Vice President Vance pitches stablecoins as new pillar of U.S. economic diplomacy
CNBC's MacKenzie Sigalos joins "Access Middle East" from Las Vegas, where Vice President JD Vance told the Bitcoin 2025 crowd that dollar-backed stablecoins could strengthen U.S. power abroad — calling them a 'force multiplier' for American influence.
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Associated Press
12 minutes ago
- Associated Press
EU readying 'countermeasures' if tariffs deal with US crumbles
BARCELONA (AP) — The European Union on Monday said it is preparing 'countermeasures' against the United States after the Trump administration's surprise tariffs on steel rattled global markets and complicated the ongoing wider tariff negotiations between Brussels and Washington. EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and U.S. President Donald Trump agreed last week to 'accelerate talks' on a deal, but that if those trade negotiations fail 'then we are also prepared to accelerate our work on the defensive side,' European Commission spokesperson Olof Gill told a press conference in Brussels. 'In the event that our negotiations do not lead to a balanced outcome, the EU is prepared to impose countermeasures, including in response to this latest tariff increase,' Gill said. He said the EU is finalizing an 'expanded list of countermeasures' that would 'automatically take effect on July 14 or earlier.' That's the date when a 90-day pause, intended to ease negotiations, ends in tariffs announced by the two economic powerhouses on each other. About halfway through that grace period, Trump announced a 50% tariffs on steel imports. Trump's return to the White House has come with an unrivaled barrage of tariffs, with levies threatened, added and, often, taken away. Top officials at the EU's executive commission says they're pushing hard for a trade deal to avoid a 50% tariff on imported goods. The EU could possibly buy more liquefied natural gas and defense items from the U.S., as well as lower duties on cars, but it isn't likely to budge on calls to scrap the value added tax — which is akin to a sales tax — or open up the EU to American beef. The EU has offered the US a 'zero for zero' outcome in which tariffs would be removed on both sides industrial goods including autos. Trump has dismissed that but EU officials have said it's still on the table. The announcement Friday of a staggering 50% levy on steel imports stoked fear that big-ticket purchases from cars to washing machines to houses could see major price increases. But those metals are so ubiquitous in packaging, they're likely to pack a punch across consumer products from soup to nuts.
Axios
13 minutes ago
- Axios
Colorado's outdoor industry suffering from trade war
Travis Campbell shelled out an additional $580,000. Mike Mojica raised prices and laid off workers. Trent Bush is worried he may go out of business. Why it matters: The three Colorado outdoor retail executives say they are casualties of President Trump's trade war. State of play: The sunny skies and huge crowds at last week's Outside Festival in Denver camouflaged a dire reality: Tariffs on foreign goods are pushing the outdoor industry to the brink. Campbell, CEO of Eagle Creek in Steamboat Springs, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2025, manufactures most of its products in Indonesia and sells them worldwide. His costs skyrocketed with the new tariffs forcing him to freeze salaries, leave two positions unfilled and cut other expenses. Mojica, founder of Outdoor Element, based just outside Denver, finished his best year ever in 2024 but now feels like he's drowning. Even though he raised prices for his fire starter gadgets, the profit margin remains slim and he's paused some production. He lost an account, laid off workers and brought in family members as volunteer workers. Trent Bush leads Artilect, a Boulder-based clothing company that specializes in merino wool grown outside the U.S. He's worried about the uncertainty of his business as well as the anti-American sentiment the tariffs have generated. For now, he's just trying to make ends meet. What they're saying: "When you add that all up, the [impacts of tariffs] mean lower wages, fewer jobs and less spending in the economy," Campbell said at a congressional hearing Friday in Denver hosted by U.S. Sen. John Hickenlooper. "I don't think that's what we're aiming for." "What felt like a mood swing for my commander in chief now feels like a knife in the back," added Mojica, who previously served in the U.S. Army and Air Force. The industry faces an "unprecedented crisis," Bush emphasized at the hearing. The other side: Other industries could see benefits from tariffs. And Republican lawmakers, including U.S. Rep. Gabe Evans of Thornton, have defended them as necessary to level the playing field for other industries, such as agriculture. Context: The outdoor industry is especially reliant on the global supply chain for specialized equipment that requires immense skills, particularly waterproof materials and shoes. All three business owners said they've worked diligently to onshore production in recent years, but it proved impossible. "These goods require years of skill and specialization to produce, and those capabilities do not exist in the U.S. at any level of scale required to make the goods that we produce," Campbell said. The bottom line: The conversation continued Sunday on the sidelines of the Outside Festival.
