Trump, Xi likely to speak soon, Treasury's Bessent says
FILE PHOTO: U.S. President Donald Trump meets with China's President Xi Jinping at the start of their bilateral meeting at the G20 leaders summit in Osaka, Japan, June 29, 2019. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque/File Photo
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Malay Mail
an hour ago
- Malay Mail
Stocks mixed, oil up on rising trade tensions, geopolitical risks
NEW YORK, June 3 — Oil prices surged Monday over renewed concerns about Russia's war in Ukraine and relief over Opec+ production, while stock markets were mixed as US-China trade tensions resurfaced after a brief lull. The dollar was under renewed pressure as traders digested US President Donald Trump's recent threats to double steel and aluminium tariffs, while Wall Street's main stock indices closed higher as traders looked through the trade turbulence to the strong earnings from US tech titans including Nvidia. 'I think we are seeing a bit of continuation of the positive interpretation of the market from Nvidia's earnings,' Angelo Kourkafas from Edward Jones told AFP, referring to the chip firm's recent strong results. 'Artificial intelligence remains a powerful driver for earnings,' he continued, adding that the financial markets had become 'a little insensitive' to the constant tariff threats from the White House. European stock markets finished mostly in the red, though London ended the day up less than 0.1 per cent. Fresh US-China tensions Trump reignited tensions with China last week when he accused the world's second-largest economy of violating a deal that had led both countries to temporarily reduce huge tit-for-tat tariffs. Beijing rejected the 'bogus' US claims on Monday and accused Washington of introducing 'a number of discriminatory restrictive measures' against China in the weeks since the two sides brokered a trade truce in Geneva last month. Trump also ramped up tensions with other trade partners, including the European Union, by vowing to double global tariffs on steel and aluminium to 50 per cent from Wednesday. 'Trump's pledge to double steel and aluminium import tariffs have caused fresh uncertainty, especially with the European Union vowing to retaliate against the measures,' said Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets at Hargreaves Lansdown. 'Negotiations between the US and China also appear to be in disarray,' she added. The two sides are set for talks on the sidelines of an Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD) ministerial meeting in Paris on Wednesday. The Hong Kong and Tokyo stock markets both ended with sizeable losses Monday. Shanghai was shut for a Chinese public holiday. Oil rises Oil prices surged Monday, with the main US contract, the West Texas Intermediate (WTI), briefly jumping five per cent before settling up 2.9 per cent on the news that the Opec+ producers' grouping — Saudi Arabia, Russia, Iraq, UAE, Kuwait, Kazakhstan, Algeria and Oman — agreed on a smaller-than-expected increase in crude production. 'Prices were also lifted by the increased military activity between Ukraine and Russia reported over the weekend,' said David Morrison, senior market analyst at financial services firm Trade Nation. 'In addition, there were reports that the US may impose stricter sanctions on Moscow, and this helped boost prices,' he added. Ukraine said Sunday that it hit dozens of strategic Russian bombers parked at airbases far behind the front line. Traders were also monitoring tensions over Iran's nuclear program after Tehran said it would not accept an agreement that deprives it of what it calls 'peaceful activities.' — AFP
Malaysian Reserve
an hour ago
- Malaysian Reserve
Trump's mega-bill faces rocky ride in Senate
WASHINGTON — US senators have begun weeks of what is certain to be fierce debate over the mammoth policy package President Donald Trump (picture) hopes will seal his legacy, headlined by tax cuts slated to add up to $3 trillion to the nation's debt. The Republican leader celebrated when the House passed his 'big, beautiful bill,' which partially covers an extension of his 2017 tax relief through budget cuts projected to strip health care from millions of low-income Americans. The Senate now gets to make its own changes, and the upper chamber's version could make or break Republicans' 2026 midterm election prospects — and define Trump's second term. But the 1,116-page blueprint faces an uphill climb, with moderate Republicans balking at $1.5 trillion in spending cuts while fiscal hawks are blasting the bill as a ticking debt bomb. 'We have enough (holdouts) to stop the process until the president gets serious about spending reduction and reducing the deficit,' Senator Ron Johnson, one of half a dozen Republican opponents to the bill, told CNN. Democrats — whose support is not required if Republicans can maintain a united front — have focused on the tax cuts mostly benefiting the rich on the backs of a working class already struggling with high prices. The White House says the legislation will spur robust economic growth to neutralize its potential to blow up America's already burgeoning debt pile, which has ballooned to $36.9 trillion. But several independent analyses have found that — even taking growth into account — it will add between $2.5 trillion and $3.1 trillion to deficits over the next decade. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, meanwhile, found that the combined effects of tax cuts and cost savings would be a giant transfer of wealth from the poorest 10 percent to the richest 10 percent. Republicans muscled the measure through the House by a single vote on May 22 by a combination of bargaining vote holdouts on policies and deploying Trump himself to twist arms. House Speaker Mike Johnson is now pleading with the Senate not to alter the bill too much, as any tweaks will need to go back to the lower chamber. Faultlines The Senate wants to get the bill to Trump's desk by US Independence Day on July 4 — an ambitious timeline given Republicans' narrow three-vote majority and wide faultlines that have opened over the proposed specifics. Independent analysts expect around seven million beneficiaries of the Medicaid health insurance program will be deprived of coverage due to new proposed eligibility restrictions and work requirements. Polling shows that the vast majority of Americans oppose cutting Medicaid — including Trump himself, as well as some Republicans in poorer states that rely heavily on federal welfare. Senate moderates are also worried about proposed changes to funding food aid that could deprive up to 3.2 million of vital nutrition support. One thing is almost certain — Trump himself will get involved at some point, though his negotiation tactics may be more subtle than they were when he threatened 'grandstanders' holding up the tax bill in the House. Trump took to his Truth Social website on Monday to decry 'so many false statements (that) are being made about 'THE ONE, BIG, BEAUTIFUL BILL'' — and to falsely claim that it would not cut Medicaid. 'The only 'cutting' we will do is for Waste, Fraud, and Abuse, something that should have been done by the Incompetent, Radical Left Democrats for the last four years, but wasn't,' he said. One more wrinkle for Trump: tech billionaire Elon Musk — no longer one of his closest aides but still an influential commentator — has already broken with the president to criticize the mega-bill. 'A bill can be big or it can be beautiful. But I don't know if it can be both,' Musk said in a CBS interview criticizing its effect on debt. — AFP
Malay Mail
an hour ago
- Malay Mail
Trump draws red line on Iran: ‘No uranium enrichment under any deal'
WASHINGTON, June 3 — US President Donald Trump on Monday ruled out allowing Iran to enrich uranium under any nuclear deal between the foes — as Tehran defended what it said was its 'peaceful' pursuit of fuel for power generation. Uranium enrichment has remained a key point of contention in five rounds of talks since April to ink a new accord to replace the deal with major powers that Trump abandoned during his first term in 2018. 'Under our potential Agreement — WE WILL NOT ALLOW ANY ENRICHMENT OF URANIUM!' Trump said on his Truth Social network after the Axios news outlet said Washington's offer would let Tehran enrich some of the nuclear fuel. Republican Trump also blamed predecessor Joe Biden for the impasse, saying the Democrat 'should have stopped Iran a long time ago from 'enriching.'' Axios said the latest proposal that Washington had sent Tehran on Saturday would allow limited low-level uranium enrichment on Iranian soil, for an amount of time that has yet to be determined. Iran has insisted that Iran has 'nothing to hide' on its nuclear programme. Speaking in Cairo, where he met the UN nuclear watchdog's chief Rafael Grossi, Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said: 'If the goal is to deprive Iran of its peaceful activities, then certainly no agreement will be reached.' The remarks came after Grossi of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on Monday called for more transparency from Iran following a leaked report that showed Tehran had stepped up uranium enrichment. 'Need for more transparency' The IAEA report showed that Iran has ramped up production of uranium enriched up to 60 per cent — close to the roughly 90 per cent level needed for atomic weapons. 'There is a need for more transparency — this is very, very clear — in Iran, and nothing will bring us to this confidence (besides) full explanations of a number of activities,' Grossi said ahead of meeting Araghchi. Grossi added that some of the report's findings 'may be uncomfortable for some, and we are... used to being criticized'. Iran has rejected the report, warning it would retaliate if European powers that have threatened to reimpose nuclear sanctions 'exploit' it. 'Some countries are trying to abuse this agency to pave the way for escalation with Iran. I hope that this agency does not fall into this trap,' Araghchi said of the IAEA. Iran meanwhile pushed for the United States to drop sanctions that have crippled its economy as a condition for a nuclear agreement with Trump's administration. Araghchi said on Saturday that he had received 'elements' of the US proposal for a nuclear deal following the five rounds of talks, mediated by Oman. 'With or without a deal' Both Araghchi and Grossi met Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who praised the US-Iran talks and called for 'de-escalation in order to prevent a slide into a full-fledged regional war'. On Monday, Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei told a news conference: 'We want to guarantee that the sanctions are effectively lifted.' 'So far, the American side has not wanted to clarify this issue,' he said. The US envoy in the nuclear talks said last month that Trump's administration would oppose any Iranian enrichment. 'An enrichment programme can never exist in the state of Iran ever again. That's our red line. No enrichment,' Steve Witkoff told Breitbart News. Following a phone call with Witkoff the day before about the ongoing nuclear talks, Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty urged a peaceful solution and a nuclear-weapon-free Middle East, saying in Monday's press conference that 'the region is already experiencing enough problems and crises'. He warned that military confrontation would create 'a state of chaos from which no one will be spared'. Iran has vowed to keep enriching uranium 'with or without a deal' on its nuclear programme. The United States has sent Iran a proposal for a nuclear deal that the White House called 'acceptable' and in Tehran's 'best interest' to accept, US media reported on Saturday. The New York Times, citing officials familiar with the diplomatic exchanges, said the proposal calls on Iran to stop all enrichment and suggests creating a regional grouping to produce nuclear power. — AFP
