The European Union and the US believe they can clinch some form of a trade agreement before a July 9 deadline, when Washington is set to impose a 50% tariff on nearly all EU products and the bloc plans to unleash its own series of countermeasures.

The European Union and the U.S. are confident they'll reach some form of agreement before a U.S.-imposed July 9 deadline that will avert the 50% tariff on EU goods and the countermeasures the EU has threatened,

European Union leaders considered new US trade proposals ahead of the July 9 deadline for US President Donald Trump's tariffs at a Brussels summit on Thursday. They also addressed the Mercosur trade agreement,