ECONOMICS DESK

EU CHIEF URSULA VON Der Leyen’s claim that her total capitulation to Donald Trump on tariffs brought certainty, is being described as the certainty of the firing squad by a top economist.

“I suppose the one good thing is that there will only be 15% tariffs on European exports (50% on steel and aluminium) to the US, so it might have been worse,” says economics expert Dr Milton Vienna Schuul. “If Trump doesn’t suddenly change his mind. The EU folded easier than a newly-ironed sheet, and would probably fold again if The Donald suddenly came back for more. Certainty is all very well, but the certainty of the firing squad is lethal.”