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SBS Australia
43 minutes ago
- Business
- SBS Australia
Midday News Bulletin 28 June 2025
Listen to Australian and world news, and follow trending topics with SBS News Podcasts . TRANSCRIPT Donald Trump says he's terminating all trade discussions with Canada US announces funding for Gaza aid operation amid UN criticism Australia claims a resounding win against the West Indies. US President Donald Trump says he's terminating all trade discussions with Canada in response to a tax on digital technology firms set to come into effect on Monday. He says the United States will let Canada know within the next week what tariffs will be imposed on Canadian goods. Mr Trump says Canada has acted foolishly by trying to tax U-S tech companies. "They put a tax on companies that were American companies that they shouldn't, a very severe tax. And yeah, I guess they could remove it, they will, but I don't really, I mean, it doesn't matter to me. We have all the cards, we have all of the cards. You know, we do a lot of business with Canada, but relatively little. They do most of their businesses with us. And when you have that circumstance, you treat people better. " The digital services tax will hit companies including Amazon, Google, Meta, Uber and Airbnb with a 3 per cent levy on revenue from Canadian users. The U-S State Department says it has approved $30 million in funding for a controversial aid operation in Gaza which has been criticised by the United Nations. The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation took over aid distribution across the strip using private security contractors after Israel partially lifted its months-long blockade in late May. Since then, shooting events around the foundation's aid sites have led to at least 410 deaths, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. On Friday, U-N chief Antonio Guterres says the UN has the experience to better deliver aid. "The problem of the distribution of humanitarian aid must be solved. There is no need to reinvent the wheel with dangerous schemes. We have the solution. A detailed plan grounded in the humanitarian principles of humanity, impartiality, neutrality and independence. We have the supplies, we have the experience. Our plan is guided by what people need. It is built on the trust of communities, donors and member states. And it worked during the last ceasefire, so it must be allowed to work again." Israel's Military Advocate General has ordered an investigation into possible war crimes over allegations that Israeli forces deliberately fired at Palestinian civilians near Gaza aid sites. The United Nations says hundreds of Palestinians have been killed over the past month in the vicinity of areas where food was being handed out. Israeli newspaper Haaretz recently quoted unnamed Israeli soldiers who say they were told to fire at crowds to keep them back. The Israeli military denies this, saying it has not instructed soldiers to deliberately shoot at civilians. The Victorian Government is encouraging children to head outdoors and go fishing after the stocking the state's waterways with fish that are large enough to be legally caught. The government is promoting the activity as low-cost school holiday fun as it seeks to promote the state as the best place to fish in the country. Environment Minister Steve Dimopoulos says the government has stocked 220 waterways across Victoria. "We are really proud of the investment, because meaningful. It's meaningful for many reasons. Time out away from screens and from the busyness of life, spend time with people you love, bring the kids, go and catch fish, if you want, cook it that night. It is such an easy and wonderful activity to do. " A fishing license is required in Victoria, except for people aged under 18, or over 70. A bowling masterclass from Josh Hazlewood has helped Australia claim a resounding 159-run victory over the West Indies on day three of the Test series opener in Bridgetown. After a hotly contested first two days, Australia dominated with Hazlewood taking 5-43 as the tourists bowled their hosts out for 141 in their second dig. The Windies were thwarted by a collapse of 6-26 in pursuit of 301 for victory.
Bloomberg
an hour ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
South Korea Calls For ‘Mutually Beneficial' Trade Deal With US
South Korea called for a 'mutually beneficial' agreement on trade with the US during its new trade minister's first trip to Washington this week. Yeo Han-koo held talks that concluded Friday with US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, as well as several lawmakers in Washington, ahead of the July 9 deadline to reinstate higher tariffs paused in April.
