
US and China have signed a trade deal, says Donald Trump
BANGKOK: The US and China have signed an agreement on trade, President
Donald Trump
said late on Thursday. "We just signed with China the other day," Trump said.
US Commerce secretary
Howard Lutnick
told Bloomberg TV that the deal was signed earlier this week. Neither Lutnick nor Trump provided any details about the agreement.
Lutnick said the deal was "signed and sealed" two days earlier.
by Taboola
by Taboola
Sponsored Links
Sponsored Links
Promoted Links
Promoted Links
You May Like
A Brand New Small Electric Car For Seniors (The Price May Surprise You)
Electric Cars | Search Ads
Undo
It was unclear if the latest agreement was different from the one Trump announced two weeks earlier that he said would make it easier for American industries to obtain much-needed needed magnets and
rare earth
minerals. That pact cleared the way for the trade talks to continue, while the US agreed to stop trying to revoke visas of Chinese nationals on US college campuses.
Later, on Friday, Trump said his July 9 trade deadline was not a fixed date, telling reporters at the White House: "We can do whatever we want. We could extend it. We could make it shorter. I'd like to make it shorter. I'd like to just send letters out to everybody: Congratulations, you're paying 25%," he said.
Live Events
Beijing confirms framework
China's Commerce Ministry said Friday that the two sides had "further confirmed the details of the framework." But its statement did not explicitly mention US access to rare earths, minerals used in high-tech applications that have been at the center of the negotiations.
"China will approve the export applications of controlled items that meet the conditions in accordance with the law. The United States will cancel a series of restrictive measures taken against China accordingly. It is hoped that the United States and China will meet each other halfway," it said.
"The president likes to close these deals himself. He's the dealmaker. We're going to have deal after deal," Lutnick said.
China has not announced any new agreements, but said earlier this week that it was speeding up approvals of exports of rare earths, materials used in high-tech products such as EVs.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Time of India
35 minutes ago
- Time of India
"Pathetic failure...no right to stay in their post": Sukanta Majumdar slams Mamata govt over Kolkata rape case
Union Minister and West Bengal BJP President Sukanta Majumdar strongly criticised the West Bengal government on Saturday following back-to-back crimes reported from educational institutions, including the recent RG Kar Medical College rape case. He said the government had no right to stay in their post if it could not ensure a safe environment for students. Majumdar emphasised that female students are not safe in West Bengal's educational institutions, citing the RG Kar Medical College incident and the latest law college case. While speaking to ANI, Majumdar said, "Both the incidents (recent and RG Kar rape case) happened inside an educational institution... Inability of the state government to stop these is a pathetic failure... Someone should take responsibility," Majumdar said. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Join new Free to Play WWII MMO War Thunder War Thunder Play Now Undo He condemned the state government's pathetic failure in stopping these incidents and questioned their ability to maintain law and order and demanded that someone take responsibility for these failures, suggesting that the government has no right to remain in power if it cannot ensure safety. Reacting to the state government's justification, he further said, "You say police can't be everywhere... It must be at least accepted that the government is not able to maintain an environment of safety, and with such failures, they have no right to stay in their post." Live Events Earlier, Kolkata Police arrested the guard of the South Calcutta Law College , where a female student was allegedly gang-raped. Kolkata police said, "Guard of the Law College, Pinaki Banerjee (55) has also been arrested in the case." A female student was allegedly gang-raped inside the South Calcutta Law College in Kolkata's Kasba on Wednesday. Earlier, the police had arrested three accused within 24 hours. The three accused, named as Monojit Mishra (31), Zaib Ahmed (19), and Pramit Mukhopadhyay (20), were former students or staff members of the same law college. According to the police, the accused named in the FIR will be produced before the ACJM of Alipore, South 24 Parganas, with a prayer to remand them to Police Custody for a proper investigation into the case. The National Commission for Women (NCW) took suo motu cognisance of the incident on Friday. Taking immediate notice, NCW Chairperson Vijaya Rahatkar expressed deep concern and wrote to the Commissioner of Police, Kolkata, urging a time-bound investigation under relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). Meanwhile, the alleged gangrape has triggered a political row between the leaders of the ruling TMC and the opposition BJP.


