US President Donald Trump open to extend July 8 trade talks deadline, US to send deal letters
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
WASHINGTON: U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday he would be willing to extend a July 8 deadline for completing trade talks with countries before higher U.S. tariffs take effect, but did not believe that would be necessary.Trump told reporters before a performance at the Kennedy Center that trade negotiations were continuing with some 15 countries, including South Korea, Japan and the European Union."We're rocking in terms of deals," he said. "We're dealing with quite a few countries and they all want to make a deal with us." He said he did not believe a deadline extension would be "a necessity."Trump said the U.S. would send out letters in coming weeks specifying the terms of trade deals to dozens of other countries, which they could then embrace or reject."At a certain point, we're just going to send letters out ... saying, 'This is the deal. You can take it, or you can leave it,'" Trump said. "So at a certain point we'll do that. We're not quite ready."U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told lawmakers earlier that the Trump administration could extend the July trade deal deadline - or "roll the date forward" for countries negotiating in good faith, in certain cases.A 90-day pause in Trump's broadest, "reciprocal" tariffs will end on July 8, with only one trade deal agreed with Britain and some 17 others at various stages of negotiation."It is highly likely that those countries - or trading blocs as is the case with the EU - who are negotiating in good faith, we will roll the date forward to continue the good-faith negotiations," Bessent told the House Ways and Means Committee. "If someone is not negotiating, then we will not."Bessent's remarks marked the first time a Trump administration official has indicated some flexibility around the expiration date for the pause.Bessent reiterated the possibility of more negotiating time at a second hearing before the Senate Appropriations Committee on Wednesday, saying it was "my belief that countries that are negotiating in good faith could be rolled forward."He said the European Union had previously been slower to come forward with robust proposals, but was now showing "better faith," without providing specifics. Trump echoed that more upbeat view on Wednesday, saying, "They do want to negotiate."A deal struck on Tuesday in London with China to de-escalate that bilateral trade war is proceeding on a separate track and timeline, with an August 10 deadline set last month.The president has been the final decision-maker on his administration's tariff and trade policies, but Bessent's influence has increased in recent months and the Treasury chief has been viewed by many trading partners as a moderating voice.Trump announced the pause on April 9, a week after unveiling "Liberation Day" tariffs against nearly all U.S. trading partners that proved to be so unexpectedly large and sweeping that it sent global financial markets into near panic.The S&P 500 Index plunged more than 12% in four days for its heftiest run of losses since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020. Investors were so rattled they bailed out of safe-haven U.S. Treasury securities, sending bond yields rocketing higher. The dollar sank.Markets started their recovery on April 9 when Trump unexpectedly announced the pause. The recovery continued in early May when the Trump team agreed to dial back the triple-digit tariff rates it had imposed on goods from China. Those events have given rise to what some on Wall Street have parodied as the "TACO" trade - an acronym for Trump Always Chickens Out."The only time the market has reacted positively is when the administration is in retreat from key policy areas," Democratic Representative Don Beyer of Virginia told Bessent before pressing him on what to expect when the July deadline expires."As I have said repeatedly there are 18 important trading partners. We are working toward deals with those," Bessent said before going on to signal a willingness to offer extensions to those negotiating in good faith.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
&w=3840&q=100)
First Post
12 minutes ago
- First Post
Donald Trump has embraced the deep state — and it'll backfire on America
