Latest news with #andTrade
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First Post
05-07-2025
- Business
- First Post
Trump issues 'take it or leave it' tariff letters to 12 nations as July 9 deadline nears
So far, the Trump administration has unveiled deals with the United Kingdom and Vietnam, while Washington and Beijing agreed to temporarily lower staggeringly high levies on each other's products read more US President Donald Trump on Saturday said that he has signed letters addressed to 12 countries, dubbed 'take it or leave it', outlining the new tariff measures ahead of the July 9 deadline that will lift the 90-day pause on retaliatory tariffs. The letters will be sent to the recipients as early as Monday. Speaking to reporters on Air Force One on his way to New Jersey for American Independence Day, Trump said, 'I signed some letters and they'll go out on Monday, probably twelve. Different amounts of money, different amounts of tariffs.' The president, however, refused to mention the countries the letters will be sent. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD In April, Trump announced a 10 per cent base tariff on most imports to the US, with rates potentially rising to 50 per cent for specific countries. These higher tariffs were paused for 90 days to allow negotiations, but the suspension is scheduled to end on July 9. How are trade talks going so far? As for India, Union Minister of Commerce and Trade Piyush Goyal has said that it will not sign a trade deal based on a timeline, but set its own terms to negotiate an agreement. Earlier, sources had told News18 that the India-US trade deal will conclude in the next few days as an Indian delegation has returned from Washington after holding high-level talks with officials from the Trump administration. So far, the Trump administration has unveiled deals with the United Kingdom and Vietnam, while Washington and Beijing agreed to temporarily lower staggeringly high levies on each other's products. Meanwhile, the US and Japan may not reach a trade deal at all, as Trump had said earlier this week, 'We've dealt with Japan. I'm not sure if we're gonna make a deal, I doubt it, with Japan. They and others are so spoiled from having ripped us off for 30, 40 years that it's really hard for them to make a deal.' With inputs from agencies
Hi Dubai
19-06-2025
- Business
- Hi Dubai
Dubai Chambers Strengthens Trade Ties as Uzbek Delegation Explores Investment Opportunities
Dubai Chambers hosted a high-level Uzbek delegation on Wednesday, led by Uzbekistan's Minister of Investment, Industry, and Trade, H.E. Laziz Kudratov, to explore avenues for deepening economic cooperation during the Dubai-Uzbekistan Business Seminar. The event brought together around 100 business leaders and senior government officials from both nations, creating a platform to boost bilateral trade and investment. Discussions centered on expanding commercial ties and leveraging synergies between the two markets. H.E. Mohammad Ali Rashed Lootah, President and CEO of Dubai Chambers, underscored the importance of building on the growing trade momentum. 'We are eager to explore new paths for collaboration and investment to drive mutual economic growth,' he said, reaffirming the Chamber's support for Uzbek businesses looking to scale globally through Dubai. The seminar featured presentations on market opportunities in both Dubai and Uzbekistan, with a shared focus on increasing trade flows. In 2024, non-oil trade between Dubai and Uzbekistan surged by 66% to exceed AED 11.1 billion. Key Uzbek exports to Dubai include precious stones, zinc, fruits, and copper, while Dubai exports electronics, vehicles, and cosmetics to Uzbekistan. Both sides explored ways to expand this exchange, aligning with their respective economic strengths. Uzbek business presence in Dubai is also rising. Over 700 Uzbek firms were active members of the Dubai Chamber of Commerce by the end of 2024 — a 34.5% increase year-on-year — with over 60 new companies joining in Q1 2025 alone. News Source: Dubai Media Office
The Sun
10-06-2025
- Business
- The Sun
Repeated shocks risk global trade
DISCUSSION around the consequences of President Donald Trump's economic policies – most notably the increased tariffs on all countries, especially China – has centred on economic costs. These costs affect both businesses and consumers, manifesting as higher prices for traded goods, a shift in production to less efficient locations and reduced consumer choices when goods are no longer produced or traded. The focus on economic costs neglects a more impactful and troubling development: a shift in global trade governance and the exchange of goods under it. The US has gone from being the establisher and leader of international trade institutions to being the single greatest threat to their continuation. Multinational enterprises that have prospered under this system face unprecedented uncertainty and increasingly stark choices between upholding the system and being undercut by competitors forced to circumvent it. Businesses engaging in international trade and investment have long relied upon rules, principles and norms established under the General Agreement of Tariffs and Trade (GATT) in 1948 and deepened under the stewardship of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) since 1995. The international system under GATT and WTO supports trade through the elimination of trade barriers including tariffs, quotas and subsidies, by establishing principles of equal treatment and by providing mechanisms to manage disputes between nations and companies. Continuing business faith in multilateral trade rules and liberalisation is increasingly at odds with the positions of nation-states. The global financial crisis in 2007 to 2008, China's rapid rise to dominant global manufacturer since joining WTO in 2001 and legitimate concerns with the distribution of trade benefits within countries have contributed to popular backlash against freer trade. The rise of powerful global corporations that pursue profits rather than sovereign interests has also played on the fears of nation-states that, through liberalisation, have ceded much regulatory autonomy. Against this backdrop is a world besieged by increasingly frequent major shocks – of human and natural origin. Businesses and nation-states are navigating trade wars, disease outbreaks, military conflicts and intensifying weather events – individually and in tandem. Discourse typically bundles these shocks together to paint an overall picture of instability, lower confidence and temporary disruption to economic activity. But to appreciate the sustained consequences for trade, the stepwise influence of each major shock deserves further examination. The first Trump administration's trade war from 2018 provided the first substantial and symbolic shift from trade liberalisation to restriction. It delivered an initial blow to the 'made in China, sold in America' model, prompting conversations in global boardrooms around the need to reduce dependence on production in China. However, investors were largely unwilling to forgo China's