Bloomberg The first punches have been thrown in a potential trade war and now Xi Jinping is poised to match Donald Trump with a tit for tat response. The next flurry of jabs may be imminent. In his announcement of tariffs on Chinese goods on June 16, Trump vowed additional duties if China retaliated — which Beijing immediately did. Details ...

Bloomberg Ivan Duque, a 41-year-old lawyer and former senator who wants to modify parts of a peace process and cut corporate taxes, will be Colombia’s next president following a decisive election victory on June 17. Duque, who spent half his adult life in Washington, is the protege of former President Alvaro Uribe, a polarising security hard-liner. Whether he’ll be able ...

Bloomberg In their first two weeks in power, Italy’s populist leaders sparked a dispute with France over immigration and threatened to scupper a landmark EU trade pact with Canada. It’s hardly the way to make friends with European partners in key deciding positions when Italy seeks approval for the big-spending budget plan it will submit to Brussels in four months. ...