Donald Trump's deep state embrace has a message for Bharat: That it is alone in the global powerplay. But the good thing is that New Delhi has all the wherewithal to survive this storm read more When Donald Trump came to power for the second time in January this year, one expected him to take the fight to the 'deep state' that many believed had hijacked the American administration. Trump, to his credit, made the right noises, especially during the election campaign when he pledged to supporters that voting him back into the presidency would help him 'demolish the deep state'. Five months into the Trump presidency, many of his domestic supporters are disappointed already. As Ali Swenson writes in her Associated Press report, Trump, having long warned people of a government 'deep state', is under tremendous pressure to expose, if not dismantle, it. 'His Justice Department has not yet arrested hordes of 'deep state' actors as some of his supporters had hoped it would, even as the president has been posting cryptic videos and memes about Democratic politicians,' she writes. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD When the Americans voted for Trump this time, they expected a break in this Washington consensus where 'the choice' was 'between Coke or Pepsi, with the voters merely rubber-stamping one of the two preselected choices', as author Mike Lofgren writes in his book, The Deep State: The Fall of the Constitution and the Rise of a Shadow Government. According to Lofgren, this 'was the playbook as it had been rehearsed for many weary years'. He explains, 'Republicans would stoke up the culture wars, fanning their touchily emotional base into an incandescent rage over Obama, the Kenyan Muslim socialist who had usurped the presidency, and Hillary, the bête noire of all true conservatives and Obama's anointed successor. Democrats, for their part, would say, 'Vote for us, because Rush Limbaugh!' According to the playbook, economic issues like Wall Street regulation and trade were supposed to remain strictly between the forty-yard lines, while debates about foreign policy would tightly focus on the glory of killing bin Laden or the shame of Benghazi, not on whether we could ever hope to fix the Middle East with military force.' Trump, the outsider, threatened to disrupt this sinister consensus. He asked uncomfortable questions. He also pledged to expose the fixed match between the Republicans and the Democrats played under the prying eyes of the deep state. But today, Trump seems to have become a different man. Maybe he has always been like this—shifty, unpredictable, and unreliable. But this time, in five odd months, his transformation is complete, dismantling the idea of Trump as we knew him in the past decade or so. His friends have changed; so have his priorities. His most trusted ally, Elon Musk, has fallen out with him. And his National Security Adviser, Mike Waltz, has been shifted to the United Nations as its ambassador. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Coming to Waltz, many believe he has paid the price for the 'Signalgate' scandal. But had this been the only reason, then Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth too should have faced the music for creating another Signal messaging chat that included his wife and brother, where he shared similar details of a March military airstrike against Yemen's Houthi terrorists. Waltz would often call for closer ties between Bharat and the United States, while at the same time emphasising the threat that China poses to the world, especially in alliance with Pakistan. This Watzian worldview would have fitted well within the pre-January 20 Trumpian ecosystem, but today the Donald has pulled apart everything he seemed to believe before the inauguration of his second term. What Trump may not realise today, but someday he definitely will, is that with his U-turn he has not just squandered a geostrategic opportunity for the United States to realign the American priorities to the long-term US interests but also lost the goodwill of a sixth of humanity when not many were willing to give him a chance, especially outside the US. