The politics of trade

Follow Us Get the newsletter When U.S. President Joe Biden shifts summit venue from NATO headquarters to the European Union district of Brussels, he'll be traveling from a center of hard power to one with significant soft power. Biden's meeting today with EU leaders Ursula von der Leyen and Charles Michel will focus on trade, one of the few areas where the 27-nation bloc of 450 million consumers carries its weight globally. There's a lot of residual economic enmity to dispense with. Under Donald Trump, the U.S. imposed tariffs on European steel and aluminum, penalties that triggered reciprocal measures from the EU Commission. Agreement to wind back those duties is expected today. The EU and U.S. have also reached a deal to end their long-running dispute over aircraft subsidies for Airbus and Boeing, Alberto Nardelli, Nikos Chrysoloras and Bryce Baschuk report. Taken together, the developments are a powerful signal of rapprochement between allies that, at least in trade terms, stand shoulder-to-shoulder. Rekindled transatlantic relations could also be read as a reminder to Prime Minister Boris Johnson of what he stands to lose by risking a trade war with the EU over post-Brexit arrangements involving Northern Ireland. It's interesting timing, then, that the U.K. and Australia will today announce a free-trade deal. While the economic gains to the U.K. are negligible, and British farmers claim it will damage their livelihoods, the political dividend is clear as a symbol of the success of Brexit. After all, to paraphrase Prussian General Carl von Clausewitz, for the U.K., the EU and the U.S., trade wars or deals are simply the continuation of politics by other means. — Alan Crawford Harley-Davidson motorcycles were among a range of U.S. products hit by EU tariffs. Photographer: Kiyoshi Ota/Bloomberg Check out all our biggest stories on the Bloomberg Politics web page here and tell us how we're doing or what we're missing at balancepower@bloomberg.net. Global Headlines Mocking Washington | China called the U.S. "very ill indeed" over its bid to build a broader coalition to counter Beijing, as the world's two biggest economies spar over everything from human rights to technology exports. Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian urged the Group of Seven to check America's pulse and prescribe medicine, the most pointed response since Biden began a visit to Europe focused on efforts to answer China's expanding clout. Protecting strongmen | From Syria to Venezuela, Russia has intervened to save authoritarian leaders accused of refusing or stealing democratic elections, thwarting what the Kremlin portrays as U.S. attempts at regime change. As Marc Champion and Henry Meyer write, it's part of a wider policy of confrontation with the West that forced Biden to pay attention, resulting in his decision to invite President Vladimir Putin for talks tomorrow. Biden warned Putin that ties would be severely damaged if opposition leader Alexey Navalny were to die in prison. Putin will bring a laundry list of issues to his first summit with Biden in Geneva even as the Kremlin says there's little chance for a breakthrough. Real estate prices around the world are flashing the kind of bubble warnings that haven't been seen since the run-up to the 2008 financial crisis, according to Bloomberg Economics. Data check | Apple is facing renewed scrutiny in Washington over its compliance with secret Trump-era subpoenas for data on more than 100 users including U.S. lawmakers, highlighting the bind tech companies find themselves in when obliged to satisfy law enforcement demands. Threat to Africa | Endowed with huge oil reserves, plenty of arable land and a young, tech-savvy population of 206 million, Nigeria had the potential to break onto the global stage after the end of military rule in 1999. Instead, as Alonso Soto outlines, policy missteps and entrenched corruption have left a country that makes up a quarter of Africa's economy a dangerous cauldron of ethnic tension and criminality. Collateral damage | The trauma of India's devastating Covid-19 outbreak is now emerging, with tech companies that support Wall Street banks and Silicon Valley giants trying to address the mental-health fallout for a generation of young workers. Saritha Rai reports that in-house psychologists are seeing an extraordinary spike in those struggling to deal with the aftermath, with firms reporting significant falls in productivity. Paid Post Southern California Edison is leading the charge for clean, more renewable energy. We're a national leader in solar delivery. We're striving to cut emissions from buildings and freeways. And we proudly support the fastest growing green jobs in the nation. Southern California Edison What to Watch The EU is set to lift travel restrictions for U.S. residents as soon as this week. Rising Covid-19 cases in Africa are "especially concerning" because the region has the least access to vaccines, diagnostics and oxygen, said World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. Volkswagen's chief executive officer criticized G-7 leaders for failing to set a firm date to phase out coal power, saying it's senseless to let electric vehicles run on dirty energy. And finally ... Companies from London to New York and Toronto to Berlin are formalizing and even extending Covid-era flexible-work options, often with liberal limits on where employees can commute from and for how long. "The remote job is the new ping-pong table," says one startup employee of the perks used to lure talent. But tax headaches may loom alongside the dream of working from the beach for this new generation of jet-setters. A stack of kayak and surfboards on the beach in Captiva Island, Florida in April. Photographer: Lisette Morales/Bloomberg     Like Balance of Power? Get unlimited access to Bloomberg.com, where you'll find trusted, data-based journalism in 120 countries around the world and expert analysis from exclusive daily newsletters.   You received this message because you are subscribed to Bloomberg's Balance of Power newsletter. Unsubscribe | Bloomberg.com | Contact Us Bloomberg L.P. 731 Lexington, New York, NY, 10022