Malay Mail
an hour ago
- Business
- Malay Mail
Trump halts Canada trade talks over digital tax on US tech giants, tariffs to be announced within a week
WASHINGTON, June 28 — President Donald Trump said yesterday he is calling off trade negotiations with Canada in retaliation for taxes impacting US tech firms, adding that Ottawa will learn of their new tariff rate within a week. Trump was referring to Canada's digital services tax, which was enacted last year and forecast to bring in CA$5.9 billion (RM17.76 billion) over five years. While the measure is not new, US service providers will be 'on the hook for a multi-billion dollar payment in Canada' come June 30, noted the Computer & Communications Industry Association recently. The three percent tax applies to large or multinational companies such as Alphabet, Amazon and Meta that provide digital services to Canadians, and Washington has previously requested dispute settlement talks over the matter. 'Based on this egregious Tax, we are hereby terminating ALL discussions on Trade with Canada, effective immediately,' Trump said in a post on his Truth Social platform Friday. Canada may have been spared some of Trump's sweeping duties, but it faces a separate tariff regime. Trump has also imposed steep levies on imports of steel, aluminium and autos. Last week, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said Ottawa will adjust its 25 percent counter tariffs on US steel and aluminium — in response to a doubling of US levies on the metals to 50 percent — if a bilateral trade deal was not reached in 30 days. 'We will continue to conduct these complex negotiations in the best interest of Canadians,' Carney said Friday, adding that he had not spoken to Trump on the day. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told CNBC that Washington had hoped Carney's government would halt the tax 'as a sign of goodwill.' He now expects US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer to start a probe to determine the harm stemming from Canada's digital tax. China progress Trump's salvo targeting Canada came shortly after Washington and Beijing confirmed finalising a framework to move forward on trade. A priority for Washington in talks with Beijing had been ensuring the supply of the rare earths essential for products including electric vehicles, hard drives and national defence equipment. China, which dominates global production of the elements, began requiring export licences in early April, a move widely viewed as a response to Trump's blistering tariffs. Both sides agreed after talks in Geneva in May to temporarily lower steep tit-for-tat duties on each other's products. China also committed to easing some non-tariff countermeasures but US officials later accused Beijing of violating the pact and slow-walking export licence approvals for rare earths. They eventually agreed on a framework to move forward with their Geneva consensus, following talks in London this month. A White House official told AFP on Thursday that the Trump administration and China had 'agreed to an additional understanding for a framework to implement the Geneva agreement.' This clarification came after the US president told an event that Washington had inked a deal relating to trade with China, without providing details. Under the deal, China 'will review and approve applications for the export control items that meet the requirements in accordance with the law,' China's commerce ministry said. 'The US side will correspondingly cancel a series of restrictive measures against China,' it added. Upcoming deals? Dozens of economies, although not China, face a July 9 deadline for steeper duties to kick in — rising from a current 10 percent. It remains to be seen if countries will successfully reach agreements to avoid them before the deadline. On talks with the European Union, for example, Trump told an event at the White House on Friday: 'We have the cards. We have the cards far more than they do.' But Bessent said Washington could wrap up its agenda for trade deals by September, indicating more agreements could be concluded, although talks were likely to extend past July. Bessent told Fox Business there are 18 key partners Washington is focused on pacts with. 'If we can ink 10 or 12 of the important 18, there are another important 20 relationships, then I think we could have trade wrapped up by Labor Day,' Bessent said, referring to the US holiday on September 1. Wall Street's major indexes finished at fresh records as markets cheered progress in US-China trade while shrugging off concerns about Canada. — AFP
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Trump wants Canada's digital services tax gone before trade talks resume
