Latest news with #WhiteHouseNationalEconomicCouncil
13-07-2025
- Business
Hassett: Trump's authority to fire Powell is ‘being looked into'
ABC News' Jonathan Karl interviews White House National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett on 'This Week.'
Yahoo
12-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Trump news at a glance: markets react with confusion as Trump appears to move goal posts on tariffs again
Stock markets slipped amid confusion as to when – and at what level – new US tariffs would be applied, as Donald Trump's self-imposed 9 July deadline edged closer. The US is close to finalising several trade agreements in the coming days and will notify other countries of higher tariff rates by Thursday, the president said on Sunday, with the higher rates to take effect on 1 August. 'President Trump's going to be sending letters to some of our trading partners saying that if you don't move things along, then on August 1 you will boomerang back to your April 2 tariff level,' treasury secretary Scott Bessent told CNN. Trump in April announced a 10% base tariff rate on most countries and higher 'reciprocal' rates ranging up to 50%. However, Trump also said levies could range in value from 'maybe 60% or 70% tariffs to 10% and 20%', further clouding the picture. With very few actual trade deals done, analysts had suspected the date would be pushed out, though it was still not clear if the new deadline applied to all trading partners or just some. Trump said on Sunday that his administration plans to start sending letters on Monday to US trade partners, dictating new tariff rates to be imposed on goods they sell to Americans. 'It could be 12, maybe 15,' the president told reporters, 'and we've made deals also, so we're going to have a combination of letters and some deals have been made.' Kevin Hassett, who heads the White House National Economic Council, told CBS that there might be wriggle room for countries engaged in earnest negotiations. 'There are deadlines, and there are things that are close, and so maybe things will push back past the deadline,' Hassett said, adding that Trump would decide if that could happen. Read the full story Donald Trump called Elon Musk's decision to start and bankroll a new US political party 'ridiculous' on Sunday. 'Third parties have never worked, so he can have fun with it but I think it's ridiculous,' the president told reporters traveling with him back to the White House from his New Jersey golf club. He then elaborated, at great length, in a post on his social media platform, Truth Social. 'I am saddened to watch Elon Musk go completely 'off the rails,' essentially becoming a TRAIN WRECK over the past five weeks,' the president wrote. Read the full story Trump said he believed a hostage release and ceasefire deal could be reached this week, which could lead to the release of 'quite a few hostages.' He was speaking after Benjamin Netanyahu left Israel for talks in Washington, praising Trump's return to the presidency. 'We have never had such a friend in the White House … We have already changed the face of the Middle East beyond recognition, and we have an opportunity and the ability to change it further and to enable a great future for the state of Israel, the people of Israel and the entire Middle East,' Israel's prime minister told reporters. Read the full story Laura Loomer has emerged as the most prominent Maga America First influencer in the early days of Trump's second term. In early April, Loomer, a 32-year-old pro-Trump online influencer widely seen as a rightwing conspiracy theorist, met with Trump and gave him a list of names of people on the staff of the national security council that she believed were not loyal enough to Trump or at least had professional backgrounds that she considered suspect. Trump fired six staffers. Later, national security adviser Mike Waltz, whom Loomer had criticized for his role in the Signalgate chat leak scandal, was ousted as well. Read the full story Donald Trump announced on social media that he had signed a federal emergency declaration that would free additional resources to support local efforts in search and rescue operations in Texas after deadly flooding. Trump also posted a letter saying federal efforts would be coordinated by Benjamin Abbott of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema). In May, that agency's acting administrator was fired after he told Congress he did not believe it was 'in the best interest of the American people to eliminate' Fema, which Trump has said he plans to do. Asked on Sunday if he is still planning to phase out Fema, Trump told a reporter: 'Well, Fema is something we can talk about later, but right now they're busy working.' Read the full story David Smith asks if Trump's expansion of presidential powers is setting the stage for future Oval Office holders? Adam Gabbatt writes that although Trump's mega-bill has been widely criticized in the press, Fox News sees it differently. Catching up? Here's what happened 5 July. Sign in to access your portfolio
07-07-2025
- Business
Pressure from Trump for trade deals before Wednesday deadline, but hints of more time for talks
WASHINGTON -- The Trump administration is stepping up pressure on trading partners to quickly make new deals before a Wednesday deadline, with plans for the United States to start sending letters Monday warning countries that higher tariffs could kick in Aug. 1. That furthers the uncertainty for businesses, consumers and America's trading partners, and questions remain about which countries will be notified, whether anything will change in the days ahead and whether President Donald Trump will once more push off imposing the rates. Trump and his top trade advisers say he could extend the time for dealmaking but they insist the administration is applying maximum pressure on other nations. Kevin Hassett, director of the White House National Economic Council, told CBS' 'Face the Nation' on Sunday that Trump would decide when it was time to give up on negotiations. 'The United States is always willing to talk to everybody about everything,' Hassett said. 