US Trade Deficit Narrows to $101.5 Billion as Tariffs Reshape Winners and Losers

The European Union is demanding concrete action from China to rebalance trade with the EU, setting a deadline for initial results by this October and warning that it will use every tool at its disposal if there is no progress. EU Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič held a phone call with Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao on September 17, covering issues including the management of goods exported to the EU, greater market access in China for European companies, and controls on rare earth exports. European Commission spokesperson Olof Gill said serious negotiations remain important, but the EU wants to see concrete initial results from the meeting in Beijing in October, which will show whether both sides are moving from words to outcomes. The EU currently runs a trade deficit with China of more than 1 billion euros, or 1.1 billion dollars, per day, prompting the European Commission, as well as Germany, to keep up pressure on China. EU leaders are scheduled to discuss and consider countermeasures to China's trade practices in mid-October. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen warned on September 16 that the trade deficit with China has reached a critical turning point, and that while some see the EU as facing a second China shock, it has already arrived. Šefčovič stressed to reporters that he wants to see a clear signal that negotiations will move toward concrete positive results during next month's visit to China, where discussions will cover ways to increase exports of European goods to China as well as adjustments to customs tariff conditions.

General Motors has started supplying missile-housing components for Lockheed Martin's Patriot PAC-3 MSE interceptors, delivering its first batch in August. Lockheed said GM completed work that typically takes months in three weeks. CEO Mary Barra told analysts this summer she expects $700 million of defense revenue this year at double-digit margins. The opportunity comes as Lockheed Martin faces a significant production ramp, with the Pentagon ordering it to more than triple Patriot output to over 2,000 missiles a year by the end of 2030 while constrained suppliers make scaling difficult. The most advanced Patriot costs over $4 million and takes more than two years to reach the customer, with many key parts largely handmade and sourced from single suppliers such as Boeing, which makes the seeker.