Utah's strong trade relationship with Ireland highlighted by visit from Irish minister of state
On Saturday, Dillon will serve as grand marshal of Salt Lake City's St. Patrick's Day parade.
Dillon's visit comes shortly after the creation of the Utah-Ireland Trade Commission, and Dillon highlighted that strong relationship between his country and Utah.
Dillon's visit also coincided with the U.S. and European Union imposing ever increasing tariffs on one another, and came just one day after the Irish prime minister visited the White House.
The minister was joined by Ireland's consul general to the South Western United States, Marcella Smyth, and Stephen Keogh from Ireland's Industrial Development Agency.
Smyth said that Dillon's visit is the first time Utah has had a Irish government minister visit for St. Patrick's Day.
The minister spoke about the strong relationship between Utah and Ireland and how that relationship can continue to grow as the two continue to invest in and trade with each other.
Jonathan Freedman, CEO of World Trade Center Utah, shared that Utah has a trade surplus with Ireland and that the country is Utah's 15th largest trade partner.
'This is Utah's moment to shine where we want to and to show up and be great partners,' Freedman said.
Dillon said that when he arrived in the state he was 'struck by the similarities between Ireland and Utah.' These similarities include high success in life science and health care.
Dillon also emphasized why Ireland is so attractive to do business with, especially because of its young, educated and multilingual workforce. He pointed out the country's, ambition and resilience, and its commitment to innovation, education and sustainability.
'This investment not only creates jobs but enhance the overall economic landscape,' the minister said about how working with Ireland benefits Utah.
SB106, passed during the just finished 2025 Utah legislative session, establishes a trade commission between Utah and Ireland within the Governor's Office of Economic Opportunity. The bill passed through the Legislature last week.
The commission will have 11 members, six from the Utah Legislature and five appointed by the office's executive director.
Jim Grover from the Governor's Office of Economic Opportunity, said that this commission will help to promote and encourage the things that Utah is already doing with Ireland to build on that.
Dillon added that this commission will be very important for both Utah and Ireland.
This week the EU announced it will be imposing 50% tariffs on U.S. whiskey and other U.S. products starting on April 1. These tariffs were announced in response to the U.S. imposing tariffs on steel aluminum and other products.
In retaliation to EU's tariffs on American products, Trump threatened to impose 200% tariffs on wine and champagne from EU members.
About the recent tariff battle between the U.S. and the EU, Dillon said his country regrets the current U.S. policy of increasing protectionism and tariffs.
The minister said tariffs are economically counterproductive, adding that they increase inflation, interrupt supply chains and can cost consumers on both sides. He added that both the U.S. and the EU are going to be hurt by these tariffs.
Dillon said Ireland's government is currently reviewing what the impact of the tariffs will be and that leaders are still unsure which sectors will be impacted. Ireland is working with EU partners to coordinate a response.
Dillon said that the EU will engage as a collective whole in relation to any response to the tariffs.
Freedman also spoke about the tariffs, saying that 'it's never been more important for Utah to work with foreign companies,' and that he wants Utah to continue to be a good partner.
He also shared that these tariffs impact real jobs for Utahns; 25% of jobs in Utah are dependent on international trade.
Ireland Prime Minister Micheál Martin visited the White House Wednesday as part of a St. Patrick's Day celebration and met with Trump in the Oval Office.
According to Dillon, Martin's visit demonstrated the warmth between the U.S. and strong decades-long relationship between the two countries. He added that Ireland wants to continue to build on that relationship.
Dillon said the U.S. and the EU should 'work together rather than against each other.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Miami Herald
23 minutes ago
- Miami Herald
Federal Reserve official gives green light to July rate cut
Is tariff inflation lagging, only to then burst and slip away? Or is it here to stay? Don't miss the move: Subscribe to TheStreet's free daily newsletter Just ask Federal Reserve Governor Christopher J. Waller. Waller, a Trump appointee, surprised some Fed watchers late last month. He opined the Federal Open Markets Committee should cut the Federal Funds Rate at its July 29-30 meeting, citing slower-than-expected inflation data that wasn't going to be as hot as expected. Related: JPMorgan drops blunt forecast on future interest rate cuts Waller doubled down on that position July 17, saying the latest data, including the June CPI figure at 2.7% and other recent economic numbers, show it's definitely time for the Fed's first rate cut in 2025. But will the rest of Fed leadership vote for it? Image source: Bloomberg/Getty Images The tariffs, which President Donald Trump announced on "Liberation Day'' in April, now face an Aug. 1 deadline. They are the highest in nine decades, ranging from 10% to 50% on imported goods and services. An interest rate cut has been the mantra of President Trump for months, saying the current rates are holding back the American economy from robust growth. The Federal Reserve Board has one job: comply with the dual congressional mandate to maintain 2% inflation and keep unemployment rates stable with steady GDP growth. It uses interest rates as a tool to manage that balance. The Federal Open Meeting Committee (FOMC) is the Fed's 12-member policymaking panel headed by Fed Chair Jerome Powell. Related: Trump deflects reports on firing Fed Chair Powell 'soon' The