Morning Briefing: Top stories from The Straits Times on May 6, 2025
New MPs hit the ground running at Meet-the-People Sessions
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Business Times
3 days ago
- Business Times
Asia: Markets extend gains on US trade deal hopes
[HONG KONG] Asian markets extended the week's gains on Thursday on optimism other countries will follow up Japan's US trade deal with ones of their own, with speculation building that the European Union is on course. Investors have been on a roll in recent weeks on bets that governments will eventually hammer out pacts with Donald Trump ahead of the US president's Aug 1 deadline. The mood has been upbeat since news that Japan had reached a deal to lower sweeping tariffs from 25 per cent to 15 per cent, including those on the country's crucial car sector. The breakthrough fanned hopes that others were in the pipeline. However, there is talk that the European Union is edging towards an agreement. Reports say Brussels could get something similar to Japan, with tariffs cut to 15 per cent - from the threatened 30 per cent. The Financial Times said the two would waive tariffs on some products, including aircraft, spirits and medical devices. 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 That came after US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said negotiations were making progress, with talks planned later in the day between the bloc's top trade negotiator and his American counterpart. Analysts said a deal with Washington's biggest trading entity would provide a massive boost to equities However, failure to reach a deal, triggering Trump's 30 per cent levies on Aug 1, could cause havoc on markets, analysts warned. France has been loudest in insisting Brussels must show it is willing to deploy its trade weapon, known as the anti-coercion instrument - allowing officials to take measures such as import and export restrictions on goods and services. Neil Wilson at Saxo Markets warned that would end up 'effectively killing trade between the two... the nuclear option is on the table it seems, but for the moment expectation seems to be veering towards a deal'. After another record day for the S&P 500 and Nasdaq on Wall Street, Asia picked up the baton and ran. Tokyo piled on two per cent, having jumped more than three per cent on Wednesday on the trade deal, while Hong Kong continued its standout year with another advance. Shanghai, Seoul, Singapore, Wellington, Taipei and Manila also rose. Traders are also keeping an eye on developments in Tokyo after Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba denied discussing his resignation with party elders on Wednesday, as speculation about his future intensified following a weekend election debacle. Despite the saga, the yen extended its gains, briefly hitting 145.86 per dollar as the trade deal allows investors to turn their attention to the Bank of Japan's policy meeting next week hoping for guidance on its next interest rate hike. The unit had been sitting around 147.90 before the deal. Bank officials have held off rocking the boat on the issue amid tariff uncertainty, but observers say the agreement can allow them to reconsider lifting in October. AFP
AsiaOne
01-07-2025
- AsiaOne
Bilateral frictions to overshadow meeting between US's Marco Rubio and Indo-Pacific partners, World News
WASHINGTON — US Secretary of State Marco Rubio hosts his Australian, Indian and Japanese counterparts on Tuesday (July 1), seeking to boost efforts to counter China even as trade and other bilateral disagreements introduce friction into the relationships. The four countries, known as the Quad, share concerns about China's growing power, but their ties have been strained by President Donald Trump's global tariff offensive from which none of the Quad members have been spared. Other issues are also putting pressure on relations. Japan, the key US ally in the Indo-Pacific, postponed an annual ministerial meeting with the US State and Defence Departments that was supposed to be held on Tuesday. Press reports said this followed US pressure for it to boost defence spending further than previously requested. The Financial Times said last week the demands came from Elbridge Colby, the third-most senior Pentagon official, whom analysts say has also recently created anxiety in Australia by launching a review of the massive AUKUS project to provide that country with nuclear-powered submarines. India, meanwhile, has differed with Trump's claims that his intervention and threats to cut off trade talks averted a major conflict between India and Pakistan after militants killed Indian tourists in the disputed Kashmir region in April. Rubio hosted a meeting of Quad ministers in his first diplomatic engagement as secretary of state on January 21, the day after Trump began his second term, a move meant to underscore the importance of the Indo-Pacific region. Trump has since been distracted by issues elsewhere, including most recently