Trump's arm-twisting on trade gives businesses little clarity on way forward
In fact, his recent announcements on trade deals with Vietnam, Indonesia, the Philippines and Japan raise more questions and doubts.
A container truck driving past the Manila skyline. This week, US President Donald Trump announced three new trade deals with Asian partners.
US President Donald Trump has spent his first six months in office determined to remake the global trade landscape.
This week, he announced three new trade deals with Asian partners that will result in dramatically higher tariff levels applied to imports as well as new market openings for American exports.
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Straits Times
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Find out what's new on ST website and app. Venerable Shi Yongxin took office in 1999 as abbot of the famous temple, and had faced similar allegations in 2015. BEIJING - Chinese authorities are investigating the head of the temple where gongfu was born over alleged embezzlement and other misconduct, the monastery said. Abbot Shi Yongxin, known as the 'CEO monk' for establishing dozens of companies abroad, is suspected of embezzling project funds and temple assets, the Shaolin Temple said in a statement on WeChat on July 27 . It said Abbot Shi had seriously violated Buddhist precepts, including by allegedly engaging in 'improper relationships with multiple women. Multiple departments were conducting a joint investigation, the temple said. Abbot Shi has previously been accused by former monks of embezzling money from a temple-run company, maintaining a fleet of luxury cars and fathering children with multiple women. China's government exercises authority over the appointment of religious leaders, and improper conduct is often grounds for removal from office. A hashtag related to the temple scandal had been viewed over 560 million times on social media platform Weibo, as at the morning of July 28 . Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Tanjong Katong sinkhole backfilled; road to be repaved after LTA tests Singapore Tanjong Katong Road sinkhole did not happen overnight: Experts Singapore Authorities say access to Changi intertidal areas unaffected by reclamation, in response to petition Singapore SIA flights between S'pore and Cambodia, S'pore and Thailand, operating normally amid border dispute Singapore Police statements by doctor in fake vaccine case involving Iris Koh allowed in court: Judge Singapore New Mandai North Crematorium, ash-scattering garden to open on Aug 15 Singapore Not feasible for S'pore to avoid net‑zero; all options to cut energy emissions on table: Tan See Leng Singapore With regional interest in nuclear energy rising, S'pore must build capabilities too: Tan See Leng The last post to the abbot's personal account on Weibo declared: 'when one's own nature is pure, the pure land is here in the present'. Abbot Shi faced similar allegations in 2015 which the temple called vicious libel. The 59-year-old took office as abbot in 1999 and in the following decades expanded Shaolin studies and cultural knowledge overseas. He helped the temple in China's Henan province to establish dozens of companies – but received backlash for commercialising Buddhism. The temple, established in AD495 , is known as the birthplace of Zen Buddhism and Chinese gongfu . Abbot Shi was first elected vice-chairman of the Buddhist Association of China in 2002 and has served as a representative to the National People's Congress, the country's top lawmaking body. AFP
Business Times
21 minutes ago
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South Korea pitches Trump on shipyards for last-minute trade deal
[SEOUL] South Korea is pitching the US on a shipbuilding partnership as a key proposal to seal a last-minute agreement to avoid a 25 per cent tariff rate. While details remain unclear, Yonhap News reported that South Korea has proposed a multi-billion dollar project dubbed 'Make American Shipbuilding Great Again'. South Korea's Industry Ministry declined to comment. 'We confirmed the US side's strong interest in the shipbuilding sector and the two countries agreed to work together to develop mutually acceptable terms that include shipbuilding cooperation,' South Korea's presidential office said on Saturday (Jul 26). As countries across Asia clinched deals last week, Seoul's negotiators have been racing to stay engaged with their US counterparts as Washington shifted its focus to the European Union and China. The US and EU announced a pact on Sunday that will see the bloc face 15 per cent tariffs on most of its exports to the US, including automobiles. The latest agreement, which follows a Japan deal last week, adds to the pressure on Asia's fourth-largest economy to clinch a deal. South Korea, where negotiations have been slowed by internal political turmoil, is one of the biggest Asian economies to still be without a deal. Aside from China, other major exporters in the region that are in the thick of negotiations include India and Taiwan. South Korea's finance and foreign ministers are set to meet with their US counterparts this week in a last-minute bid to close the negotiations and the government in Seoul has said the two countries are committed to making a deal before US President Donald Trump's Aug 1 deadline. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up Also on the table is increased access to South Korea's agricultural market, as well as a fund to invest in American projects similar to an agreement Japan struck. Under the deal, the two sides touted a US$550 billion fund as part of the agreement on the tariff rate dropping to 15 per cent. The South Korean talks are similarly focused on reaching a 15 per cent tariff rate, including for autos, and the recent proposals suggest a comparable structure. Putting agricultural imports on the table raises the stakes for South Korea's new government. Past efforts to open the country's beef market sparked nationwide protests and any shift on rice imports could face even stiffer resistance. Barring a deal, Bloomberg Economics estimates a 1.7 per cent hit to South Korea's gross domestic product, with market volatility and uncertainty threatening to push the GDP losses beyond that. Overseas shipments were equivalent to more than 40 per cent of South Korea's GDP last year. 'Japan's trade deal paints a positive backdrop but also sets a high bar for others,' Morgan Stanley economist Kathleen Oh said in a note last week. 'Korea and Taiwan may need to ramp up new investment schemes to increase agricultural and energy imports and expand market access, as seen in Japan's case.' BLOOMBERG
