Today (4 August) in international trade, we bring you the news that EU member states are considering adjusting the ‘Made in Europe’ concept, Russia is expanding its shadow fleet carrying liquefied natural gas (LNG) and US states led by opposition Democrats are suing the Trump administration over tariffs.
‘Made in Europe’ changes
A key part of the EU’s Industrial Accelerator Act, the ‘Made in Europe’ scheme seeks to prioritise the procurement of goods produced on the continent and by approved third-party nations, as part of the bloc’s ambitions to take on global competitors such as China and the US, and protect its key manufacturing industries.
Currently, the European Commission’s (EC) approach to determining which non-EU states can be included within the programme is broadly one of discretion – it can decide which countries can qualify, provided they have public procurement or free trade deals in place with the EU. This has caused concern in some countries, including France, with as many as 80 countries potentially able to participate.
A document circulated within the Council of the EU by the current Irish presidency, seen by Politico, suggests that, rather than the EC being able to use delegated acts to include third parties, implementing acts should be used instead, giving EU member states a formal say over who’s involved.
Decisions over which countries are invited would be based on what reciprocal treatment they give to EU products, as well as considerations over security.
Politico also reports the Council is considering the concept of using “partner origin” as a way of determining when third-party goods or components can be treated as equivalent to EU products in public procurement.
It also suggests that the specific procurement commitments included within countries’ free trade or customs union agreements with the EU would be a determining factor on whether they are included in the scheme.
Democrat states sue White House over latest tariffs
The Trump administration is being sued in US federal courts by 25 Democrat-led states for its latest round of tariffs on imports.
The lawsuit, filed in the US Court of International Trade, accuses the White House of overreaching executive authority.
The Trump team issued its latest round of tariffs using Section 301 of the Trade Act 1974, penalising dozens of countries for allegedly using forced labour in their supply chains.
The measures were introduced to replace the ‘liberation day’ tariffs introduced in 2025, which were subsequently ruled to have been implemented illegally by the Supreme Court in February this year.
“The administration cannot use forced labour as a pretext to continue its illegal tariff scheme,” the Democrats said, per the Washington Times. They accused the Trump presidency of worsening the cost-of-living crisis in the country.
The case comes as voters in the US have been found to prefer the Democrats over the Republicans on economic matters for the first time in over a decade. They lead the GOP 37% to 36% on stewardship of the US economy in a Reuters/Ipsos poll published yesterday.
The Guardian also reports that UK manufacturing saw a growth in production output in the previous four months following an easing of US tariffs after the Supreme Court ruling in February.
Russia expanding LNG shadow fleet
Russia has been increasing the size of its LNG shadow fleet ahead of an EU ban on the gas that’s due to come in next year.
Maritime data from Windward, reported in the FT, has found that the number of recently sold second-hand LNG tankers, found to have carried Russian cargoes in the last six months, has grown by eight to 25.
Russia has been using similar tactics to continue shipping oil since the start of its invasion of Ukraine. It is thought that there are over a thousand ships carrying Russian oil without western documentation or paperwork.
It has been slower to deploy similar tactics for gas exports, due to the complexity of LNG vessels.
Also in the trade news
- The ongoing heatwave could trigger a potato shortage, the Telegraph reports
- The government announced that its ‘Sovereign AI’ scheme has invested in a British startup “reinventing AI chips”
- A Teesside-based plastics manufacturer could be facing legal action from the Environment Agency over emissions of the carcinogenic chemical benzene, according to the Guardian
Yesterday in trade
- Farmers warned of looming food shortages across the UK and Europe due to a combination of drought and flooding this year
- The race to succeed Anas Sarwar as leader of Scottish Labour got into full swing
- The Animal & Plant Health Agency notified businesses exporting animal carcasses of new inspection processes at the French border