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Disappointment with Trump within America will have political ramifications, but displeasure abroad will have geopolitical complications. Trump is today the antithesis of everything he epitomised five months ago. One can see the fundamental contradiction in his worldview from the fact that while he continues to fight Harvard, during his recent visit to West Asia, he hankered after Saudi-Qatari money, little realising (or maybe he doesn't give a damn) that it is this petrodollar that has created the wokeist monster on American campuses. All through his campaign and before, Trump invoked the Islamist ghost, but when the time was ripe to put the jihadi djinn in the bottle during Operation Sindoor, launched by the Modi government to make Islamabad accountable for the gruesome Pahalgam killings, he fumbled. Rather, he took a conciliatory position, advising the leaders of Bharat and Pakistan to have a 'nice dinner together'. He followed this up by crossing many other red lines, beginning with his pompous misinformation about brokering a ceasefire, even when Bharat has been unequivocal in reiterating the bilateral nature of the dispute. Just like his predecessors, Trump made the mistake of equating Bharat with Pakistan, calling the latter a 'great nation'. Not very long ago, the Donald was on record wondering why the US funded a terrorist state like Pakistan. He would even call out Islamabad for hiding Osama bin Laden for six years and ask when it would apologise. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD As if that were not enough, Washington has invited Pakistan's jihadi general, Field Marshal Asim Munir, to attend the US Army Day events. One of its top generals, Michael Kurilla, Commander of US Central Command (CENTCOM), has praised Pakistan as a 'phenomenal partner' in counterterrorism. Trump's astounding U-turn can also be seen in his administration's recent decision to put an entry ban on travellers from 12 countries, including Afghanistan and Myanmar. Ironically, Pakistan has not just been missing from this list but also the one about countries that face 'partial travel restrictions'. The exemption given to Pakistan—a country that has become synonymous with jihadi terrorism and would not long ago proudly claim to have fathered the Taliban to give itself a strategic depth—defies logic, except when one realises that Trump has embraced the deep state. This treacherous reality is also evident when one is told about the growing American presence and intervention in Bangladesh in the last few months. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD It has been a longstanding opinion of this author that America wants to engage with Bharat but only as a senior partner. It's an unequal relationship that it seeks with Delhi. Bharat's role in the West's scheme of things is nothing more than that of a pawn—a strategic pawn, of course—needed to checkmate the Dragon. But the success of Operation Sindoor, where Bharat could do to a nuclear-armed nation what others could not even comprehend, and that too within a few hours of military exercise, has dazzled both its friends and rivals. America is suddenly alarmed: It believes it just cannot let a new rival (Bharat) rise in the battle to subdue the old one (China). This may explain Trump's sudden outreach to China. This may also explain why Trump (even when we ignore his family's dubious business interests in Islamabad) wants to give Pakistan a fresh leash of life. Will it work? Will the Trump-deep state design slow down, if not crumble, Bharat? STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The growing American belligerence may slow down Bharat's growth and rise, but the fundamentals of the nation are strong. What America doesn't realise is that not having Bharat by its side will lead to the decline of the US faster than it might slow Bharat's rise. In all this, China (and Pakistan) can have a sigh of relief. When things were going awry for Emperor Xi, when the Chinese economy was set for massive decline, if not freefall, the Donald came up Nixon-like to give Beijing another shot at superpowerdom. Trump's deep-state embrace has a message for Bharat: That it is alone in the global powerplay. Russia and Israel are the only reliable friends, but even they have compulsions: The Ukraine war has pushed Moscow closer to the Chinese fold, and such is Tel Aviv's history and geography that it just cannot but overly rely on the Americans. The good thing is that Bharat has all the wherewithal to survive this storm. It needs to keep consolidating its economic gains by compensating for global trade/tariff challenges with its aatmanirbharta movement. With time, as Bharat continues to grow economically and geostrategically, the inner contradictions in the West-China-Pakistan alliance would emerge. There would be no stopping Bharat thereafter. The Americans, that day, would rue the missed Trumpian opportunity to not just keep Bharat by their side but also keep the US on the right side of history. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect Firstpost's views.
