait after Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi militant group said it would target Saudi-linked shipping in the area, market participants said. The cargo will load at Sidi Kerir on Egypt's Mediterranean coast after being pumped through the Sumed pipeline from Ain Sukhna on Egypt's Red Sea coast. The Bab el-Mandeb strait, at the southern end of the Red Sea off Yemen, links the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden. Saudi Arabia has continued to shuttle crude to Ain Sukhna for delivery into Sumed, despite the heightened risk to shipping in the Red Sea. The pipeline allows Saudi crude to move across Egypt to the Mediterranean, where it can be loaded at Sidi Kerir without the onward voyage needing to pass through the Red Sea. A Saudi Red Sea loading to northeast Asia would usually sail south through Bab el-Mandeb. But the DHT Stallion will instead sail west from the Mediterranean into the Atlantic and around southern Africa, avoiding the strait and the area where the Houthis have threatened Saudi-linked shipping. SK Energy fixed the DHT Stallion at a lumpsum of $17mn-18.5mn, market participants said. That range is comparable with recent Yanbu-northeast Asia rates through Bab el-Mandeb, but the Cape route adds around 30 days to the voyage and reduces daily earnings. Owners are still willing to take the longer voyage because it avoids the higher risk linked to Red Sea and Bab el-Mandeb transits. Yanbu-northeast Asia rates through Bab el-Mandeb have risen sharply as owners price additional war risk insurance premiums into spot deals. The Cape of Good Hope route avoids that risk area, so owners do not need to build the same premium into the fixture. The DHT Stallion is already north of the Suez Canal and is expected to ballast from the UK Continent after discharging its current cargo in Rotterdam. That ballast leg would also avoid the Red Sea and Bab el-Mandeb. The fixture comes as US president Donald Trump has stepped up threats against Iran after the Houthis said they were following through on their vow to target Saudi shipping in the Red Sea. "The US will hold Iran responsible, in that the Houthis are a Surrogate and/or Proxy of Iran," Trump said in a social media post on 23 July. He threatened "major military punishment" against Iran and the Houthis. By Rhys van Dinther Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
US exempts Brazil, India pig iron from tariffs
US exempts Brazil, India pig iron from tariffs
Sao Paulo, 23 July (Argus) — The US exempted Brazilian and Indian pig iron imports from Section 301 forced-labor tariffs, the US Trade Representative (USTR) said on Thursday, shielding Brazilian material from a 12.5pc duty and Indian cargoes from a 10pc rate. US buyers currently pay a 10pc tariff on pig iron imports from all origins under the temporary Section 122 regime. The measure is scheduled to expire on 24 July. If the tariff lapses as scheduled, pig iron imports from all origins would enter the US without additional duties from 25 July, following their exclusion from the Section 301 measures. The decision means Brazilian pig iron will avoid a 12.5pc tariff that would otherwise apply to products from economies deemed not to have sufficiently enforced measures against imports produced with forced labor. Indian pig iron was also exempted, avoiding a separate 10pc tariff applicable to countries that have adopted partial or full forced-labor import restrictions. Without the exemption, Brazilian pig iron would have faced a 12.5pc tariff after 24 July, putting it at a disadvantage against suppliers such as Ukraine. Pig iron was not included in the initial exemption lists in either Section 301 case against Brazil. The USTR later granted exemptions after US steelmakers and Brazilian producers argued that alternative suppliers could not replace Brazilian volumes and that the tariffs would increase costs for US steel production. Based on the slated removal of the 10pc tariff and the now-excluded 12.5pc tariff, pig iron cfr New Orleans prices, which Argus last assessed at $495/metric tonne (t) on 21 July, could fall approximately $45/t to $450/t. This also stands in stark contrast to the potential price increase if the 12.5pc tariff had been imposed that could have lifted the pig iron cfr New Orleans price up to $507/t. The USTR also exempted Brazilian pig iron from a separate proposed 25pc Section 301 tariff on 15 July . Brazil supplied 59pc of US pig iron imports, or 1.3mn t, during January-May. The country has consolidated its position as the leading source of pig iron for the US market since 2022, when sanctions stemming from the Russia-Ukraine war halted Russian shipments. Although Ukraine and India have expanded their presence in the US market in recent months, market participants said neither country is capable of matching Brazil's export scale. By Isabel Filgueiras Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
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