FOMC has been holding the Federal Funds Rate steady at 4.25% to 4.50% in anticipation of inflation from President Trump's tariffs and trade wars. The Federal Funds Rate is the price the Fed charges U.S. banks to borrow money overnight. This, in turn, sets the pace for short-term costs of borrowing money, such as through credit cards and auto and student loans. The 10-year Treasury Bond yield is the benchmark for longer-term interest rates like the 30-year fixed mortgage, currently hovering around 6.8%. The market expectations for how the Fed will set rates in the future influence long-term rates. The president is calling for a hefty slash of 3%, saying it will benefit Americans looking to buy homes with lower mortgages and reduce interest on the trillions of dollars in the U.S. deficit. In addition, he believes it will kickstart the overall economy in tandem with the new tax reconciliation act once known as the One Big Beautiful Bill. He's also been calling Powell a rotating list of personal and professional nasty and vulgar names as well as threatening to fire him (which are likely illegal but still caused some wonky fireworks over D.C. this week.) The Trump administration and its allies say the tariffs impact will be transitory, meaning it will represent a one-time hit to prices but not multiply and ripple through permanently. And while past tariffs in modern U.S. history have proven to shock prices in the short term, they tend to settle back down over the long run, according to some economists. "I believe we should cut the policy rate at our meeting in two weeks," Waller said in a speech in New York June 17. He called for a Fed's policy rate of 3%, or 125-150 basis points lower than the current rate of 4.25%-4.5%. Waller advocated returning the Fed's policy settings to "neutral," meaning interest rates at a level that neither speeds up nor slows down business activity, The New York Times reported. "With inflation near target and the upside risks to inflation limited, we should not wait until the labor market deteriorates before we cut the policy rate," he said. More Federal Reserve: Fed interest rate cut decision resets forecasts for the rest of this yearFederal Reserve prepares strong message on long-term interest ratesFed official revamps interest-rate cut forecast for this year Waller has in the past defended his analysis as "not political." Earlier that day, former Fed governor Kevin Warsh said in a CNBC interview that the central bank was in need of a "regime change." Warsh was quick to say the independence of the Fed is essential, but just as quickly advocated for significant monetary policy adjustments. If Waller and Warsh sound vaguely familiar, their names have been circulating as President Trump's possible replacement for Powell when the chair's term expires in May 2026. The third name on that list appears to be Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. Powell has said he will not resign before the end of his term and emphasizes he is focusing on maintaining the Fed's dual mandate. Given the warming inflation seen in this week's CPI numbers for June, the unimpressive jobs numbers, and the unknown impact of the tariffs, Fed watchers expect the current rates will maintain their "wait-and-see" hold at the September FOMC meeting. The widely watched CME Group FedWatch Tool forecasts a Federal Funds Rate cut at 4.7% later this month. Related: June inflation numbers reset Fed interest rate cut expectations The Arena Media Brands, LLC THESTREET is a registered trademark of TheStreet, Inc.
Axios
an hour ago
- Axios
Trump comes for American lore with pop agenda
In his second term, President Trump is making a habit of taking action on topics plucked from America's popular imagination that had previously been non-existent in Washington's policy playbook. Why it matters: Trump's voracious appetite for generating attention and marketing his policies has bred ideas that inject the power of the presidency into deep recesses of American life and culture. Driving the news: This past week, Trump announced that Coca-Cola had agreed to use real cane sugar in Coke. For decades, high-fructose corn syrup has sweetened the drink. (The company hasn't confirmed his claim.) The topic has been steadily gaining attention in the U.S., with interest in Mexican Coke — which uses cane sugar — rising for years, according to Google Trends. The big picture: We all know "kitchen-table issues," the topics shaped by decades of campaign trail debates. But these are "group-chat issues" — stuff you'd text your friends about that doesn't usually get picked apart by policy wonks. Alcatraz: Trump stunned the country by announcing this spring that the notorious prison island — closed for more than 60 years — would be reopened. The move is inspired "more by symbolism than necessity," Axios' Marc Caputo reported. The penny: The administration took action on the ultimate pocketbook issue by announcing plans to discontinue the 1-cent coin. While the move makes economic cents — pennies now cost more to make than they're worth — the bigger impact could the cultural ripple of an extinct piece of American iconography. Gulf of America: Trump caught Americans off guard when he edited U.S. maps on his first week in office. The seemingly superficial move led to profound fallout over press freedom and geopolitics. JFK files: He indulged a decades-long national fascination about the JFK assassination by releasing 63,000 pages of records — a topic that had largely been left to amateur sleuths and conspiracy theorists. While the records added color to the understanding of the event, there were no bombshells. Reality check: Trump finds himself on the other side of a group-chat issue with his posture on the Jeffrey Epstein case. He is fighting against the populist current demanding more information and transparency around Epstein's sex trafficking operation, while disavowing his supporters who continue to press him. Zoom in: On some lesser-noticed, Seinfeldian issues, Trump addressed everyman gripes with the stroke of a pen.
