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Global News
23 minutes ago
- Global News
Trump vows more tariffs on steel, semiconductor chips within 2 weeks
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Friday he would announce tariffs on imports of steel and semiconductor chips in coming weeks. 'I'll be setting tariffs next week and the week after on steel and on, I would say, chips,' Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One as he headed to a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska. He said the rates would be lower at the start to allow companies to build up domestic manufacturing in the U.S., rising sharply later, following a pattern he has also outlined for tariffs on pharmaceuticals. He gave no exact rates. 'I'm going to have a rate that is going to be lower at the beginning – that gives them a chance to come in and build – and very high after a certain period of time,' he said. Story continues below advertisement Trump said he felt confident that companies would opt to manufacture in the United States, rather than face high tariffs. 20:00 U.S. ambassador says Canada is 'pulling rug out' from free trade agreement Trump has upended global trade by imposing sharply higher duties on nearly all countries' exports to the United States, along with tariffs on specific sectors, such as automotive. Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy Trump in February raised tariffs on steel and aluminum to a flat 25 per cent, but he announced in May that he would double the rate to 50 per cent to boost domestic manufacturers. It was not immediately clear if another tariff increase on the metals was in the offing. Trump said last week he would impose a tariff of 100% on imports of semiconductors, but companies that committed to building up manufacturing in the United States would be exempt. Story continues below advertisement His remarks were made in tandem with an announcement that Apple would be investing an additional US$100 billion in its home market. –Reporting by Steve Holland and Andrea Shalal, editing by Ross Colvin
an hour ago
Sanctioned but standing: Russians see their prices rise as Trump and Putin head to Alaska
Despite three and half years of grinding international sanctions due to the Ukraine war, Russian grocery store shelves remain full, and there's little evidence people are going without their creature comforts. However, as Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin prepare for their summit in Alaska on Friday, a tipping point may have finally arrived for the Russian people, left physically and economically separated from the West. Moscow's heavy war-related spending has led to higher salaries and increased consumer spending. But it's also caused higher inflation, which is now cutting deeply into economic growth, says Alexander Kolyandr, a senior researcher for the Center for European Policy Analysis in London. The situation is reflected in the attitudes of many people with whom CBC News spoke. Russian authorities have prohibited CBC from directly reporting in the country. Instead, a freelance journalist in Moscow sounded people out about their feelings on the war, its impact on their daily lives and the potential of the Trump-Putin summit in Alaska. Prices are constantly going up, especially food and utilities, said Anton, 40, who lives with his wife and young daughter in Korolyov, a Moscow commuter town. Kids' clothes like T-shirts that were super cheap are now sold at crazy prices in stores, with the same [bad] quality. Speaking publicly about Ukraine can trigger visits from Russian police, so CBC News is withholding the surnames of the people interviewed. Enlarge image (new window) A view of cooked food on a counter in a supermarket in Moscow in June 2024. Photo: Reuters / Maxim Shemetov 'You can't do it forever' Year over year, inflation now stands at almost nine per cent. Food inflation is even higher. We see the slowing of the economy everywhere, said Kolyandr, who until Russia's invasion was an analyst with Credite Swisse in Moscow. Russian statistics (new window) show that consumer spending steadily increased throughout 2024 but has fallen back sharply in 2025, a potential indicator of a stagnating economy, he said. Friday's meeting between the two leaders marks a critical point in diplomacy to end the combat on the battlefield, just as Russia's economy appears to be starting to sputter. Food costs more; manufactured goods, too, said Alexey, a 66-year-old pensioner who works part time as a security guard at a grocery store in Russia's capital. However, many people told CBC News that their lifestyles have remained generally the same — for now. We still buy what we need, but when something gets really expensive we make choices, like skipping buying a coat or a jacket, Alexey said. You feel it [the price increases], said Irina, a 31-year-old Moscow TV producer. But not to the point where I completely stopped buying things for myself. Military spending, signing bonuses Ever since Russian tanks crossed into Ukraine in 2022, there have been predictions that Putin's invasion would inordinately strain Russian consumers and businesses, potentially leading to the economic collapse of the country of 146 million people. But as time went on, those projections took on a boy who cried wolf feeling to them. Instead, government spending on Russia's military has until now fuelled an economic boom that's actually made many Russians far richer than they were pre-war. In the latest Russian budget (new window) , expenditures on the military and security accounted for 19 per cent of all government spending. Alexander Kolyandr is a senior researcher for the Center for European Policy Analysis in London. He is a former analyst with Credit Swisse in Moscow who left the country following Putin's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Photo: CBC / Lyzaville Sale The Russian government was very good at boosting economic growth for two years while sweeping all the problems under the carpet or leaving them for the future, said Kolyandr. However, he adds, "it's like running on amphetamines — you can't do it forever." Enlarge image (new window) Putin chairs a meeting on economic issues in Moscow on Aug. 12. Photo: Reuters / Vyacheslav Prokofyev/Sputnik Still, even as prices rise — and war casualties mount — the Kremlin