US-China talks to restart as hopes grow for trade war truce extension
The current 90-day tariffs pause came after top officials from the US and China met in Geneva and London earlier this year.Last week, Bessent said talks with China were in "a very good place" and suggested the new round of talks could result in a second truce.On Monday, citing sources on both sides, the Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post reported that the US and China are expected to extend the truce by another three months.The BBC has contacted the Chinese embassy in the US and the US Treasury Department for comment.The latest US-China talks come after Washington struck deals with both the EU and Japan in the last week.On Sunday, Trump and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced a trade agreement framework.It ended a months-long standoff between two of the world's biggest economic partners.Last week, Trump said Washington had agreed a "massive" trade deal with Tokyo.Under the agreement, Japan would invest $550bn (£407bn) in the US while its goods sold to America would be taxed at 15% when they reach the country - below the 25% tariff Trump had threatened.The US has also struck tariffs deals with the UK, Indonesia and Vietnam.At 10%, Britain has negotiated the lowest US tariff rate so far.No similar breakthrough is expected from the US-China talks this week but, with expectations of an extension to their truce, there are hopes that global trade will not be hit by fresh tariffs disruption.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
20 minutes ago
- The Independent
Trump's most trusted advisors? His TV — and sometimes Melania
The President of the United States sits atop a vast apparatus of intelligence collection and information gathering that can harness the country's full technological and diplomatic might to bring him the latest and most accurate information on any given topic. He can request satellite photographs that show startling details of almost anywhere in the world that isn't covered. He can ask for 'signals intelligence' gleaned from surveillance of the world's telecommunications networks — or from the latest dispatches from spies located in far-flung spots where most Americans would not dare to tread. But as Donald Trump has shifted his positions on a pair of major foreign policy matters — the humanitarian crisis unfolding in Gaza and America's support for Ukraine in their defense against Russia — he hasn't turned to his cabinet for counsel or really anyone in his administration for information. Instead, the president has been moved to action by two prime drivers: the same grim images of destruction and death on his television screen that have caused even the most strident of voices to acknowledge the stark human toll exacted by war in each region, and the counsel of perhaps his closest, if unofficial, advisor — first lady Melania Trump. In the case of Gaza, Trump came into office buoyed by the success of his hand-picked Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, in brokering a temporary ceasefire deal with the help of his counterpart from the outgoing Biden administration. But that ceasefire soon collapsed as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu resumed his offensive against Hamas and choked off all humanitarian aid to the besieged enclave while driving the Gazan population into smaller and smaller territory. During Netanyahu's first visit to the White House in February, the president stoked fears of ethnic cleansing long held by pro-Palestinian groups when he suggested having the U.S. take control of Gaza and relocate the Gazan population to multiple smaller sites that would be constructed and funded by 'neighboring countries of great wealth' and located in 'other countries of interest with humanitarian hearts.' Over the next few months, he largely left Netanayahu to his own devices as the Israeli leader continued to prosecute the war as a way to placate extremist voices in his cabinet who threatened to destabilize his government if he accepted any manner of ceasefire agreement. But over the last few days, Trump has joined the chorus of leaders who are now loudly calling for Netanyahu to stop cutting off most aid to Gaza, citing disturbing images and stories of starvation that have broken through into even the most conservative of pro-Israel of news sources. During a bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer on Monday, Trump said Israel bore a 'lot of responsibility' for what he described as 'real starvation' in the territory, directly contradicting Netanyahu's insistence that nothing of the sort has taken place. Trump added that the images and reports emerging from the enclave 'cannot be faked'. And when asked if he agreed with the Israeli leader's remarks about concerns of mass starvation in Gaza being overstated, he replied: "I don't know. I mean, based on television, I would say not particularly because those children look very hungry." It wasn't the first time the president had been moved to action by images of children in peril delivered by his favorite form of entertainment. Months into his first term, in April 2017, he addressed reporters about images of carnage from the now-defunct Assad regime's use of chemical weapons — Sarin nerve gas — against the town of Khan Sheikhun. 