&w=3840&q=100)
Business Standard
14 minutes ago
- Business Standard
Stock Market LIVE: Sensex down 1,000pts, Nifty below 24,550 amid Israel-Iran war; Nifty Oil down 2%
Sensex Today | Stock Market LIVE on Friday, June 13, 2025: Around 8:50 AM, GIFT Nifty futures were trading 299 points lower at 24,638, indicating a gap-down start for the bourses. Stock Market LIVE on Friday, June 13, 2025: Benchmark indices, Sensex and Nifty, are likely to be guided by better-than expected May inflation data, Israel's strike on Iran, softer US economic data, institutional flows, along with mixed global cues on the final trading day of the week. That said, around 8:50 AM, GIFT Nifty futures were trading 299 points lower at 24,638, indicating a gap-down start for the bourses. India's retail inflation eased to 2.82 per cent in May, down from 3.16 per cent in April, marking its lowest level since February 2019, when it stood at 2.57 per cent. The decline was driven by a favourable base effect, a sharp drop in vegetable prices, and the steepest fall in pulses prices in over six years—creating more space for the RBI's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) to maintain its current policy stance. Asia-Pacific markets traded mixed on Friday as reports of an Israeli military strike on Iran weighed on investor sentiment, even as Wall Street closed higher on encouraging US economic data. Israel launched a preemptive strike on Iran early Friday, Defense Minister Israel Katz said, following US President Trump's warning of a possible Israeli attack on Iranian nuclear sites. Katz added that a missile and drone retaliation from Iran is expected soon. A state of emergency has been declared. Given that, Nikkei dropped 1.16 per cent, and the Topix fell a little over 1 per cent. The Kospi declined 0.67 per cent, while ASX 200 slipped 0.17 per cent. US stock futures edged lower in early trade, but key indexes are set to end the week in positive territory. May producer prices in the US rose just 0.1 per cent—below the 0.2 per cent forecast—boosting market confidence after a similarly soft consumer inflation report earlier this week. The data supported a drop in bond yields and lifted equities. Overnight, Wall Street saw broad gains. The S&P 500 climbed 0.38 per cent. The Nasdaq Composite rose 0.24 per cent, while the Dow Jones gained 0.24 per cent. FII, DII On the institutional activity front, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) net sold shares worth ₹3,831.42 crore. On the other hand, domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought shares worth ₹9,393.85 crore on June 12. IPO today Oswal Pumps IPO (Mainline), which is set to open for subscription today, has raised ₹416.20 crore from anchor investors ahead of its IPO. Aten Papers & Foam IPO (SME) will also open for subscription. Moreover, Monolithisch India IPO (SME) will enter Day 2, while Jainik Power and Cables IPO (SME) will see its allotment. Commodity corner Gold prices climbed to a one-week high on Thursday, supported by escalating Middle East tensions and softer US economic data, which strengthened expectations of a potential Federal Reserve rate cut. Spot gold rose 1.1 per cent to $3,387.99 an ounce, while US gold futures surged 2.0 per cent to $3,410.70. Crude oil prices also soared, rallying over 5 per cent after Israel launched airstrikes against Iran. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude jumped 5.79 per cent to $72.04 per barrel, while global benchmark Brent crude advanced 5.58 per cent to $73.23. 9:22 AM Stock Market LIVE Updates: Broader markets open in red Stock Market LIVE Updates: In the broader markets, BSE Midcap fell 1.23 per cent and BSE Smallcap was down by 1.47 per cent. 9:20 AM Stock Market LIVE Updates: All sectoral indices fall over 1 per cent Stock Market LIVE Updates: Following the escalation in Israel-Iran conflict, all major sectoral indices including the Nifty Auto, Bank, Energy, IT, Realty, Metal, Oil & Gas and Consumer Durables were down over 1 per cent each after opening. 9:18 AM Stock Market LIVE Updates: Nifty50 opens below 24,500 9:14 AM Stock Market LIVE Updates: Crude oil prices rally on escalation in Israel-Iran conflict Stock Market LIVE Updates: Crude oil benchmark WTI Crude was trading at $73.95 per barrel, up 8.69 pr cent following escalation in Israel-Iran conflict. 