U.S. President Donald Trump says he's ending all trade discussions with Canada to hit back at Ottawa for slapping a tax on web giants — and he wants it removed before negotiations can begin again. Canada and the U.S. have been locked in talks to get Trump to lift his punishing tariffs on Canadian goods, levies that have already led to major economic dislocations, job losses and a drop in southbound exports. Trump and Prime Minister Mark Carney agreed at the G7 last week to reach some agreement on the trade dispute within 30 days. Speaking in the Oval Office on Friday afternoon, Trump said the U.S. has "such power over Canada," and that he's upset the country is following a taxation strategy similar to Europe's. "It's not going to work out well for Canada. They were foolish to do it," he said of imposing the DST, which was passed into law last year with a delayed application."We're going to stop all negotiations with Canada right now until they straighten out their act," he said. Asked if there's anything Canada can do to appease him, Trump said Ottawa could remove the tax. "They will," he said. "They do most of their business with us. When you have that circumstance, you treat people better." Earlier Friday, Trump posted on social media he may impose some sort of blanket tariff on Canadian goods as retribution for the DST, which will primarily hit U.S. firms since it targets only the biggest earners. Speaking briefly to reporters before Trump's Oval Office comments, Carney said he hadn't talked with Trump that day. "We'll continue to conduct these complex negotiations in the best interest of Canadians," Carney said. He did not address a reporter's question about whether his government is prepared to drop the DST — something the Business Council of Canada is calling on Ottawa to do in exchange for U.S. tariff relief. Set to take effect on June 30, the DST would have U.S. companies like Amazon, Google, Meta, Uber and Airbnb pay a three per cent levy on revenue from Canadian users. The policy will apply retroactively, leaving U.S. companies with a $2-billion US bill due at the end of the month. These global digital firms are often able to skirt paying taxes in the countries where they operate, and the last Liberal government pitched the DST as a way to bring the tax code up to date and capture revenues earned in Canada by firms located abroad. U.S. long opposed DST It's been a bone of contention between Canada and the U.S. for years, with former president Joe Biden's ambassador to Canada warning during his tenure that, if a DST was enacted, the U.S. would hit back. While Canada and other Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries had been discussing some sort of global DST, the Trudeau government decided to move ahead with its own tax rather than wait for co-ordinated action. Carney's finance minister, François-Philippe Champagne, said last week Ottawa planned to enact the tax even while negotiations with Trump are ongoing. That's what's prompted the president's ire. "We have just been informed that Canada, a very difficult Country to TRADE with, including the fact that they have charged our Farmers as much as 400% Tariffs, for years, on Dairy Products, has just announced that they are putting a Digital Services Tax on our American Technology Companies, which is a direct and blatant attack on our Country," Trump said. WATCH | Foreign Affairs minister on the trade war: As he has done in the past, Trump mischaracterized Canada's tariff regime on U.S. dairy products. The high tariff rates Trump frequently cites are only applied if U.S. exports exceed a set "tariff-rate quota," something that has never happened. Trump's own Department of Agriculture noted earlier this year that almost all agricultural products traded between the United States and Canada are free of tariffs. In an interview with CBC's Power & Politics, Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand said supply management, which places limits on certain products, including dairy, to ensure stable prices, is a "cornerstone" Canadian economic policy that is "extremely important." Anand said that despite Trump's threats, Canada will push ahead with trying to broker a deal that's in the best interest of workers and businesses, "while at the same time ensuring we diversify our supply chains so we are never again dependent on one economy." She touted the New EU-Canada Strategic Partnership of the Future that Carney brokered with the European Union earlier this week. Trump's abrupt decision to call off negotiations may have caught Canadian officials off guard. Speaking to CBC Radio's The House hours before Trump's post, Canada-U.S. Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc said Canada's negotiators "continue to be optimistic about the constructive tone" between the two countries. Still, Candace Laing, president of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, said there have been signs the "tone and tenor of talks has improved in recent months." Trump and Carney have had two friendly meetings in that time, and she hopes to see "progress continue" despite Trump's apparent attempt to derail the talks. "Negotiations go through peaks and valleys. With deadlines approaching, some last-minute surprises should be expected," Laing said.
CBC
an hour ago
- Business
- CBC
Canada should go ahead with digital service tax despite halted trade talks: lawyer
U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Friday that he's immediately 'terminating' trade negotiations with Canada over the 'egregious' digital services tax (DST). International trade lawyer and former Canadian diplomat Lawrence Herman says implementing the DST doesn't violate any trade obligations and calls the move from Trump 'erratic.'
