Latest news with #USInvestment
The Guardian
09-07-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Trump praises English of the leader of Liberia – where English is the official language
Donald Trump was basking in the praise of a group of African leaders on Wednesday, when the Liberian president took the microphone. 'Liberia is a longtime friend of the United States and we believe in your policy of making America great again,' President Joseph Boakai said in English at a White House meeting before advocating for US investment in his country. 'We just want to thank you so much for this opportunity.' Trump, clearly impressed, inquired where Boakai got his language skills. 'Such good English, such beautiful …' Trump said. 'Where did you learn to speak so beautifully? Where were you educated?' Boakai seemed to chuckle. English is the official language of Liberia. 'In Liberia?' Trump asked. 'Yes sir,' Boakai said. 'That's very interesting, that's beautiful English' Trump said. 'I have people at this table who can't speak nearly as well.' Liberia was founded in 1822 as a colony for free Black Americans, the brainchild of white Americans trying to address what they saw as a problem – the future for Black people in the US once slavery ended. English is Liberia's official language, though multiple Indigenous languages are spoken there as well. Trump hosted the leaders from Gabon, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mauritania and Senegal at the White House on Wednesday, telling them that he was shifting the US approach to the continent from aid to trade and that the US is a better partner for Africa than China. Many of the leaders at the meeting spoke in their own languages through interpreters. Trump said his administration was committed to strengthening friendships in Africa, which he hoped to visit at some point. 'We're shifting from aid to trade,' he said at the start of a White House meeting. 'There's great economic potential in Africa, like few other places. In many ways, in the long run, this will be far more effective and sustainable and beneficial than anything else that we can be doing together.' The African leaders, in turn, heaped praise on the US president for brokering peace deals around the world and expressed support for his receiving a Nobel Prize. 'We are not poor countries. We are rich countries when it comes to raw materials. But we need partners to support us and help us develop those resources,' said Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema, president of Gabon. 'You are welcome to come and invest. Otherwise, other countries might come instead of you.'
Bloomberg
27-06-2025
- Politics
- Bloomberg
Trump Looks to Africa Next for Diplomatic Win
Rwanda and Congo are due to sign an accord in Washington, paving the way for US investment. Welcome to Balance of Power, bringing you the latest in global politics. If you haven't yet, sign up here. Donald Trump has long scorned Africa. Now he sees it as another potential route to a Nobel Prize.
Bloomberg
27-06-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Ireland's Firms Brace for Economic Hit With Quiet Confidence
Hundreds of companies, 200,000 jobs, billions of euro in corporation tax revenue. Add it all up and Ireland 's reliance on US investment for its economic success is starkly clear. While it's one of the most vulnerable countries to Donald Trump's efforts to rewrite global trade, there's a quiet confidence in its financial sector and economy.
Zawya
24-06-2025
- Business
- Zawya
African Union Commission (AUC) Chairperson reaffirmed Africa's commitment to a bold & equal partnership with the United States, stating, 'We're not seeking aid, but building co-created solutions"
At the #USAfricaSummit2025 in Luanda, AU Commission Chairperson H.E. Mahmoud Ali Youssouf reaffirmed Africa's commitment to a bold&equal partnership with the United States, stating, 'We're not seeking aid, but building co-created solutions.' He noted that with 1.3 billion people, abundant resources,&a surge in innovation, Africa is poised for transformative growth. From agribusiness in West Africa to fintech in East Africa, the AU is supporting private sector-led development across all regions. He also underscored that strategic sectors such as manufacturing, digital, energy,&agro-industry, are open for U.S. investment. The AU's Private Sector Forum, SME and startup legislation,&its Digital Strategy are laying the groundwork for inclusive, sustainable prosperity. He concluded by saying "this should not just be a summit, but a call to action,' he said. 'Together, let's walk the pathways to prosperity—with unity, purpose,&Agenda 2063 as our guide.' Distributed by APO Group on behalf of African Union (AU).
Irish Times
12-06-2025
- Business
- Irish Times
US multinationals will be slow to return operations to US, Ibec leader says
Big US multinationals will be slow to heed President Donald Trump's demands to bring operations back to the country because of 'the chaos' currently existing in Washington, the head of Ireland's biggest business group has said. Businesses can learn to live with even penal tariffs , but they will struggle to cope with a business environment that can change day by day, Danny McCoy , the director of the Irish Business and Employers' Confederation, Ibec . 'It's hard to see how the US can actually credibly invoke the return of investment back into United States. Corporates will say the right things, but it's a big call to go back into something that's so random and so uncertain,' he said. Mr McCoy was speaking at a conference jointly organised by Ibec and the Confederation of British Industry at the Ballymascanlon House Hotel near Dundalk. READ MORE However unpleasant, tariffs are 'slightly a distraction', but even US-based multinationals will think carefully before they would 'wilfully' bring investments 'back into a regime that's so chaotic at the moment', Mr McCoy said. Equally, it must be remembered that 'a lot of the money in United States stock markets and so on is not US money, it's international money attracted to the safe haven that was the US'. Mr Trump has 'ripped up' the reserve currency status of the dollar: 'So, what we're likely to see that where the money goes for investment globally is not the United States,' he said. The question now for European Union states is whether they can get their 'act together to not only attract' their own money back, but equally to find ways to dramatically boost investment across the EU. On tariffs, research by the Economic and Social Research Institute has shown that Ireland could live with even a permanent tariff of 25 per cent on goods going to the US: 'You can adjust around tariffs,' he declared. Echoing some of the points made by Mr McCoy, Taoiseach Micheál Martin said the state of the world's geopolitics creates opportunities for Ireland and the United Kingdom, especially if they can work together on issues of mutual concern. 'With challenge and with turbulence comes opportunity as well,' he said, adding that major business leaders have told British Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer and himself that the two countries are now 'seen as a safe haven internationally for investment'. International investors have noticed the improving relations between the two countries in the wake of the Brexit disagreements, but 'also the common views, the common rules, basic sort of steadiness of how things are going'. Questioned about the tax and financial issues that are affecting people from the Republic and Northern Ireland who are working in the other jurisdiction, Mr Martin said those problems will have to be resolved. 'It is complex. It's not simple. My view is we do need to try and bring this to some conclusion because we do really have to reduce barriers and increase labour mobility,' he said. Currently, 18,000 people are known to cross the border daily for work, but, in reality, a far greater number do so but they use a relative's address as their residence for tax purposes – the so-called 'grannying' option. Though the workers do pay taxes to HM Revenue and Customs, or the Revenue Commissioners, they leave themselves open to tax audits, possible penalties and welfare complications by acting as they do. In addition, many workers who fully declare where they live are unable to get mortgages because financial institutions are unwilling to offer loans to people whose income could be affected by currency fluctuations. Extolling the value of all-island jobs mobility, Mr Martin earlier told the conference: 'One of the big things we say to US, or global multinationals is that we're part of the European labour market and there's free mobility of labour.' 'We want to develop the all-island skills agenda to meet our future skills needs – for instance in construction and infrastructure ‒ to better harness the potential of the island-wide labour market, for workers and employers,' he said.