9:12 AM Stock Market LIVE Updates: Gold jumps rose 2% Stock Market LIVE Updates: Gold prices jumped over ₹1,900 or 1.9 per cent to ₹100,309 on Friday 9:09 AM Stock Market LIVE Updates: Sensex tanks 1,262 pts, Nifty below 24,500 in pre-market Stock Market LIVE Updates: In the pre-market session, the BSE Sensex settled at 80,429.54 levels, down 1,262.44 points or 1.55 per cent, while the Nifty50 was at 24,473, down 415.20 points or 1.67 per cent. 8:59 AM Stock Market LIVE Updates: Views on Crude oil Stock Market LIVE Updates: Views on Crude oil -- Crude oil futures surged over 10 per cent to $76 per barrel, the highest in two months, as escalating tensions between Israel and Iran sparked fears of severe supply disruptions. -- With Israel launching a pre-emptive strike and Iran vowing retaliation—including potential attacks on US bases—the threat to the Strait of Hormuz, a key global oil artery, looms large. -- Supporting the price rally, US crude inventories fell more than expected, signaling robust demand. -- Additionally, weaker US inflation data reinforced expectations of a Fed rate cut by September, potentially lifting future oil demand. -- We expect crude oil prices to remain volatile in today's session. -- Crude oil is having support at $70.40-68.50 and resistance is at $74.00-75.20 in today's session. In INR crude oil has support at ₹5,690-5,630 while resistance at ₹6,200-6,450 Views by: Rahul Kalantri, Vice president of commodities, Mehta Equities 8:56 AM Stock Market LIVE Updates: Oswal Pumps raises ₹416 crore from anchor investors ahead of IPO Stock Market LIVE Updates: Oswal Pumps raised ₹416.20 crore from anchor investors on Thursday, ahead of its initial public offering (IPO) that opens for public subscription on Friday. The company informed the bourses that it allocated 67.78 lakh equity shares at ₹614 per share to anchor investors. Some of the marquee institutions that participated in the anchor tranche include Société Générale, BNP Paribas, ICICI Prudential, Aditya Birla Sun Life, Kotak Mahindra MF, Quant MF, Motilal Oswal MF, Bandhan Small Cap Fund, Nuvama MF, Sundaram MF and Edelweiss Life Insurance, among others. READ MORE 8:53 AM Stock Market LIVE Updates: Gold price rises ₹10 to ₹99,290; silver falls ₹100, trades at ₹1,08,800 Stock Market LIVE Updates: The price of 24-carat gold rose ₹10 in early trade on Friday, with ten grams of the precious metal trading at ₹99,290 according to the GoodReturns website. The price of silver fell ₹100, with one kilogram of the precious metal selling at ₹1,08,800. The price of 22-carat gold also fell ₹10, with ten grams of the yellow metal selling at ₹91,010. The price of ten grams of 24-carat gold in Mumbai, Kolkata, and Chennai stood at ₹99,290. In Delhi, the price of ten grams of 24-carat gold stood at ₹99,440. 8:46 AM Stock Market LIVE Updates: Iran's Revolutionary Guards chief Hossein Salami killed in Israeli strike Stock Market LIVE Updates: Iran's Revolutionary Guards chief Hossein Salami has been killed in an Israeli attack on Iran's nuclear site, AFP reported. An Associated Press report, citing Iranian state television, confirmed that Gen. Hossein Salami, head of the country's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, was killed in an Israeli strike on Friday. A news anchor read a statement saying, 'The news of the assassination and martyrdom of Gen Hossein Salami was confirmed,' without providing further details. READ MORE 8:44 AM Stock Market LIVE Updates: Views on Gold Stock Market LIVE Updates: Views on Gold -- Gold prices extended their gains following Israel's airstrikes on Iran earlier today, intensifying the already fragile geopolitical landscape in the Middle East. -- Iran has pledged to retaliate after being formally censured by the UN's nuclear watchdog. -- Meanwhile, uncertainty surrounding the US-China trade negotiations, compounded by President Donald Trump's threat to impose unilateral tariffs within two weeks, has pushed investors toward traditional safe-haven assets. -- Market attention will remain focused on the evolving conflict in the Middle East and any forthcoming response from China regarding the trade tensions. Any further escalation is likely to drive gold prices higher, potentially pushing them back toward previous record highs. Views by: Aksha Kamboj, vice president, India Bullion and Jewellers Association and executive chairperson, Aspect Global Ventures 8:42 AM Stock Market LIVE Updates: Pre-opening view Stock Market LIVE Updates: Pre-opening view -- On this ominous Friday the 13th, markets are gripped by caution as bearish signals intensify—despite the RBI's jumbo rate