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U.S. issues new tariff threat, this time against British-built cars

WASHINGTON — Britain is the United States' closest ally but their long friendship may be sorely tested as the two countries try to forge a new trade agreement after Britain's exit from the European Union. U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said on Saturday in London that he was optimistic that a bilateral deal with Britain could be reached as soon as this year. But Mnuchin gave up no ground after a second meeting with his UK counterpart, Sajid Javid. Javid has insisted that Britain will proceed with a unilateral digital services tax, despite a U.S. threat to levy retaliatory tariffs on British-made autos. Mnuchin told reporters after Saturday's meeting that such taxes would discriminate against big U.S. tech companies like Alphabet Inc's Google, Apple, Facebook and Amazon. The UK Treasury declined to comment on the private meeting. The divide highlights the challenges ahead as the Trump administration seeks a new bilateral agreement with Britain, part of a broader push to rebalance relations with nearly all its major trading partners. The stakes are high — British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has pegged the trade deal with United States as a way to ease the pain of breaking with Europe, Britain's largest trade partner. U.S. President Donald Trump, has promised a "massive" trade deal to support Brexit, the product of a populist movement similar to his "America First" agenda. The goodwill and special relationship the two countries have enjoyed for decades may not count for much, experts say. "Trump is not going to be doing Johnson any favors," said Amanda Sloat, a senior fellow with the Brookings Institution in Washington. "He's not going to give him a trade deal without major concessions." Even before the digital tax issue arose, the Trump administration threatened to tax foreign car imports, which could hit British-made Jaguar, Land Rover, Mini, and Honda Civic hatchback cars. Stiff U.S. trade demands include increased access for U.S. farm goods, concessions that will be difficult for Britain's entrenched natural food culture to swallow. The United States also wants Britain to change the way its National Health Service prices drugs and allow in more U.S. pharmaceuticals, which could prove politically unpopular for Johnson's government. Washington's demand that London block Chinese telecoms equipment maker Huawei Technologies Co Ltd for national security reasons could also cloud talks.

Environmental group accuses BMW, JLR of link to deforestation in Paraguay

ASUNCION, Paraguay — Environmental group Earthsight said on Wednesday it has linked some of Europe's largest carmakers to the deforestation of the Chaco, a dry forest region of Paraguay home to jaguars and one of the last uncontacted indigenous groups in the world. The group said in a report that livestock companies have illegally logged lands of the Ayoreo Totobiegosode indigenous ethnic group, some of whose members live in voluntary isolation. The livestock skin is used in leather upholstery of luxury vehicles sold by high-end European auto brands including BMW, Jaguar and Land Rover, the group said. UK-based Earthsight said it had made covert visits to tanneries that bragged about supplying the raw material to the luxury car brands. "BMW is using hides sourced from two slaughterhouses processing cows from ranches responsible for illegal [logging] in the Ayoreo Totobiegosode's forests. Jaguar Land Rover didn't dispute sourcing from a Paraguayan tannery that processes hides from another slaughterhouse doing the same," the report said. Jaguar Land Rover said in a statement to Reuters it had found no evidence to verify Earthsight's claims. It said its European suppliers assured sustainability. "We continue  our drive for further transparency and, in this case, the leather supplier in Europe verifies with each raw material supplier that no rural property that directly supplies it is involved in illegal deforestation," the automaker said. BMW did not respond to a request for comment on the Earthsight investigation. Paraguay exports about 50,000 tons of wet-blue leather (tanned, but not dried, dyed or finished) a year, and almost two-thirds of those shipments are bound for Europe, according to the report. Automakers say that leather is a byproduct of the far larger meat industry and high-end cars constitute a comparatively small market niche. But indigenous leaders say deforestation driven by growth in beef and leather exports is encroaching on their territory and destroying their way of life. "As deforestation advances with extensive cattle ranching, they are being imprisoned, they are disappearing," Taguide Picanerai, a spokesman for the Ayoreo community in the Alto Paraguay department, northwest of Asuncion, told Reuters. The region is home to some of the world's highest rates of deforestation, Earthsight said.   Green BMW Jaguar Land Rover

Jaguars and Land Rovers to feature in 007's Spectre

James Bond may be more closely associated with Aston Martin, but Jaguars and Land Rovers have featured in 007 movies new and old. Skyfall, the most recent installment in the series, opened with Bond and Moneypenny ripping through the streets of Istanbul in a Defender and saw M being chauffeured around London in an XJ. And the upcoming feature Spectre is set to feature some of JLR's finest as well. While Bond himself will be piloting the new Aston Martin DB10, the movie will also feature a Jag and a couple of Landies. The Jaguar C-X75 concept, as we know, will be part of a chase scene against the DB10, now revealed to be set in Rome. But the movie will also include the new Range Rover Sport SVR (with what looks like some auxiliary lighting) and at least two Defenders modified by JLR Special Operations to "Big Foot" specifications with 37-inch off-road tires, upgraded suspensions and added bodywork protection. As you may recall, a couple of months ago a fleet of nine vehicles used in the film were stolen from a garage in Dusseldorf, including five Range Rover Sports. This is the first confirmation we're seeing of any of them being SVR models, or of the Big Foot Defenders being part of the mix as well. The scenes including the Land Rovers have already been filmed in Austria, and we're looking forward to seeing them all on the silver screen come November. Related Video: JAGUAR AND LAND ROVER ANNOUNCE PARTNERSHIP WITH SPECTRE, THE 24TH JAMES BOND ADVENTURE - Continuing Jaguar Land Rover's successful involvement with the Bond franchise, Jaguar C-X75, Range Rover Sport SVRandLand Rover Defender Big Foot to feature in new James Bond movie, SPECTRE - C-X75 concept vehicles will form part of spectacular chase scene in Rome Monday 9 Feb 2015 12:01 GMT: Jaguar Land Rover has announced its line-up of vehicles set to feature in SPECTRE, the 24th James Bond adventure, from Albert R. Broccoli's EON Productions, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios, and Sony Pictures Entertainment. These will include the Jaguar C-X75, Range Rover Sport SVR and Defender Big Foot, which have been provided by Jaguar Land Rover Special Operations. The Jaguar C-X75 will feature in a spectacular car chase sequence through Rome alongside the Aston Martin DB10. The C-X75 vehicles used in filming have been built in collaboration with Williams Advanced Engineering facility in Oxfordshire, England.