Time of India
42 minutes ago
- Time of India
Qatar issues safety advisory after Iran's missile attack, urges residents to report any suspicious debris
This screen grab from AFPTV footage shows the remnants of an Iranian missile intercepted over Qatar on Monday, targeting the Al Udeid US Air Base. In the aftermath of a now-concluded military confrontation involving Iran, the United States, and Israel, the State of Qatar has issued a public safety alert, urging residents and citizens to report any suspicious debris possibly linked to a recent missile interception. The alert follows Iran's missile launch targeting the Al Udeid US Air Base in Qatar on Monday. In a joint statement, Qatar's Ministry of Defence and Ministry of Interior called on the public to exercise caution if they encounter unusual fragments or objects. The ministries stressed that any such material must not be touched or moved, citing the potential danger of hazardous substances. 'Handling such materials must be done exclusively by the competent authorities, due to the possibility that they may contain hazardous substances that could pose a threat to public safety,' the statement emphasized. The advisory comes in the wake of a missile attack by Iran, launched in retaliation for US strikes on several of Iran's nuclear sites during the recent 12-day conflict involving Israel and Iran. Former US President Donald Trump confirmed that 14 Iranian missiles were fired at the Al Udeid Air Base during the attack. According to Trump, 13 of those missiles were intercepted, and one was intentionally allowed to fall harmlessly to avoid unnecessary escalation. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Giao dịch CFD với công nghệ và tốc độ tốt hơn IC Markets Đăng ký Undo 'It was a very weak response,' Trump said, downplaying the impact of Iran's actions. In response to the missile launch, Qatar swiftly summoned the Iranian ambassador to lodge a formal protest. The Qatari government condemned the attack and reiterated its commitment to national sovereignty and the safety of its residents. The joint government statement also instructed the public to immediately report any unusual objects or fragments to authorities 'so that they may be dealt with in accordance with approved procedures.' Qatari authorities clarified that this is strictly a public safety matter and urged citizens not to panic but to remain vigilant. The potential risk stems from missile debris possibly falling in or around civilian areas due to the mid-air interceptions. In a gesture acknowledging the disruption caused by the attack, Qatar also announced the waiver of all traffic violations recorded on the day of the missile strike. This move is intended to alleviate additional stress for motorists affected during the event.


Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
Alibaba unveils latest AI service for images in push for users
HighlightsAlibaba Group Holding Ltd. introduced Qwen VLo, an upgraded artificial intelligence model capable of generating images from text and modifying existing images, as part of its Qwen brand. The new Qwen VLo model features progressive generation technology, allowing users to observe the image creation process in real-time, enhancing user interaction and creativity. With a focus on artificial general intelligence, Alibaba aims to compete with other technology leaders in the rapidly evolving AI market, responding to innovations from companies like DeepSeek and OpenAI. Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. unveiled a new iteration of its artificial-intelligence technology that will make it easier for users to generate and modify images from texts and visuals, as the Chinese ecommerce giant continues its aggressive push into AI. The Hangzhou-based company introduced Qwen VLo , part of a series of AI services under the company's Qwen brand. The new model is an upgrade from Qwen2.5-VL and is now able to generate text-to-image and image-to-image results. It also has a technology called progressive generation, meaning users can see the process as an image is created. 'This newly upgraded model not only 'understands' the world but also generates high-quality recreations based on that understanding,' the company said in a blog post. 'You can directly send a prompt like 'Generate a picture of a cute cat' to generate an image or upload an image of a cat and ask 'Add a cap on the cat's head' to modify an image.' Best known for its ecommerce operations in China, Alibaba has been charging into AI and building standalone offerings around Qwen. In February, Chief Executive Officer Eddie Wu went so far as to say the company's 'primary objective' is now artificial general intelligence , a goal in the industry to build AI systems with human-level intellectual capabilities. With the new Qwen multimodal model , it's aiming to compete with a flurry of new visual interfaces in the market, including from OpenAI. It also faces aggressive domestic competition from the likes of DeepSeek. After DeepSeek stunned the industry with a powerful model it said took just a few million dollars to build, China's technology leaders flooded the market with a rapid succession of low-cost AI services. Alibaba has rapidly updated its Qwen series, adding new capabilities to process text, pictures, audio and video — with the efficiency to run directly on phones and laptops. It unveiled a new version of its AI assistant Quark app in March.