'I will tell you that attack on children yesterday had a big impact on me – big impact,' Trump said while speaking in the White House's rose garden, just steps from the Oval Office. 'My attitude toward Syria and Assad has changed very much … You're now talking about a whole different level.' 'When you kill innocent children, innocent babies, babies, little babies, with a chemical gas that is so lethal – people were shocked to hear what gas it was. That crosses many, many lines, beyond a red line, many, many lines,' he added. Days later, he ordered a series of cruise missile strikes against targets in Syria, his first use of military force since assuming office three months earlier. Trump also appeared to reverse himself on a foreign policy matter earlier this month when he overrode top Pentagon officials who'd put a hold on American weapons shipments bound for Ukraine, citing images transmitted out of Kyiv in the aftermath of Russian drone attacks against civilian targets such as apartment buildings. A Trump administration official who spoke to The Independent on condition of anonymity said the president makes decisions based on what he believes to be the best information available to him at any given time and said his invocation of horrific televised images shows he cares about protecting children. 'He's a grandfather, he's a family man, and images of hurt or starving children anger him just as much as any in the country who has a heart,' they said. Trump's reversals on aid to Ukraine and on the need for Israel to allow more food into Gaza have another factor in common. In each case, the president has acknowledged the influence of First Lady Melania Trump in his decision-making process. When he ordered the Pentagon to resume shipping defensive weapons to Kyiv this month, he described a conversation he'd had with his Slovenian-born wife following a call with Russian President Vladimir Putin. "I go home, I tell the first lady, 'I spoke to Vladimir today, we had a wonderful conversation.' And she says, 'Oh really? Another city was just hit,'" he said. And on Tuesday as he returned to Washington aboard Air Force One, he told reporters that his wife thinks the situation in Gaza is 'terrible.' 'She sees the same pictures that you see, that we all see, and I think everybody, unless they're pretty cold hearted, or worse than that, nuts, there's nothing you can say other than it's terrible when you see the kids,' he said. Megan Mobbs, the daughter of Trump's Ukraine envoy General Keith Kellogg, told The Telegraph that when it comes to the First Lady, Trump 'deeply values her counsel.' 'They have a very, open, conversational relationship and she is one of his closest advisers,' said Mobbs, who currently lives in Kyiv running the RT Weatherman Foundation humanitarian mission. The former model's influence on the president might come as a surprise given that unlike most who've filled the unpaid, unofficial role of first lady, Mrs. Trump is understood to spend most of her time in New York, where she and the president's son, Barron Trump, attends NYU. The White House would not discuss the first lady's schedule or whereabouts, but a source close to the president cautioned against discounting her influence based on where she may or not be on any given day.
BBC News
21 minutes ago
- BBC News
Trump order ends global tariff exemption for low-cost goods
US President Donald Trump signed an executive order ending a global tariff exemption used by shoppers of low-cost order, signed on Wednesday, comes into force on 29 August and broadens earlier presidential action that specifically targeted cheap products from China and Hong Kong to now cover the rest of the world. The de minimis exemption had allowed goods valued at $800 or less to enter the US without paying any tariffs. US consumers relied on the exemption to buy cheap clothes and household items from online commerce sites like Shein and White House says the global exemption was being used to "evade tariffs and funnel deadly synthetic opioids" to the US. The administration already ended the de minimis exemption for Chinese goods on 2 May but the rest of the world was spared until China accounted for the vast majority of shipments using this exemption, Canada and Mexico were also significant sources of low-cost goods being shipped into the US, which had been exempt from the new rules into force, packages will face the same tariff rate as that of traditional goods from the country of had planned to end the de minimis exemption for all countries when it passed the One Big Beautiful bill earlier the month. But the global exemption wasn't set to come into force until July used emergency presidential powers to override the deadline set by Congress and move it significantly forward to a month from now. This was done "to deal with national emergencies and save American lives and businesses now," the White House White House said opioid smugglers were using the de minimis exemption to send illicit drugs into the US because they were less likely to be checked by customs also said some shippers were circumventing duties by falsely reporting the country of origin for goods entering the rule does not affect personal items Americans carry with them from foreign travel valued at $200 or less and it does not affect gifts valued at $100 or less.