cost competitiveness with the re-export of goods via third countries, particularly in Southeast Asia, being the dominant response. Trade continued within the bounds of international governance. The Covid-19 pandemic from early 2020 created more substantive fractures between businesses and governments on trade governance. International institutions proved incapable of mobilising an effective and coordinated health and economic response, with business disruption amplified under diverging sovereign measures. China's draconian response delivered a goal for its reputation as a reliable production location. While economists and businesses marvelled at the adaptability of global supply chains, governments saw vulnerabilities requiring intervention on national security grounds. Russia's invasion of Ukraine in early 2022 poured salt into the open wound, sharply highlighting the divergence between corporate interests and those of nation-states. US-led sanctions on trade with Russia sought to divide markets along geopolitical lines with little regard for business impacts. The ability of businesses from Russia, China, India and elsewhere to circumvent inadequately enforced sanctions exposed the limits of international and national governance to uphold trade restrictions. Companies from America, Europe and elsewhere had to choose between supporting sanctions and sustaining profits, with many becoming circumventers. That markets did a better job of navigating sanctions and war than governments did of implementing sanctions reinforced the pandemic fracture between businesses and governments, significantly eroding trust in international trade governance. It is in this context that Trump 2.0 must be seen as an existential threat to prospects for restoring faith in the system. The US is now the primary source of economic policy uncertainty and lead antagonist undermining international institutions, imposing and threatening smaller countries with tariffs and hollowing out WTO. Businesses conditioned by pandemic-induced disruptions and ineffectual sanctions face another choice between wearing tariff costs and being undercut by less scrupulous competitors. Maintaining support for formal, rules-based and ethical international trade means contending with an increasingly formidable global network of informal actors and activities that outmatch the enforcement efforts of trade regulators. After all, border processes that have been streamlined and deregulated over decades to encourage seamless and trusted trade cannot be instantly and effectively converted to a punitive enforcement stance. And neither Trump nor the countries he threatens appear willing to plough resources into tighter trade regulation or have a vision for what enforcement looks like. Arresting the decline of trade institutions may seem insurmountable in the current geopolitical environment but the alternative is trending towards a future in which governments everywhere cede control of effective trade regulation. In such a world, the ability of international institutions and nation-states to uphold product standardisation and safety, supply chain resilience and ethical practices is compromised. Government capacity to raise revenue and manage the macroeconomy is further weakened by growing informality while businesses and consumers pay for the additional risk embodied in less-regulated trade. The world sans the US must act quickly to reinforce the international system, strengthening international institutions, including WTO. Space for greater leadership from large emerging economies must be created to forge a collective governance approach for countries across the development spectrum. Tackling systemic destruction is far greater and more economically consequential than addressing the immediate impact of Trump tariffs. A world in which trade operates outside of good governance frameworks would leave everyone poorer. Dr Stewart Nixon is the deputy director of research at the Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs (Ideas). The views expressed in this article are solely those of the writer and do not necessarily represent the views or positions of Ideas Malaysia.
Ya Biladi
04-06-2025
- Automotive
- Ya Biladi
Morocco aims to boost electric vehicle production by 53% by end of 2025
Morocco plans to increase its electric vehicle (EV) production by 53% by the end of 2025, reaching a total of 107,000 units, Industry and Trade Minister Ryad Mezzour announced on Monday during a session at the House of Representatives. The move is part of the kingdom's broader strategy to reduce its dependence on the European market, which is currently facing sluggish demand. The country's automotive sector currently has an annual production capacity of 700,000 vehicles, with expectations to reach one million units before the end of the year. The European Union remains the main destination for Moroccan car exports. Despite a 7% drop in car exports—amounting to around 49 billion dirhams during the first four months of 2025—the automotive industry continues to hold its position as Morocco's leading export sector. According to data from the Foreign Exchange Office, this decline contributed to a widening trade deficit, which rose to 108.9 billion dirhams, up by 22.8%. Minister Mezzour described the downturn as temporary and highlighted efforts to diversify Morocco's export markets. The country currently exports vehicles to around 70 countries and aims to expand that number to 100. Data from the European Automobile Manufacturers Association shows a decline in sales of traditional cars across the continent, while electric vehicles now account for 15.2% of the market—strengthening Morocco's strategic focus on EV production.
Observer
28-05-2025
- Politics
- Observer
President of Iran leaves Oman
Muscat: President Dr Masoud Pezeshkian of the Islamic Republic of Iran and his accompanying delegation left the Sultanate of Oman after a two-day official visit. HH Sayyid Shihab bin Tarik al Said, Deputy Prime Minister for Defence Affairs led the farewell party for President Pezeshkian at the Royal Airport. The Iranian President was also seen off by Sayyid Badr bin Hamad al Busaidi, Foreign Minister (Head of the Mission of Honour) and Ibrahim Ahmed al Muaini, Ambassador of the Sultanate of Oman to the Islamic Republic of Iran. During his visit to the Sultanate of Oman, the Iranian President was accompanied by an official delegation comprising Abbas Araghchi, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mohsen Haji-Mirzaei, Head of the President's Office, Mohammad Atabek, Minister of Industry, Mining, and Trade, Head of the Iranian side in the Oman-Iran Economic Cooperation Joint Committee, Air Commodore Aziz Nasirzadeh, Minister of Defence and Logistics of the Armed Forces, Gholamhossein Zarei, Deputy Chairman of the Parliament, Mohammad-Reza Farzin, Governor of the Central Bank of Iran, Masoumeh Aghapour Alishahi, Advisor to the President for Economic Cooperation Affairs, Mousa Farhang, Ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Iran to the Sultanate of Oman and several officials from the Iranian government.