cut, banking stocks remain weak, and FIIs have sold ₹3,549 crore so far this June, contributing to continued volatility. -- Geopolitical risks are also in play, with Trump threatening 55 per cent tariffs on China, which downplays the US deal, while WTI crude nears $72 per barrel amid US-Iran tensions. -- Nifty's sharp sell-off signals that bears are in control, with the 25222 level remaining a major hurdle. -- Stock-specific action saw IndiGo and SpiceJet fall over 3 per cent after an Air India crash in Ahmedabad, while Sterlite Technologies soared 11 per cent on securing a ₹2,631 crore BSNL contract, and Tanla Platforms surged 9 per cent ahead of a board meeting to consider a share buyback. -- Zomato and Tata Motors are under bearish watch on intraday strength, with Zomato particularly vulnerable below ₹237. Views by: Prashanth Tapse, senior VP (research), Mehta Equities 8:38 AM Stock Market LIVE Updates: Jainik Power & Cables IPO allotment today; check status, GMP, listing date Stock Market LIVE Updates: The basis of allotment of shares for Jainik Power and Cables is expected to be finalised today, June 13, 2025. The SME initial public offering (IPO) received a muted response from investors, with the issue being oversubscribed by only 1.59 times, according to NSE data. Once the allotment is finalised, investors can check their allotment status on the official websites of the NSE or Skyline Financial Services, the registrar of the issue. READ MORE 8:30 AM Stock Market LIVE Updates: Consumption funds: Rate cuts to boost growth, but enter with long horizon Stock Market LIVE Updates: In yet another move to boost consumption demand, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) cut the repo rate by 50 basis points on June 6, marking a total reduction of 100 bps since the beginning of the year. Lenders lowering rates in response is set to stimulate the economy. Higher consumption will drive economic growth, while also enhancing the performance of funds focused on consumption. 'Consumption funds are a good proxy to play on India's positive demography, the structural theme of rising per capita income, and low penetration levels across several consumption categories,' says Navin Matta, fund manager - equity, Mahindra Manulife Mutual Fund.
Indian Express
21 minutes ago
- Indian Express
Trump to attend security meeting on Friday after Israeli strikes on Iran
US President Donald Trump will attend a National Security Council meeting on Friday morning, the White House said late on Thursday after Israeli strikes on Iran that have put the Middle East on edge. The meeting will be held at 11 am ET (1500 GMT) on Friday, the White House said. Israel said early on Friday Middle East time and late Thursday US time that it had struck Iran to block Tehran from developing atomic weapons, and Iranian media and witnesses reported explosions including at the country's main uranium enrichment facility. US top diplomat Marco Rubio called Israel's strikes against Iran a 'unilateral action' and said Washington was not involved while also urging Tehran not to target US interests or personnel in the region. The US State Department said late on Thursday that the US Embassy in Jerusalem has directed all US government employees and their family members to shelter in place until further notice. Statement from Secretary of State Marco Rubio 'Tonight, Israel took unilateral action against Iran. We are not involved in strikes against Iran and our top priority is protecting American forces in the region. Israel advised us that they believe this action was necessary for its… — The White House (@WhiteHouse) June 13, 2025 Trump had been seeking a new nuclear deal to place limits on Iran's disputed uranium enrichment activities but the talks have appeared to be deadlocked. Trump said earlier on Thursday an Israeli strike on Iran 'could very well happen' but reiterated hopes for a peaceful resolution. The US military is planning for the full range of contingencies in the Middle East, including the possibility that it might have to help evacuate American civilians, a US official told Reuters. A security alert by the US embassy in Jerusalem said the security environment was complex and could change quickly. In response to security incidents and without advance notice, the US embassy may further restrict or prohibit US government employees and their family members from traveling to certain areas of Israel and the Israeli-occupied West Bank, the State Department said.