'There are deadlines, and there are things that are close, so maybe things will push back past the deadline or maybe they won't. In the end the president is going to make that judgment.' Stephen Miran, the chair of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, likewise said countries negotiating in good faith and making concessions could 'sort of, get the date rolled.' The steeper tariffs that Trump announced April 2 threatened to overhaul the global economy and lead to broader trade wars. A week later, after the financial markets had panicked, his administration suspended for 90 days most of the higher taxes on imports just as they were to take effect. The negotiating window until July 9 has led to announced deals only with the United Kingdom and Vietnam. Trump imposed elevated tariff rates on dozens of nations that run meaningful trade surpluses with the U.S., and a 10% baseline tax on imports from all countries in response to what he called an economic emergency. There are separate 50% tariffs on steel and aluminum and a 25% tariff on autos. Since April, few foreign governments have set new trade terms with Washington as the Republican president demanded. Trump told reporters Friday that his administration might be sending out letters as early as Saturday to countries spelling out their tariff rates if they did not reach a deal, but that the U.S. would not start collecting those taxes until Aug. 1. On Sunday, he said he would send out letters starting Monday — 'could be 12, could be 15' — to foreign governments reflecting planned tariffs for each. 'We've made deals also,' Trump told reporters before heading back to the White House from his home in New Jersey. 'So we'll get to have a combination of letters, and some deals have been made.' He and his advisers have declined to say which countries would receive the letters. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent rejected the idea that Aug. 1 was a new deadline and declined to say what might happen Wednesday. 'We'll see," Bessent said on CNN's State of the Union. "I'm not going to give away the playbook.' He said the U.S. was 'close to several deals,' and predicted several big announcements over the next few days. He gave no details. "I think we're going to see a lot of deals very quickly,' Bessent said. Later Sunday, Trump vowed to impose more tariffs against the BRICS bloc of developing nations, which had condemned tariffs increases at its summit in Brazil. Trump said in a post on his social media platform that any country aligning itself with what he termed 'the Anti-American policies of BRICS' would be levied an added 10% tariff. Trump has announced a deal with Vietnam that would allow U.S. goods to enter the country duty-free, while Vietnamese exports to the U.S. would face a 20% levy. That was a decline from the 46% tax on Vietnamese imports he proposed in April — one of his so-called reciprocal tariffs targeting dozens of countries with which the U.S. runs a trade deficit. Asked if he expected to reach deals with the European Union or India, Trump said Friday that 'letters are better for us' because there are so many countries involved. 'We have India coming up and with Vietnam, we did it, but much easier to send a letter saying, 'Listen, we know we have a certain deficit, or in some cases a surplus, but not too many. And this is what you're going to have to pay if you want to do business in the United States.' Canada, however, will not be one of the countries receiving letters, Trump's ambassador, Pete Hoekstra, said Friday after trade talks between the two countries recently resumed. 'Canada is one of our biggest trading partners,' Hoekstra told CTV News in an interview in Ottawa. 'We're going to have a deal that's articulated." Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has said he wants a new deal in place by July 21 or Canada will increase trade countermeasures. Hoekstra would not commit to a date for a trade agreement and said even with a deal, Canada could still face some tariffs. But 'we're not going to send Canada just a letter,' he said.
The Hill
07-07-2025
- Business
- The Hill
Pressure from Trump for trade deals before Wednesday deadline, but hints of more time for talks
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration is stepping up pressure on trading partners to quickly make new deals before a Wednesday deadline, with plans for the United States to start sending letters Monday warning countries that higher tariffs could kick in Aug. 1. That furthers the uncertainty for businesses, consumers and America's trading partners, and questions remain about which countries will be notified, whether anything will change in the days ahead and whether President Donald Trump will once more push off imposing the rates. Trump and his top trade advisers say he could extend the time for dealmaking but they insist the administration is applying maximum pressure on other nations. Kevin Hassett, director of the White House National Economic Council, told CBS' 'Face the Nation' on Sunday that Trump would decide when it was time to give up on negotiations. 'The United States is always willing to talk to everybody about everything,' Hassett said. 'There are deadlines, and there are things that are close, so maybe things will push back past the deadline or maybe they won't. In the end the president is going to make that judgment.' Stephen Miran, the chair of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, likewise said countries negotiating in good faith and making concessions could 'sort of, get the date rolled.' The steeper tariffs that Trump announced April 2 threatened to overhaul the global economy and lead to broader trade wars. A week later, after the financial markets had panicked, his administration suspended for 90 days most of the higher taxes on imports just as they were to take effect. The negotiating window until July 9 has led to announced deals only with the United Kingdom and Vietnam. Trump imposed elevated tariff rates on dozens of nations that run meaningful trade surpluses with the U.S., and a 10% baseline tax on imports from all countries in response to what he called an economic emergency. There are separate 50% tariffs on steel and aluminum and a 25% tariff on autos. Since April, few foreign governments have set new trade terms with Washington as the Republican president demanded. Trump told reporters Friday that his administration might be sending out letters as early as Saturday to countries spelling out their tariff rates if they did not reach a deal, but that the U.S. would not start collecting those taxes until Aug. 1. On Sunday, he said he would send out letters starting Monday — 'could be 12, could be 15' — to foreign governments reflecting planned tariffs for each. 