San Francisco Chronicle
an hour ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
The U.S. is losing its biotech edge over China — and that's bad news for the Bay Area
From gene therapies to cancer breakthroughs, California has been the driving force behind America's biotechnology industry. But today, that edge is slipping. A National Security Commission on Emerging Biotechnology report to Congress in April stated that the U.S. is dangerously close to falling behind China in biotechnology innovation, and called for urgent investment and strategic coordination to maintain global leadership. Genentech's founding in 1976 in South San Francisco marked the start of the modern biotech era, and, ever since, California has been at the forefront of countless scientific discoveries and medical innovations. However, recent funding cuts and an overreliance on China for manufacturing pipelines leave our nation vulnerable. As the report urges, the U.S. must prioritize biotechnology at the national level or risk relying on China to use this strategic power for good. In 2011, the Chinese government declared biotechnology a ' strategic emerging industry ' and has since committed billions to secure dominance in areas like synthetic biology, gene editing and biomanufacturing. In 2024 alone, China conducted over 7,100 clinical drug trials, surpassing the United States and accounting for nearly 40% of global trial activity. Despite U.S. tariffs under the Trump administration designed to counter China's economic influence, China's gross domestic product has remained strong, fueling even greater investment in strategic sectors like biotechnology. By contrast, the U.S. continues to lose ground, constrained by outdated regulatory frameworks and a lack of coordinated federal strategy. While China is building a biotech empire with deliberate, state-backed coordination, the U.S. is stuck playing defense with shrinking budgets. U.S. federal support for biomedical research is slipping, with the budget for the National Institutes of Health facing a 40% cut in the coming year. For a region like the Bay Area, home to some of the world's most promising biotech startups and research institutions, these cuts have a direct toll, including the termination of $314 million in funding that was to be used to train the next generation of biomedical and health researchers. Major institutions like UCSF, Stanford and UC Berkeley are now bracing for delayed projects, staffing freezes and reductions in early-career fellowships that are vital to sustaining long-term innovation. On a national level, promising studies have been halted midstream, leaving research gaps in breakthrough treatments for cancer, Alzheimer's disease and other major infectious diseases that impact millions of Americans. When U.S. investment in domestic biotech falters, it slows innovation at home and creates an opening for global competitors to step in. China's government is strategically positioning its biotech sector to fill the gap left by stalled American research. Just last month, U.S. pharmaceutical firms signed 14 licensing deals with Chinese biotech companies worth up to $18.3 billion, underscoring our growing dependence on China's rapidly maturing R&D capabilities. This shift carries significant implications for California. It is home to over 16,500 life sciences companies and establishments, more than any other state, according to the California Biotechnology Foundation. The state directly employs more than 466,000 workers and generates more than $414 billion in annual economic output. In 2023, California led the nation in venture capital investment, raising over $34 billion for life science companies. Further, California accounted for 40% of all U.S. life sciences patents filed in 2023, and more bioscience patents are issued to California researchers than to those in any other state. Losing ground to China isn't just an economic risk; it's also a national security threat that could reshape who controls the future of health care. While the U.S. system is built on competition and patient outcomes, China's state-controlled model prioritizes strategic control and global influence. In America, ethical safeguards, transparency and regulatory review shape medical progress. In China, the government's control allows for faster approvals but also looser oversight, creating the risk of untested or misused science. The National Security Commission on Emerging Biotechnology warned that China's biotech advances could be weaponized — from battlefield-ready biologics to more nefarious applications. As a scientist working in biotechnology in the Bay Area, I understand that California plays a central role in this global race. From early-stage research in university labs to large-scale manufacturing by leading biotech firms, the state's infrastructure, talent and capital drive America's competitiveness. The Bay Area remains one of the most dense and productive biotech ecosystems in the world, thanks to its concentration of top-tier research institutions, world-class hospitals, a culture of entrepreneurship and the ability to attract the world's best and brightest to its academic and industrial ecosystem. But even here, the warning signs are hard to ignore. Federal NIH cuts have already disrupted major research projects at UC campuses, impacting our ability to attract talented students to our graduate and postdoctoral research programs, while venture capital is increasingly eyeing faster-moving regulatory environments abroad, preferring to license in late-stage assets from China instead of funding early-stage research at home. If Washington fails to prioritize a national biotech strategy, California's innovation engine could slow just as competitors abroad gain momentum. The state's economic future, public health leadership and ability to attract global talent are all at stake. China is no longer a distant biotech challenger and is actively reshaping the industry with its speed, regulatory agility and cost-efficiency, shifting the innovation center of gravity away from the U.S. The National Security Commission on Emerging Biotechnology has made clear that this is not just a matter of competition, but a strategic threat with long-term consequences for public health and national security. If America is to remain a global leader in biotechnology, we must urgently invest in our domestic research ecosystem and rebuild the infrastructure that has powered decades of discovery or be forced to surrender it to a rival that plays by different rules. Ash Jogalekar is a scientist and science writer based in the Bay Area. He is a scientist in residence at the Oppenheimer Project and works on emerging threats and technology risks in areas like biotechnology and AI.
