EU-U.S. tortuous trade talks
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EU governments are struggling to reach consensus on a mandate to begin trade talks with the U.S., risking a delay that would further provoke President Trump to hit the bloc with steep auto tariffs
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2016
2016: Obama-era Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) talks stall amid fears agriculture deal with Washington would undermine EU food and health standards

2017
January 2017: U.S. President Donald Trump (top) takes office. TTIP talks shelved

April: Wilbur Ross (far right), Trump’s top trade official, hosts, EU’s trade commissioner, Cecilia Malmström (right), to discuss TTIP and reduction of $151 billion trade deficit in goods with EU

2018
June 2018: Trump administration hits EU with tariffs of 25% on steel, 10% on aluminium, plus tariffs on Spanish olives. EU retaliates with tariffs on €2.8 billion ($3.3bn) of U.S. goods

July: European Commission President Jean-Claude Junker (right) meets Trump – they agree to hold free trade talks and suspend threat of 25% U.S. levy on EU automobiles EU-U.S. automobile trade (2018)
    
EU to U.S. €37.3bn
 U.S. to EU €5.5bn

2019
January 2019: U.S. insists talks must include agriculture

February 17: Ross sends “Section 232” national security report to White House, justifying steep tariffs on imported cars and auto parts. Trump has 90 days to decide whether to act

March 7: Malmström calls for politically sensitive agricultural products to be omitted from talks

March 14: European Parliament votes against backing launch of EU-U.S. trade talks. Parliament can veto any deal negotiated by European Commission
  
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Sources: ACEA, CSIS, Reuters Pictures Associated Press © GRAPHIC NEWS