US Treasury Secretary Mnuchin: EU "collective action problem" hinders fast completion of US-EU trade agreement

The U.S. Treasury Secretary, Scott Besent, played down the possibility of quickly reaching a trade agreement with the European Union, citing "collective action issues" within the EU that are hindering negotiations. Speaking at a Saudi-U.S. investment forum in Riyadh, Besent commented on the progress of tariff negotiations, saying, "I think the U.S. and Europe may be a little slower." He stated, "Personally, I think there may be collective action issues in Europe; what Italians want may be different from what the French want. But I believe we will ultimately reach a satisfactory result." Besent is more optimistic about reaching agreements with trade partners in Asia. He mentioned that the U.S. had "very productive discussions" with Japan and praised the "very positive" dialogue with Indonesia. He also mentioned negotiations with South Korea and Thailand. Besent, who is responsible for negotiating with Asian economies, said, "Things are progressing very smoothly on my end." Following the framework agreement reached with the UK, Besent pushed for a temporary reduction in tariffs agreement between the U.S. and China.