Estimated reading time: 9 minutes

Your Monday morning coffee briefing from TFG:

• EU unveils 2040 Agriculture vision, ambitious plan to boost European farming
• TDM economic insight: New US tariffs focus on auto supply chains
• Standard Chartered first to adopt ICC’s Principles for Sustainable Trade Finance
• British, Swedish, and Norwegian development banks collaborate on $85mn investment in agribusinesses in Africa
• Merz’s election victory signals German pivot from US ties
• DCSA releases new Booking and Bill of Lading standards with security and compliance updates

EU unveils 2040 Agriculture vision, ambitious plan to boost European farming

On 18 February, the EU unveiled the “Vision for Agriculture and Food,” its ambitious new roadmap to boost the European agricultural sector, making it more resilient and internationally competitive.  Read more →

TDM economic insight: New US tariffs focus on auto supply chains

As the world’s top consumer market, the US has leverage in controlling access to its markets, and many of its outsourcing manufacturers now seek countries to replace China and other targets for tariffs on more favourable terms. Read more →

Standard Chartered first to adopt ICC’s Principles for Sustainable Trade Finance

Standard Chartered has become the first international bank to fully adopt the International Chamber of Commerce’s (ICC) Principles for Sustainable Trade Finance, the bank announced yesterday from its Singapore headquarters. Read more →

British, Swedish, and Norwegian development banks collaborate on $85mn investment in agribusinesses in Africa

British International Investment (BII), the UK’s development bank, announced on Thursday, 20 February, its collaboration with Swedfund and Norfund to invest in AgDevCo, a specialist investor supporting smallholder farmers in sub-Saharan Africa.  Read more →

Merz’s election victory signals German pivot from US ties

Merz’s top priority is now creating strong a intraregional network within Europe so that “step by step, we can really achieve independence from the US.” Read more →

DCSA releases new Booking and Bill of Lading standards with security and compliance updates

The Digital Container Shipping Association (DCSA) announced yesterday the release of the final version of its Booking 2.0 and Bill of Lading 3.0 standards, which set universal frameworks on the treatment of key trade documents and the communication between shippers and carriers.  Read more →

• Ready-made factoring: Fast-track finance or one-size-fits-none?
• All roads lead to Saudi: The digital transformation driving economic diversification
• Surecomp acquires UK trade finance solution provider ELCY in digital push
• Subsidies for services: Insights from the TISMOS and GTA Databases
• DCSA releases new Booking and Bill of Lading standards with security and compliance updates
• Irish exports hit record €224bn while trade with UK falters
• Argentina deepens key shipping canal and lowers tariffs, chasing international trade
• Asian currencies stay strong in the face of Trump tariffs

Ready-made factoring: Fast-track finance or one-size-fits-none?

Unlike custom-built systems that require significant development and coding to adapt to specific processes, ready-made software is offered as a standardised, off-the-shelf product. Read more →

All roads lead to Saudi: The digital transformation driving economic diversification

At the BAFT MENA Bank to Bank Forum in Dubai, Michael O’Loughlin, founder of OLOUGHLIN.io Global Business Advisory, delivered a keynote speech titled “All Roads Lead to Saudi”, providing a firsthand look at their Vision 2030 initiative.  Read more →

Surecomp acquires UK trade finance solution provider ELCY in digital push

Trade finance software provider Surecomp has acquired UK-based ELCY Limited in a move to consolidate the increasingly digital trade finance landscape. Read more →

Subsidies for services: Insights from the TISMOS and GTA Databases

The service sector trade also continues to grow faster than goods trade. Yet little is known about the range of selective policy interventions deployed in services sectors. Read more →

DCSA releases new Booking and Bill of Lading standards with security and compliance updates

The Digital Container Shipping Association (DCSA) announced yesterday the release of the final version of its Booking 2.0 and Bill of Lading 3.0 standards, which set universal frameworks on the treatment of key trade documents and the communication between shippers and carriers.  Read more →

Irish exports hit record €224bn while trade with UK falters

Ireland’s international trade reached new heights in 2024, with exports surging to a record €224 billion despite significant disruption in UK trade relations, official data showed yesterday. Read more →

Argentina deepens key shipping canal and lowers tariffs, chasing international trade

Argentina announced yesterday it plans to deepen the Paraná, the continent’s second-longest river and a crucial shipping channel linking the South American continent to the Atlantic Ocean. Read more →

