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Free Malaysia Today
5 hours ago
- Business
- Free Malaysia Today
US probes drones and polysilicon imports, opening door to tariffs
Chinese drone maker DJI dominated the global consumer market, while China played a key role in supplying materials for solar power. (DJI pic) WASHINGTON : The US has opened investigations into imports of drones and their components, alongside those of polysilicon – an important material for solar power – in moves that could bring about new tariffs. The probes launched July 1 by the US commerce department are the latest in a series of such actions under President Donald Trump's administration, looking into the effects such imports have on national security. The US has also launched similar investigations into imports of semiconductors, pharmaceuticals and other goods. The probes take place under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, the same authority Trump has used to slap steep tariffs on imports of steel and aluminum. Typically, such actions take months to conclude, and they could result in fresh levies if officials deem it necessary to safeguard national security. In a pair of documents scheduled for publication in the Federal Register on Wednesday, the US government called for public comment on the new investigations. One of them is focused on 'imports of polysilicon and its derivatives,' while the other centres on 'imports of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) and their parts and components.' While the documents do not name any countries, Chinese drone maker DJI dominates the global consumer market, and Beijing is also a major player in the world's solar supply chain. Trump's tariffs targeting various sectors are separate from those he has imposed on imports from different countries. Since returning to the White House in January, Trump's sweeping tariffs have roiled financial markets and triggered fears of an economic downturn. In April, he slapped a 10% levy on goods from almost all US trading partners. The duties are set to increase for dozens of economies come Aug 1, while trade negotiations continue as partners try to strike deals to avert the higher levies.
NDTV
6 hours ago
- Business
- NDTV
"Going To Have Access": Trump Amid India-US Trade Talks
Washington: US President Donald Trump on Tuesday said the United States is close to securing full trade access into India. He also announced a new trade deal with Indonesia, after which the latter will face a reduced tariff rate of 19 per cent. Announcing progress on the India part, Trump stated, "We're going to have access into India. And you have to understand, we had no access into any of these countries. Our people couldn't go in. And now we're getting access because of what we're doing with the tariffs." Trump said that the United States has reached a trade agreement with Indonesia after speaking with the country's President Joko Widodo, also known as Prabowo Subianto, as per CNN. Hours after announcing the agreement on Truth Social, Trump told reporters that it calls for Indonesia not to charge any tariffs on American exports, while the US will impose a 19 per cent tariff on Indonesian exports. "So we made a deal with Indonesia. I spoke to their really great president, very popular, very strong, and smart. And we made the deal. We have full access to Indonesia... As you know, Indonesia is very strong in copper. But we have full access to everything. We will pay no tariffs," he said. "So they are giving us access into Indonesia, which we never had. That's probably the biggest part of the deal. And the other part is that they are going to pay 19 per cent, and we are going to pay nothing. I think it's a good deal for both parties. But we will have full access into Indonesia. And we have a couple of those deals that are going to be announced," the US President added. Further, Trump emphasised that "Indonesia has some great products, and they also have some very valuable earths and various other materials, and they're known for is very high-quality copper, which the US will be using." In a subsequent post on Truth Social, he said the agreement was "finalised." However, the Indonesian government had yet to make any similar announcements on its end, as of Tuesday afternoon. According to CNN, Indonesia shipped USD 20 million worth of copper to the US last year, according to US Commerce Department data, that's far behind top suppliers Chile and Canada, which sent USD 6 billion and USD 4 billion worth of the metal to the US last year. (Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
Qatar Tribune
8 hours ago
- Business
- Qatar Tribune
US slaps 17% duty on most Mexican fresh tomatoes
Agencies The United States is imposing antidumping duties on most imports of fresh tomatoes from Mexico, the US Commerce Department said Monday as Washington alleged its neighbor engaged in unfair trade. The duties, set at 17.09 percent, come after Washington moved to terminate a 2019 agreement that staved off such charges. 'Mexico remains one of our greatest allies, but for far too long our farmers have been crushed by unfair trade practices that undercut pricing on produce like tomatoes. That ends today,' Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said in a statement. 'This rule change is in line with President (Donald) Trump's trade policies and approach with Mexico,' he said. Mexico is a dominant supplier of US fresh tomato imports, and the US Commerce Department said that antidumping duties are calculated to measure the percentage by which Mexican tomatoes were sold in the country at 'unfair prices.' The United States had announced it was withdrawing from the tomato agreement in April, arguing that the action was meant to help American tomato growers compete fairly. But observers have expressed concern that the duties could cause a spike in tomato prices. On Monday, the Mexican government said it was working with tomato producers to limit the effects of the 17 percent duty. 'We are working together to minimize the impact,' President Claudia Sheinbaum said at her regular morning press conference, without giving details.
