Indonesia cuts a trade deal with the US
Trade officials the world over will now use the Indonesia deal as a measure of their own ability to do business with the US.
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News.com.au
4 hours ago
- News.com.au
Ahead of new talks, Iran blames Europeans for nuclear deal collapse
Tehran on Monday blamed European powers for the failure of the 2015 nuclear deal, accusing them of breaking their commitments ahead of renewed talks in Istanbul with Britain, France and Germany. The 2015 deal, reached between Iran and the UN Security Council's permanent members -- Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States -- plus Germany, imposed curbs on Iran's nuclear programme in exchange for sanctions relief. But it unravelled in 2018 when the United States, during Donald Trump's first term as president, unilaterally withdrew from the accord and reimposed sweeping sanctions. The Europeans had pledged continued support for the deal, but the mechanism intended to offset US sanctions never materialised effectively and many Western firms were forced to exit Iran, which has since faced a deepening economic crisis. "The European parties have been at fault and negligent in implementing" the nuclear agreement, said Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmail Baqaei. His remarks come ahead of a meeting Friday in Istanbul between Iranian officials and representatives from Britain, France and Germany to discuss the future of the nuclear deal. Ahead of those talks, Baqaei said Tehran would host a trilateral meeting on Tuesday about the nuclear issue and the potential reimposition of sanctions with Chinese and Russian representatives. In recent weeks, the three European powers have threatened to trigger the UN "snapback" mechanism to reimpose international sanctions on Tehran, accusing it of breaching its nuclear commitments. A German diplomatic source had told AFP on Sunday the E3 were in contact with Tehran and said "Iran must never be allowed to acquire a nuclear weapon". "That is why Germany, France and the United Kingdom are continuing to work intensively in the E3 format to find a sustainable and verifiable diplomatic solution to the Iranian nuclear programme," the source said. - 'No intention of speaking with America' - The International Atomic Energy Agency says Iran is the only non-nuclear-armed country currently enriching uranium to 60 percent -- far beyond the 3.67 percent cap set by the 2015 accord. That is a short step from the 90 percent enrichment required for a nuclear weapon. Using the snapback clause was "meaningless, unjustifiable and immoral", Baqaei told a news conference, arguing that Iran only began distancing itself from the agreement in response to Western non-compliance. "Iran's reduction of its commitments was carried out in accordance with the provisions outlined in the agreement," he said. Western powers -- led by the United States and backed by Israel, Iran's arch-enemy -- have long accused Tehran of secretly seeking nuclear weapons capability. Iran has repeatedly denied this, insisting its nuclear programme is solely for civilian purposes such as energy production. Tehran and Washington had held five rounds of nuclear talks since April, but a planned meeting on June 15 was cancelled after Israel launched a military strike on Iran on June 13, triggering a 12-day conflict. "At this stage, we have no intention of speaking with America," Baqaei said Monday. Israel launched on June 13 a wave of surprise strikes on its regional nemesis, targeting key military and nuclear facilities. The United States launched its own set of strikes against Iran's nuclear programme on June 22, hitting the uranium enrichment facility at Fordo, in Qom province south of Tehran, as well as nuclear sites in Isfahan and Natanz.
ABC News
5 hours ago
- ABC News
Smokers turn to black market because quitting products too expensive
Calls are growing over how to clamp down on the illicit tobacco trade as the black market continues to expand.
West Australian
7 hours ago
- West Australian
Big four banks drag the ASX to worst day since April
Australia's sharemarket had its sharpest one-day fall since the fallout from Donald Trump's 'Liberation Day' fallout smashed markets in early April, as investors sold down their big four bank shares ahead of company results. The benchmark ASX 200 slumped 89 points or 1.02 per cent to 8,668.20. The massive falls came just a single trading day after the benchmark had its best gains since the mid April recovery. Even with the large falls during Monday's trading, the ASX 200 still had its second highest ever close. The broader All Ordinaries also fell 80.60 points or 0.89 per cent to 8,926.20. The local dollar eked out a small gain and was buying 65.13 US cents at the time of writing. Banks, consumer discretionary and property stocks led the declines with the market heavy financials slumping 2.51 per cent. Westpac was the hardest hit of the big four banks down 3.61 per cent to $33.07, while CBA slumped 2.52 per cent to $177.87, ANZ sank 2.50 per cent to $30.05 and NAB slid 2.40 per cent to $38.25. Consumer discretionary stocks also slumped during Monday's trading. Wesfarmers fell 0.97 per cent to $83.75, JB Hi Fi dropped 1.48 per cent to $105.91 and Eagers Automotive slumped 3.58 per cent to $18.88. IG market analyst Tony Sycamore said Monday's sharp fall is the largest since the Liberation Day sell-off in early April and is almost twice the size ASX futures predicted when they closed 49 points lower on Saturday morning. 'In the absence of any fresh news, today's pullback is possibly related to profit taking ahead of the August earnings season which will likely highlight stretched valuations with certain sectors, particularly the banks,' he said. Meanwhile the major iron ore miners were one of the bright spots on the market, after the price of the underlying commodity continued its march higher. Iron ore futures rose 1.2 per cent to $US99.50 a tonne. Shares in BHP rose 0.42 per cent to $40.46, Rio Tinto gained 1.19 per cent to $114.46 while Fortescue climbed 1.47 per cent to $17.25. In company news, AMP shares jumped 9.77 per cent to $1.68 after announcing its latest results. According to its latest statement AMP's superannuation division posted its first net inflow since 2017, along with growth in its platform and rising assets under management. Shares in Afterpay's parent company Block soared 11.18 per cent to $122 after cracking the US S & P 500. Block will replace Hess Corp after it was acquired by Chevron. Australian home builder AV Jennings is up 1.50 per cent to $0.68 after it announced a fully franked special dividend of 16.7 cents per share on the condition it can be acquired by American real estate firm Proprium Capital Partners. Shares in Cromwell Property Group jumped 8.22 per cent to $0.40, after announcing Brookfield has signed a binding sales and purchase agreement which is subject to the Foreign Investment Review Board approval. Investsmart Group shares also soared 9.09 per cent to $0.12 per cent after the business announced a jump in total funds under management and strong performance fees revenue.