Straits Times
43 minutes ago
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Boeing emerges as a winner in Trump's trade wars
US President Donald Trump and President and CEO of Boeing Kelly Ortberg attending a roundtable discussion in Doha, Qatar, in May. WASHINGTON - There are typically not many winners in a trade war, but Boeing appears to be reaping some rewards from the one started by US President Donald Trump. The aerospace company has received a steady stream of new orders as part of trade deals between the United States and other countries. These sales could be a boon for Boeing as it emerges from years of bruising crises. They also allow Mr Trump to claim that his unconventional trade policies are helping American manufacturing. Orders for hundreds of Boeing jets have been announced in deals with Indonesia and Japan in Jult, as well as Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Qatar earlier in 2025. 'Ever since his first term, his trade deals have generally involved these kinds of purchase agreements,' said Mr Bruce Hirsh, a trade policy expert at Capitol Counsel, a lobbying firm in Washington that has clients in the aerospace industry. 'Our trading partners know this, so they're looking for these kinds of big-ticket items that they can offer to purchase.' Some aviation analysts are sceptical that US trade negotiators had to twist arms to persuade countries to buy Boeing planes. Airlines, including those controlled by foreign governments, plan such expensive purchases carefully and over months, if not years. Moreover, airlines have few choices, since Boeing and Airbus of France are the only two suppliers of large commercial jets. Still, those experts said, it was not surprising that Mr Trump and his aides have made a point of highlighting new Boeing orders as part of their trade deals. The company employs tens of thousands of Americans and is one of the country's top exporters. Wall Street has also taken note of the announcement of new orders, and Boeing's share price has climbed steadily since early April, when Mr Trump announced steep new tariffs on many countries. Analysts note that the trade deal announcements could generate even more orders. That is because customers who have not placed orders may feel pressure to buy planes now or risk having to wait when they need them. Planes ordered today will typically be delivered years from now. Boeing, which declined to comment for this article, has seemed to welcome Mr Trump's interest in its business. Boeing chief executive Kelly Ortberg joined Mr Trump on a May visit to the Middle East, during which the Qatar deal was announced. 'If the president of the country says, 'Come with me and be certain that we sign something big that says there will be many jobs in the US', what will you do?' said Mr Adam Pilarski, president of Avitas, an aviation consulting firm. But Mr Pilarski and other experts cautioned that the orders might not be nearly as substantial as they seemed. The administration, other countries and Boeing have offered few details about the deals, suggesting that at least some are still subject to complex negotiations between the manufacturer and airlines. In July, for example, Mr Trump said Indonesia had agreed to buy 50 Boeing jets. Later, however, an Indonesian official said the deal was still being hashed out between Garuda, a state-owned airline, and Boeing. 'I suspect these orders are, as we used to joke at air shows, Mouthls – memoranda of understanding to have lunch,' said Mr Richard Aboulafia, a managing director at AeroDynamic Advisory, a consulting firm. 'The real hard work of contract negotiation and finance package negotiation takes place after the President's plane has left the country.' Even if the orders are confirmed with formal contracts, many probably would have been placed even without Mr Trump's intervention, experts said. In May, Qatar Airways, a large airline that operates many long-distance flights, placed an order for 150 of Boeing's wide-body planes. The announcement was notably thorough. 'They involved press conferences, shaking hands, everything but the proverbial kissing of the babies,' said Mr Courtney Miller, managing director of Visual Approach Analytics, an aviation consulting firm. That deal, he said, probably would have been placed anyway, even if the timing had been accelerated to align with Mr Trump's visit. While some orders may be the result of real political pressure, even then a lot can change by the time the planes are ready to be delivered. Boeing and Airbus each have thousands of planes on order, accounting for many years of production. In that time, airlines can back out of agreements, though they may have to forfeit deposits. Customers can also ask Boeing or Airbus to delay deliveries or reduce their orders. A manufacturer may be willing to make such changes, especially if doing so will allow it to sell those planes to another airline that is desperate for new jets. The tariffs Mr Trump has imposed may threaten the financial health of Boeing's suppliers, and the prospects of retaliation by US trading partners like the European Union could hurt the plane maker's sales. Last week, budget airline Ryanair said it would consider deferring deliveries of Boeing planes if European officials imposed tariffs on American planes. European leaders may take other steps that could hurt Boeing. If the trade deals that the US strikes with other countries give Boeing too big an advantage, Europe could try to entice other countries to order more planes from Airbus, experts said. 'If this game is going to be played, the question is, in the long term, who plays it better?' Mr Miller said. 'It has reopened a very old dynamic of aligning aircraft and airline economics with geopolitical favour.' NYTIMES