Yahoo
15 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Trump's 20th week in office to include White House meeting with European leader, expected call with Xi
President Donald Trump's 20th week in the Oval Office is expected to include a White House meeting with Germany's chancellor, a phone call with Chinese President Xi Jinping and lawmakers' ongoing efforts to pass the "big, beautiful bill" to fund the president's agenda. Monday marks Trump's 134th day in the White House, a period in which he has issued 150 executive orders affecting domestic policies, unveiled sweeping plans to rectify the nation's trade deficit with foreign nations and held ongoing negotiations to end international wars. The week is slated to include a meeting with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz at the White House as war continues to rage between Ukraine and Russia and trade negotiations with the U.S. hang over Germany. Trump Calls Out Putin, Accuses China Of Not Honoring Trade Deal Terms During 19Th Week In Office Merz's office confirmed on Saturday that the chancellor will travel to Washington on Wednesday evening ahead of meeting Trump on Thursday, Politico reported. The two are slated to discuss the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine and trade policies. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met with Merz in Germany last week as the two European leaders ironed out an agreement for Germany to bolster its backing of Ukraine. Read On The Fox News App The meeting on Thursday will be followed by a lunch and press conference, according to Bloomberg. Merz and Trump have previously spoken by phone but have not met face-to-face since Merz was elected Germany's leader in May. Merz clashed with Trump officials last month when Germany designated its right-wing Alternative for Germany political party a "proven right-wing extremist organization." "Germany just gave its spy agency new powers to surveil the opposition. That's not democracy–it's tyranny in disguise," Secretary of State Marco Rubio posted to X of the designation. "What is truly extremist is not the popular AfD–which took second in the recent election – but rather the establishment's deadly open border immigration policies that the AfD opposes." "Banning the centrist AfD, Germany's most popular party, would be an extreme attack on democracy," former Department of Government Efficiency chief Elon Musk posted to X, the social media platform that he owns. Merz responded that American leaders should not weigh in on German elections and politics. "We have largely stayed out of the American election campaign in recent years, and that includes me personally," Merz said, according to Politico. White House Reveals Possible Penalties On Putin Amid Peace Push: 'Whatever It Takes' "We have not taken sides with either candidate. And I ask you to accept that in return," he added. Trump is expected to hold a phone call with China's Xi Jinping this week to discuss tariffs, White House National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett revealed on Sunday. "President Trump, we expect, is going to have a wonderful conversation about the trade negotiations this week with President Xi. That's our expectation," Hassett said Sunday during an interview on ABC News' "This Week." 'No Reason' For New Nukes: Trump Floats Disarmament Talks With China, Russia A day for the phone call has not yet been locked down, according to Hassett. "You never know in international relations, but my expectation is that both sides have expressed a willingness to talk," Hassett said. "And I'd like to also add that people are talking every day, so [U.S. Trade Representative] Jamieson Greer, his team and President Xi's team in China, they're talking every day trying to move the ball forward on this matter." The Trump administration leveled tariffs as high as 145% on Chinese goods following the president's reciprocal tariff plans in April, when China retaliated against the U.S. with tariffs of their own. China and the U.S. reached a preliminary trade agreement last month, which Trump said China violated in a Truth Social post on Friday. "I made a FAST DEAL with China in order to save them from what I thought was going to be a very bad situation, and I didn't want to see that happen. Because of this deal, everything quickly stabilized and China got back to business as usual. Everybody was happy! That is the good news!!! The bad news is that China, perhaps not surprisingly to some, HAS TOTALLY VIOLATED ITS AGREEMENT WITH US. So much for being Mr. NICE GUY!" he wrote. Senate lawmakers are working to pass the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which is a multitrillion-dollar piece of legislation that advances Trump's agenda on taxes, immigration, energy, defense and the national debt. House lawmakers passed the legislation last month by one vote after a handful of Republican lawmakers held out on supporting the legislation, saying it would exacerbate the nation's debt. A handful of Republican senators have made similar remarks to their House counterparts, explaining they cannot support the legislation unless it addresses its impact on the nation's debt. The bill is expected to add roughly $3 trillion to the national debt, Fox News Digital previously reported. Sen. Ron Johnson Proposes 'Line-by-line' Cuts To Pass Trump's 'Big, Beautiful Bill' "I'm a 'no' unless we separate out the debt ceiling," Republican Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul said last week. "If you take the debt ceiling off the bill, I'm pretty much a 'yes' on most of the rest." "If we follow the path of the House bill, we'll have close to, I think, $60 trillion worth of debt in 10 years. What we've got to do is do what every family does: We've got to go through every line of the budget," Republican Sen. Rick Scott of Florida said during an interview on Fox News on Thursday. Inside The Late-night Drama That Led To Trump's Tax Bill Passing By 1 Vote Republican South Dakota Sen. Mike Rounds told Fox News Digital in an exclusive interview from the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in California on Friday that the Senate must pass the legislation or American families will pay higher taxes. "We don't have a choice. We have to pass the bill to get the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act back in place on a permanent basis," he said. "If we don't do that, the average American family is going to see about a $2,400-a-year increase in their taxes. So we have to do something. And it's critical that we pass this bill. We're going to work with the House. We're going to get this deal done. The Senate will put their mark of approval on it, but nonetheless, we want to do everything we can as quickly as we can to take care of this so that we can get on to other things. The president has made it very clear he wants to get this done. We want to help in that regard. This is our job." Trump has repeatedly called on lawmakers to unify and pass the legislation, saying that it is "arguably the most significant piece of legislation that will ever be signed in the history of our country." Fox News Digital's Deirdre Heavey and Elizabeth Elkind contributed to this report. Original article source: Trump's 20th week in office to include White House meeting with European leader, expected call with Xi