has put in place highly effective measures to insulate itself against any kind of popular backlash. Among them are lucrative signing and death bonuses to Russian soldiers and their families. Novaya Gazeta reports (new window) that if soldiers manage to survive their first year, they could earn up to seven million rubles, or about over $100,000 Cdn, including signing bonuses and salaries. It's a life-changing amount of money for soldiers' families, says Kolyandr, in a country where typical earnings are $18,000 Cdn a year (new window) . Enlarge image (new window) A car burns following what local authorities called a Ukrainian drone attack in the course of Russia-Ukraine conflict in Belgorod, Russia, on Aug. 14, in this still image taken from video. Photo: Reuters / Vyacheslav Gladkov/Telegram The lucrative payouts — along with persecuting dissenters — help explain the muted public opposition to the war, in spite of immense battlefield losses. Britain's Ministry of Defence estimates (new window) more than a million Russians have been killed or wounded since February 2022, while Ukraine's total casualties may be in excess of 400,000. Kremlin narratives Among the Muscovites who spoke about the war to our CBC freelance producer, several deferred to Kremlin narratives, which cast Western countries as the aggressor and Russia as fighting a defensive war of survival. I don't think freezing the conflict is actually good, because if they freeze it, [Ukrainian] missiles will still be hitting our territory, said Alexey, the 66-year-old pensioner. Others expressed low expectations that Putin and Trump would agree on a ceasefire anytime soon. If they stop shooting and agree on a freeze, that's already good — people will stop dying, said Anton, from Korolyov. But the economy probably won't get better. Even if they stop the troops, sanctions will likely stay. Enlarge image (new window) A poster in Yaroslavl's main train stations warns travellers about helping Ukrainians. One caption says, 'ATTENTION! DON'T LET THEM FOOL YOURSELF. DON'T BE A TRAITOR.' Another warns people they could get 20 years in jail if they help anyone sabotage national infrastructure, such as Russian railways. Photo: CBC Russia has passed laws imposing jail terms for spreading what it considers fake news about the Ukraine war on social media platforms. Nonetheless, on VK, one of Russia's largest social media platforms, some comments were notable for their negativity toward the war. Putin doesn't need peace. He's obsessed with control, and the war in Ukraine is one of his levers. And he's absolutely indifferent to the casualties, said one user named Dmitry, (new window) who was scolded by other user for his apparent criticism of Russia's leader. In another exchange, a user named Masha said, If Putin agrees to NATO conditions that's a loss, to which another user suggested that the special military operation — as the Kremlin calls its Ukraine invasion — has been a loss since the very beginning. Enlarge image (new window) A priest conducts a service during the funeral for Alexander Martemyanov, the Russian media outlet Izvestia's freelance correspondent killed in a drone strike on a highway while travelling by car from Horlivka to Donetsk, in January 2025. Photo: Reuters / Alexander Ermochenko Trump's tactics Kolyandr, the CEPA economist, says he believes it's unlikely there is any economic lever that Trump could pull to ultimately force Russia to alter its battlefield strategy or pull back against Ukraine. Russian forces currently control roughly 20 per cent of the country, including the Crimean peninsula, which Russia has officially annexed. Earlier in August, Trump imposed a 25 per cent penalty on India, in addition to a 25 per cent tariff for buying oil and weapons from Russia. Notably however, Trump has not targeted Russia's biggest energy customer, China. If he did, Kolyandr says he believes it would be very difficult for Russia's economy to survive the shock. "Trump said that if he imposes [secondary] sanctions, the price of Russian oil will drop by $10 [US]. And that would, in his view, derail the Russian economy. If my calculation is correct, that would deprive Russia of something like three-quarters of its GDP per year, which is a lot." Of late, Russians far from Ukraine's borders have been increasingly feeling the impact of the war in other ways. Ukrainian drones now fly over major Russian airports in cities such as Moscow almost daily, causing flight cancellations and delays. Others have been hitting Russian energy infrastructure, especially oil refineries. Ukraine has also been attacking Russia's mobile phone and internet infrastructure, often leading to widespread disruptions. All that trickles down and annoys people, says Kolyandr. But not to the point that they are ready to swap what they see as a victorious and existential war with the West for some creature comforts at home — at least not yet. Chris Brown (new window) · CBC News · Foreign correspondent Chris Brown is a foreign correspondent based in the CBC's London bureau. Previously in Moscow, Chris has a passion for great stories and has travelled all over Canada and the world to find them.
CTV News
an hour ago
- CTV News
Canada didn't push for plastic production cap in talks on global treaty
A man walks past plastic waste strewn along at Enggros village beach in Jayapura, Papua province, Indonesia, on Oct. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Firdia Lisnawati, File) OTTAWA — Canadian officials negotiating a global treaty on plastic pollution at the United Nations say they didn't push other countries to adopt a cap on plastic production. The sixth round of talks wrapped up in Geneva today without consensus on a legally-binding international treaty. The negotiations started in 2022 and Canada has been instrumental in bringing countries to the table, having hosted the fourth round of talks in 2024. In a technical briefing today, Environment Canada officials said they know that many countries are opposed to a production cap — so Canada didn't press the issue. Reuters reported last week that the United States was circulating a memo to other countries urging them to reject any treaty which imposes limits on plastic production and plastic chemical additives. Canadian officials said Friday that they saw no such memo. Nick Murray, The Canadian Press