the Israel-Iran conflict. Tuesday's meeting will be a chance to refocus attention on the region seen as the primary challenge for the US in the future. After a joint session with Quad foreign ministers, Rubio is expected to hold bilateral meetings with Japan's Takeshi Iwaya, India's Subrahmanyam Jaishankar and Australia's Penny Wong. State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce told reporters on Monday the Quad partners would "reaffirm our shared commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific". "This ministerial reinforces our joint resolve to defend sovereignty, strengthen regional maritime security and build resilient supply chains," she added. Speaking at an event in New York on Monday, Jaishankar addressed US ties by saying "relationships will never be free of issues", and adding: "What matters is the ability to deal with it and to keep that trend going in the positive direction." Referring to the Quad, he said there were a lot of issues that needed to be discussed in the Indo-Pacific, including maritime security, technology, pandemic preparedness and education. "I think we'll get good results," he said. No trophies In January, the Quad said officials would meet regularly to prepare for leaders' summit in India expected later this year. Arthur Sinodinos, Australia's former ambassador to Washington now with the Asia Group consultancy, said bilateral issues could overshadow the meeting, from which Washington is keen to see a greater Quad focus on security. "Australian audiences will be looking for clues on the US stance on AUKUS as well as on trade," he said, adding that there also was interest in when Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese would secure a first meeting with Trump. Nicholas Szechenyi, a Japan expert at Washington's Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), said US-Japan ties appeared to have lost momentum since a February summit between Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and Trump. "The two leaders heralded a golden age in US-Japan relations, but there are no trophies to put on the mantle at this stage," he said. "The tariff negotiations are all-consuming, and the Japanese appear exasperated by the administration's public lectures on defence spending." Richard Rossow, an India expert, also at CSIS, said Trump's approach to India on trade and security interests had been "clumsy", but the long-term strategic and commercial reasons for deeper co-operation remained largely unchanged. "So, the chances of further co-operation remain viable, even if the mood is less conducive," Rossow said, while noting the slow pace of staffing senior roles critical to managing day-to-day US dealings with India, with no ambassador nominated and State and Defence department positions also unfilled. [[nid:719307]]
Straits Times
16-06-2025
- Straits Times
Uganda leader signs law reintroducing military trials of civilians
FILE PHOTO: Uganda's President Yoweri Museveni addresses the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) 42nd Extraordinary Session, at the State House in Entebbe, Uganda January 18, 2024. REUTERS/Abubaker Lubowa/File Photo KAMPALA - Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni has signed legislation that allows military tribunals to try civilians, parliament said on Monday, a move opposition leaders said violates a Supreme Court ruling. Rights campaigners have long alleged that the government has used military courts to persecute political opponents of Museveni, who has been in power for almost 40 years. His aides have denied this, saying only civilians who use guns for political violence are prosecuted in such tribunals. In a ruling earlier this year, the East African country's Supreme Court banned the practice, calling it unconstitutional. It had been based on previous legislation that was challenged in lower courts. Museveni's government subsequently introduced new legislation seeking to restore the prosecutions and parliament subsequently passed it last month. "President @KagutaMuseveni has assented to The Uganda Peoples' Defence Forces (Amendment) Act, 2025," parliament said in a post on the X platform. After the bill's passage, the army's spokesperson praised it, saying it would "deter the formation of militant political groups that seek to subvert democratic processes". The opposition says the new law violates the Supreme Court verdict. Ugandan courts could intervene again if they receive a citizens' petition against the legislation. The earlier top court verdict forced authorities to transfer the military trial of a major opposition figure, Kizza Besigye, for alleged offences including treason, to a civilian court. Pop star-turned politician Bobi Wine, Uganda's biggest opposition figure, is preparing to challenge Museveni in next year's election. He was once charged in a military tribunal over illegal possession of guns but the charges were later dropped. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