'We've made deals also,' Trump told reporters before heading back to the White House from his home in New Jersey. 'So we'll get to have a combination of letters, and some deals have been made.' He and his advisers have declined to say which countries would receive the letters. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent rejected the idea that Aug. 1 was a new deadline and declined to say what might happen Wednesday. 'We'll see,' Bessent said on CNN's State of the Union. 'I'm not going to give away the playbook.' He said the U.S. was 'close to several deals,' and predicted several big announcements over the next few days. He gave no details. 'I think we're going to see a lot of deals very quickly,' Bessent said. Later Sunday, Trump vowed to impose more tariffs against the BRICS bloc of developing nations, which had condemned tariffs increases at its summit in Brazil. Trump said in a post on his social media platform that any country aligning itself with what he termed 'the Anti-American policies of BRICS' would be levied an added 10% tariff. Trump has announced a deal with Vietnam that would allow U.S. goods to enter the country duty-free, while Vietnamese exports to the U.S. would face a 20% levy. That was a decline from the 46% tax on Vietnamese imports he proposed in April — one of his so-called reciprocal tariffs targeting dozens of countries with which the U.S. runs a trade deficit. Asked if he expected to reach deals with the European Union or India, Trump said Friday that 'letters are better for us' because there are so many countries involved. 'We have India coming up and with Vietnam, we did it, but much easier to send a letter saying, 'Listen, we know we have a certain deficit, or in some cases a surplus, but not too many. And this is what you're going to have to pay if you want to do business in the United States.' Canada, however, will not be one of the countries receiving letters, Trump's ambassador, Pete Hoekstra, said Friday after trade talks between the two countries recently resumed. 'Canada is one of our biggest trading partners,' Hoekstra told CTV News in an interview in Ottawa. 'We're going to have a deal that's articulated.' Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has said he wants a new deal in place by July 21 or Canada will increase trade countermeasures. Hoekstra would not commit to a date for a trade agreement and said even with a deal, Canada could still face some tariffs. But 'we're not going to send Canada just a letter,' he said. ___ Price reported from Bridgewater, New Jersey. AP Business Writer Matt O'Brien in Providence, Rhode Island, contributed to this report.
Powys County Times
07-07-2025
- Business
- Powys County Times
Trump seeks to pressure trading partners to make deals before tariffs deadline
The Trump administration is stepping up pressure on trading partners to make new deals before a Wednesday deadline, with plans for the US to start sending letters warning countries that higher tariffs could begin on August 1. That furthers the uncertainty for businesses, consumers and America's trading partners, and questions remain about which countries will be notified, whether anything will change in the days ahead and whether President Donald Trump will once more delay imposing the rates. Mr Trump and his top trade advisers say he could extend the time for deal-making but they insist the administration is applying maximum pressure on other nations. Kevin Hassett, director of the White House National Economic Council, told CBS's Face The Nation on Sunday that Mr Trump would decide when it was time to give up on negotiations. 'The United States is always willing to talk to everybody about everything,' Mr Hassett said. 'There are deadlines, and there are things that are close, so maybe things will push back past the deadline or maybe they won't. In the end the president is going to make that judgment.' Stephen Miran, the chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, likewise said countries negotiating in good faith and making concessions could 'sort of, get the date rolled'. The steeper tariffs that Mr Trump announced on April 2 threatened to overhaul the global economy and lead to broader trade wars. A week later, after the financial markets had panicked, his administration suspended for 90 days most of the higher taxes on imports just as they were to take effect. The negotiating window until July 9 has led to announced deals only with the United Kingdom and Vietnam. Mr Trump imposed elevated tariff rates on dozens of nations that run meaningful trade surpluses with the US, and a 10% baseline tax on imports from all countries in response to what he called an economic emergency. There are separate 50% tariffs on steel and aluminium and a 25% tariff on vehicles. Since April, few foreign governments have set new trade terms with Washington as the Republican president demanded. Mr Trump told reporters on Friday that his administration might be sending out letters as early as Saturday to countries spelling out their tariff rates if they did not reach a deal, but that the US would not start collecting those taxes until August 1. On Sunday, he said he would send out letters starting Monday — 'could be 12, could be 15' — to foreign governments reflecting planned tariffs for each. 'We've made deals also,' Mr Trump told reporters before heading back to the White House from his home in New Jersey. 'So we'll get to have a combination of letters, and some deals have been made.' He and his advisers have declined to say which countries would receive the letters. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent rejected the idea that August 1 was a new deadline and declined to say what might happen on Wednesday. 'We'll see,' Mr Bessent said on CNN's State Of The Union. 'I'm not going to give away the playbook.' He said the US was 'close to several deals' and predicted several big announcements over the next few days. He gave no details. 'I think we're going to see a lot of deals very quickly,' Mr Bessent said.
