
Ugandan shilling stable, US tariffs increase interbank dollar demand
At 0931 GMT commercial banks quoted the shilling at 3,704/3,714, compared to Monday's close of 3,702/3,712.
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"The broad market view is that there will be dollar scarcity going forward on expectation that dollar flows will fall because of trade disruptions and hence the need to build long dollar positions," said a market note from Alpha Capital Partners, a Kampala-based fund manager.

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Fashion United
23 minutes ago
- Fashion United
Paul Smith extends Fashion Residency programme to US with CFDA
British designer Paul Smith has expanded his brand's existing Fashion Residency programme to students in the US. In partnership with the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA), for the initiative's second edition the Paul Smith Foundation will be selecting one American designer to join the residency at Studio Smithfield in London. The inaugural US participant, who will be part of the Paul Smith's Foundation x CFDA Designer-in-Residence, will join six UK-based designers in receiving a 400 square foot studio space for 12 months, supported by Projekt. Each designer will also receive mentoring from industry leaders, business-planning training, a visa, flights and living expenses. Applications for the second cohort of the programme have now been opened, with shortlisted candidates associated with the CFDA-led arm to begin interviews in September 2025. Designer Paul Smith will oversee the selection process alongside CFDA president, Steven Kolb, and vice president of program strategies/education and sustainability initiatives at CFDA, Sara Kozlowski. Launched in 2024, Paul Smith founded the Fashion Residency at Studio Smithfield programme alongside the Mayor of London and Projekt. Through it, select young designers are given access to set workspace and a training programme, the latter designed by the Paul Smith's Foundation, which matches participants with industry professionals. In a statement, Kolb said: 'Fashion is truly a global business, and an opportunity such as this will provide one American talent with invaluable experience and exposure in an international market. The chance to work alongside peers in the UK fosters creative exchange, builds cross-cultural understanding, and strengthens our industry as a whole. We are deeply grateful to Sir Paul Smith for his continued collaboration and dedication to nurturing the next generation of talent.'


The Independent
40 minutes ago
- The Independent
Social Security has existed for 90 years. Why it may be more threatened than ever
When President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Social Security Act into law 90 years ago this week, he said it would provide economic stability to older people while giving the U.S. "an economic structure of vastly greater soundness.' Today, the program provides benefits to almost 69 million Americans each month. It's a major source of income for people older than 65 and is popular across the country and political lines. It also looks more threatened than ever. Just as it has for decades, Social Security faces a looming shortfall in money to pay full benefits. Since President Donald Trump took office in January, the program has faced more tumult. Agency staffing has been slashed. Unions and advocacy groups concerned about sharing sensitive information have sued. Administration officials, including the president, have falsely claimed that millions of dead people were receiving Social Security benefits. Former top adviser Elon Musk said the program was a potential ' Ponzi scheme." At an Oval Office event Thursday commemorating the program's anniversary, Trump said 'Social Security will be great again' under his watch and that 'you have my commitment.' But the president and Republicans who control Congress have not proposed a long-term solution to shore up the program. Social Security remains far from the sound economic system that Roosevelt envisioned, due to changes made — and not made — under both Democratic and Republican presidents. Here's a look at past and current challenges to Social Security, the proposed solutions and what it could take to shore up the program. The go-broke date has been moved up The so-called go-broke date — or the date at which Social Security will no longer have enough funds to pay full benefits — has been moved up to 2034, instead of last year's estimate of 2035. After that point, Social Security would only be able to pay 81% of benefits, according to an annual report released in June. The earlier date came as new legislation affecting Social Security benefits have contributed to earlier projected depletion dates, the report concluded. The Social Security Fairness Act, signed into law by Democratic President Joe Biden and enacted in January, had an impact. It repealed the Windfall Elimination and Government Pension Offset provisions, increasing Social Security benefit levels for former public workers. The new tax law signed by Trump in July will accelerate the insolvency of Social Security, said Brendan Duke at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. 'They haven't laid out an idea to fix it yet," he said. Trump said Thursday, repeating the claim that his new tax and spending law will eliminate taxes on federal Social Security benefits. That law has a temporary tax deduction for people 65 and over that applies to all income, not just Social Security. 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The plan was not well-received by the public. Glenn Hubbard, a Columbia University professor and top economist in Bush's White House, told The Associated Press that Social Security needs to be reduced in size in order to maintain benefits for generations to come. He supports limiting benefits for wealthy retirees. 'We will have to make a choice," Hubbard said. 'If you want Social Security benefits to look like they are today, we're going to have to raise everyone's taxes a lot. And if that's what people want, that's a menu, and you pay the high price and you move on." Another option would be to increase minimum benefits and slow down benefit growth for everyone else, which Hubbard said would right the ship without requiring big tax increases, if it's done over time. 'It's really a political choice,' he said, adding 'Neither one of those is pain free." Nancy Altman, president of Social Security Works, an advocacy group for the preservation of Social Security benefits, is more worried that the administration of benefits could be privatized under Trump, rather than a move toward privatized accounts. The agency cut more than 7,000 from its workforce this year as part of the Department of Government Efficiency's effort to reduce the size of the government. A Social Security Administration representative didn't respond to a request for comment. Concerns persist An Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll conducted in April found that an increasing share of older Americans — particularly Democrats — support the program but aren't confident the benefit will be available to them when they retire. 'So much of what we hear is that its running out of money,' said Becky Boober, 70, from Rockport, Maine, who recently retired after decades in public service. She relies on Social Security to keep her finances afloat, is grateful for the program and thinks it should be expanded. 'In my mind there are several easy fixes that are not a political stretch,' she said. They include raising the income tax cap on high-income earners and possibly raising the retirement age, which is currently 67 for people born after 1960, though she is less inclined to support that change. Some call for shrinking the program Rachel Greszler is a senior research fellow at the Heritage Foundation, the group behind the Project 2025 blueprint for Trump's second term. It called for an increase in the retirement age. Greszler says Social Security no longer serves its intended purpose of being a social safety net for low-income older adults and is far too large. She supports pursuing privatization, which includes allowing retirees to put their Social Security taxes into a personal investment account. She also argues for shrinking the program to a point where every retiree would receive the same Social Security benefit so long as they worked the same number of years, which she argues would increase benefits for the bottom one-third of earners. How this would impact middle-class earners is unclear.


Reuters
41 minutes ago
- Reuters
Exclusive: Canada's statistics agency publishes data early, then takes it down
OTTAWA, Aug 14 (Reuters) - Statistics Canada posted market-sensitive information about June manufacturing data on its website ahead of the scheduled release date on Friday, the agency's website showed on Thursday. When Reuters asked why the data was visible, the agency took down the page immediately, indicating an error had occurred. "Statistics Canada takes this incident very seriously. We are conducting a thorough review and will determine whether additional safeguards are required to prevent a recurrence," said agency spokeswoman Maryse Carriere. A page from the monthly survey of manufacturing was visible on the agency's website early Thursday. The data was also accompanied by the previous month's revision. Carriere said StatsCan would proceed with plans to release the data on August 15 at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time (1330 GMT). The office of Industry Minister Melanie Joly, which has ultimate responsibility for the agency, was not immediately available for comment. Leaks of sensitive data are highly unusual in Canada. StatsCan takes a series of precautions to ensure figures remain under wraps. In May 2020, the agency launched an inquiry after employment data for April was leaked to Bloomberg half an hour ahead of the scheduled release time. The probe found no evidence that the data, which was routinely shared with a small group of senior officials ahead of time, had been leaked by agency personnel.