Asian currencies stay strong in the face of Trump tariffs

At the start of this week, Asian currencies have shown strength brought about by rising foreign reserves and financial derivatives. This comes amid worries about domestic currencies’ positions compared to a strong dollar in the face of tariffs. Read more →

• CBAM under threat: Slow climate tech adoption threatens climate compliances for SMEs
• Brazil and India explore long-term trade agreement for pulses
• Argentina deepens key shipping canal and lowers tariffs, chasing international trade
• Fintech start-up ETR Digital launches digital trade finance platform
• BP U-turns from renewables to mitigate profit slump
• Trade finance registry launches real-time bill of lading verification in Singapore

CBAM under threat: Slow climate tech adoption threatens climate compliances for SMEs

The complexity of supply chains and the extensive data required for accurate carbon calculations necessitate robust technological integration – a resource that remains largely inaccessible and prohibitively expensive for MSMEs. Read more →

Brazil and India explore long-term trade agreement for pulses

Najla Souza, Director at IBRAFE, the Brazilian Institute of Beans and Pulses, has highlighted the need for long-term trade policies between Brazil and India to ensure stability and growth in the pulses trade. Read more →

Argentina deepens key shipping canal and lowers tariffs, chasing international trade

Argentina announced yesterday it plans to deepen the Paraná, the continent’s second-longest river and a crucial shipping channel linking the South American continent to the Atlantic Ocean.  Read more →

Fintech start-up ETR Digital launches digital trade finance platform

ETR Digital, a new fintech venture, is bringing to market a new easily deployable tech application designed to digitise negotiable instruments, as traditional paper-based trade documentation continues to give way to electronic alternatives. Read more →

BP U-turns from renewables to mitigate profit slump

BP is expected to announce on 26 February that it will scale back its renewable energy commitments and increase fossil fuel production. The company is likely to abandon its target of 50GW of renewable generation capacity by 2030. Read more →

Trade finance registry launches real-time bill of lading verification in Singapore

The Trade Finance Registry (TFR), a central trade finance registry in Singapore, and SGTraDex, a digital data-sharing platform for supply chain partners, have unveiled a new automated system for Singapore-based banks to verify bills of lading in real time. Read more →

• Five big trends in Global South country risk in the coming year
• The Trump tariffs begin
• When would you issue a letter of credit available by deferred payment?
• Visa report reveals growing cross-border payments market shifting towards security
• UAE trade reaches all-time high amid increased international collaboration
• Navigating the complex web of trade finance fraud and TBML
• OPEC Fund secures £40m Paraguay SME finance deal
• Trump targets Chinese consumer imports as trade leaders remain cautiously optimistic

Five big trends in Global South country risk in the coming year

What are the top political, security, and economic trends and risks shaping Africa and the Middle East in 2025? This research and analysis is provided by PANGEA-RISK and distributed in partnership with Trade Finance Global. Read more →

The Trump tariffs begin

Trump admitted on Sunday that there may be “some pain” from his tariffs, “but […] it will all be worth the price that must be paid.” Trade wars rarely have victors, but those who suffer the most are invariably the poorest. Read more →

When would you issue a letter of credit available by deferred payment?

A deferred payment credit, or letter of credit (LC) available by deferred payment, specifies a tenor for payment of drawings under the LC.  Read more →

Visa report reveals growing cross-border payments market shifting towards security

Despite a growing range of cross-border payments providers, most users still haven’t found a single trusted platform, instead using multiple different methods and platforms according to their specific needs.  Read more →

UAE trade reaches all-time high amid increased international collaboration

The Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreements (CEPA), a wide-ranging bilateral trade pact the UAE has signed with 6 countries from India to Israel, contributed to boosting growth and increasingly diverse trading partners and sources of revenue. Read more →

Navigating the complex web of trade finance fraud and TBML

Economic warfare, such as the sanctions on Russian oil, is driving new fraud tactics in trade finance, particularly through ship-to-ship transfers on the high seas. Read more →

OPEC Fund secures £40m Paraguay SME finance deal

The OPEC Fund for International Development (OPEC Fund) has orchestrated a £40 million syndicated loan facility to boost small business lending in Paraguay, marking its first collaboration with the UAE’s Commercial Bank of Dubai in the nation. Read more →

Trump targets Chinese consumer imports as trade leaders remain cautiously optimistic

Trump’s new package of tariffs removes the de minimis exception, which had allowed shipments with a value of under $800 to bypass customs checks and be exempt from tariffs. Read more →