Reuters
21 minutes ago
- Reuters
Ford raises projected tariff hit to results, shares down 4% after the bell
DETROIT, July 30 (Reuters) - Ford Motor (F.N), opens new tab said on Wednesday that U.S. tariffs on imported vehicles, as well as materials like steel and aluminum, will likely cost more than expected for the year, and the automaker's shares slid about 4% in after-market trading. Ford reported that second-quarter results took an $800 million hit from tariffs, a less pronounced impact than some of its U.S. rivals thanks to Ford's strong domestic manufacturing base. For the full year, the automaker lifted the higher range of its projected hit to gross revenues from tariffs by $500 million, to $3 billion. Chief Financial Officer Sherry House said Ford raised the projection because duties on Mexico and Canada have remained higher for longer than expected. She also cited elevated levies on aluminum and steel. The Dearborn, Michigan automaker also issued guidance for annual results on Wednesday, after suspending it in May to assess the impact of U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs. Ford said it now plans to record full-year adjusted earnings before interest and taxes of $6.5 billion to $7.5 billion, down from its February 2025 projection of between $7.0 billion and $8.5 billion. For the latest quarter, the auto giant reported a 21% decrease in earnings per share to 37 cents, beating LSEG analysts' expectation of 33 cents. Ford recorded a net loss for the quarter of $36 million, which it said was primarily due to special charges related to cancellation of a three-row electric SUV, and field service actions from a $570 million recall. Ford posted revenue of $50.2 billion for the quarter, up 5% from a year earlier. The automaker has clawed away market share from rivals with aggressive discounting programs and a "zero, zero, zero" campaign, which offers shoppers a $0 down payment, zero percent interest for 48 months, and zero payments for the first 90 days on most vehicles. "The substantial revenue outperformance demonstrates Ford's pricing power, but margin compression suggests underlying cost pressures remain problematic," CFRA Research analyst Garrett Nelson said in a note. Gasoline-powered vehicles notched a 15.5% increase in the quarter on the back of these deals. Hybrid offers were also popular with shoppers in the quarter. Ford said results for the quarter ending in June were $800 million lower because of Washington's tariffs. Competitor General Motors (GM.N), opens new tab reported steeper tariff headwinds, with a $1.1 billion hit for the quarter, largely from imports on its entry-level Chevrolet and Buick models made in South Korea. GM has projected a $4 billion to $5 billion tariff impact for the year, with plans to offset 30% of that expense. Ford has said it expects to offset $1 billion of its gross tariff costs. Jeep-maker Stellantis ( opens new tab said tariffs were expected to add $1.7 billion in expenses for the year. The White House did not reply to an email requesting comment on the automakers' projections. In the past, Trump has said the levies will bring manufacturing power and jobs back to the U.S. Ford boasts domestic production for around 80% of the vehicles it sells in the U.S., about 25% more than its two Detroit rivals, according to business analytics firm GlobalData's review of last year's imports. While this foundation has made it more resilient to tariffs, it still faces steep levies on aluminum, steel and copper that have rocked the industry. Additionally, executives have said that a pinched supply of rare earth magnets from China has disrupted production this quarter. Ford's EV investments and quality problems remained among its greatest challenges. Before tariffs hit, the automaker earlier this year said it expected to lose up to $5.5 billion on its EV and software business in 2025. It recorded a $1.3 billion operating loss on this segment for the quarter. Elimination of a $7,500 consumer tax credit in September is expected to additionally dampen EV sales growth. The automaker is also battling costly quality issues and an industry-topping volume of recalls. Reducing these problems has been a priority for Ford CEO Jim Farley since he took on the role in 2020.