Time of India
18 hours ago
- Business
- Time of India
AMD says it will restart MI308 sales to China after US review
Advanced Micro Devices, AMD, plans to resume shipping MI308 chips to China. This follows US approval after a similar decision for Nvidia. The US Commerce Department will review AMD's license applications. Earlier restrictions on MI308 chips were projected to cost AMD $800 million. Nvidia also received approval to ship its H20 AI chip to China. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Advanced Micro Devices Inc. said that it plans to restart shipments of its MI308 chips to China after the US said it would approve the sales, following a similar decision on an Nvidia Corp. US Commerce Department told AMD that license applications for the MI308 products would move forward for review, an AMD spokesman said the products back into China is a reversal for President Donald Trump's administration, which spent weeks insisting that curbs on chips sales to the Asian country were not up for discussion. The news comes after weeks of thawing ties between the two nations as well as Nvidia Chief Executive Officer Jensen Huang's meeting with Trump last said in April that export restrictions on the MI308 chips would cost the company about $800 Nvidia similarly said the government had agreed to green-light shipments of its H20 AI chip to China, a decision that could add billions to the company's revenue this shares rose 5% in premarket trading on Tuesday. The stock closed at $146.24 on Monday and has gained 21% this year.
Free Malaysia Today
a day ago
- Business
- Free Malaysia Today
Malaysia tightens rules on export of US AI chips
Miti's move followed reports that the US plans to stop China from getting Nvidia's advanced AI chips by blocking shipments through countries like Malaysia and Thailand. (EPA Images pic) PETALING JAYA : All exports, transshipments, and transits of high-performance artificial intelligence (AI) chips made in the US will now require a strategic trade permit, the investment, trade and industry ministry (Miti) announced today. The rule takes immediate effect and applies even if the chips are not officially listed as restricted items, under the 'Catch-All Control' provision of the Strategic Trade Act 2010 (STA). This means that individuals or companies must notify the authorities at least 30 days in advance if they plan to handle US-origin AI chips. 'This initiative serves to close regulatory gaps while Malaysia undertakes a further review of the inclusion of high-performance AI chips of US origin on the strategic items list of the STA 2010,' Miti said in a statement. Miti also reiterated that Malaysia would not allow the country to be used for illicit trading operations. 'Malaysia stands firm against any attempt to circumvent export controls or engage in illicit trade activities by any individual or company, who will face strict legal action if found to be violating the STA 2010 or related laws,' it said. Miti's move followed reports that the US commerce department plans to stop China from getting Nvidia's advanced AI chips by blocking shipments through third countries like Malaysia and Thailand. Washington's concern over the smuggling of AI chips into China grew in January, when it began investigating whether countries like Singapore were being used as transit points. Attention turned to Malaysia after Singapore's home affairs and law minister K Shanmugam said on March 3 that the servers with Nvidia chips exported to Malaysia could have been meant for a different final destination. However, investment minister Tengku Zafrul Aziz said local investigations found no evidence that they had arrived at the Malaysian data centre to which they were purportedly sold.
