Trump Locks Down the U.S. Economy—Again
Meanwhile, Mr. Trump boasts that his high tariffs will attract to the U.S. a great deal more foreign direct investment and restructure the global trading system in a way that will supercharge America's economy. If he's correct, artificially lower interest rates from the Federal Reserve aren't needed to encourage more business investment and consumer spending. Investors, always with their eyes on the future, would have quickened their pace of investment in the U.S. the moment the president announced the details of his tariffs. The opposite happened. Mr. Trump's call for lower interest rates proves that even he doesn't believe his hype about his tariffs. Instead, he is asking the Fed to paper over his folly with easy money.
Prof. Donald J. Boudreaux
George Mason University
Fairfax, Va.
When announcing his tariffs, President Trump presented a three-column chart showing the tariffs he claims other countries charge the U.S. for access to their markets. A useful fourth column would show the global economic rankings of those countries. The nations that levy the highest tariffs often rank among the world's worst economies. The president correctly pointed out that the U.S. previously levied some of the world's lowest tariffs. And while charging low or no tariffs, the U.S. had the top-ranked global economy. Mr. Trump's claim that his new tariffs will 'make America wealthy again' will require a degree of American exceptionalism 'like no one has ever seen before.'
Desmond Wheatley
San Diego
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CNN
a few seconds ago
- CNN
Chinese refineries purchase Russian oil as Indian demand drops following Trump tariffs
Chinese refineries have placed new orders for Russian crude that will be shipped from ports that typically supply India, as demand from the South Asian country for Moscow's crude slips following US President Trump's tariffs. At least 15 cargoes of Russian oil have been secured by Chinese refineries for October and November delivery, analysts said. China and India emerged as the top buyers of Russian oil following Moscow's 2022 invasion of Ukraine, which prompted Western countries to shun its exports. Trump in July threatened to impose secondary tariffs on goods from countries importing Russian oil to pressure Moscow to end the war in Ukraine. Earlier this month, he announced an additional 25% tariff on Indian exports to the US, on top of another 25% levy, for its Russian oil and gas imports. That led to the country sharply cutting down on its purchases. As of last week, China's state-owned and large private refiners had purchased around 13 cargoes of western Russian crude for October delivery and at least two cargoes for November, said Muyu Xu, senior crude oil analyst at Kpler, which tracks commodities and shipping data. The 15 cargoes of oil, each typically ranging from 700,000 to 1 million barrels, will be loaded from Russia's Arctic and Black Sea ports – supplies that usually go to India instead of China, given its distance, Xu said. Reuters reported earlier this week that China had secured 15 Russian cargoes for the same period, citing analysts. Xu said the buying reflected an 'opportunistic' move, with the price of Russian oil remaining at least $3 per barrel cheaper than Middle Eastern alternatives. 'As for whether China will continue buying, I personally believe that right now is still a very good opportunity, because over in India, Trump is still pressing hard on them,' she said. On Friday, following his landmark meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Trump told Fox News that he was not immediately considering retaliatory tariffs on China over its purchase of Russian oil, but suggested he may do so 'in two weeks or three weeks.' 'Taking advantage of this opportunity while prices are low, I think more refineries will probably consider buying more, within a week or two,' Xu said, referring to Chinese refiners. Last year, India imported $53 billion worth of petroleum and crude oils from Russia, according to data aggregated by the United Nations. Before the recent cuts, Russian supplies accounted for 36% of Indian market, making the country its largest source of crude, according to Vortexa, an energy data firm. China has also increased imports of discounted Russian oil since Moscow's invasion of Ukraine. Russia provides 13.5% of China's crude imports, according to Vortexa. Last year, China imported $62.6 billion worth of Russian petroleum and crude, the UN data shows. Xu said China is unlikely to make up for the shortfall in India's purchases of Russian oil, as India buys around 1.7 million barrels per day from Russia, while China purchases only about 1.2 million barrels of seaborne Russian oil per day. 'If India keeps holding off on buying, that's going to be a real problem for Russia – China just can't take on all of India's volume by itself,' she said. CNN's Lauren Kent contributed reporting.
16 minutes ago
Sen. Lindsey Graham says Trump ready to ‘crush' Russian economy if Putin avoids talks with Zelenskyy
WASHINGTON -- Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham said Tuesday that he believes President Donald Trump is prepared to 'crush' Russia's economy with a new wave of sanctions if Russian President Vladimir Putin refuses to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the coming weeks. Graham, who spoke with Trump on Tuesday morning, has pushed the president for months to support his sweeping bipartisan sanctions bill that would impose steep tariffs on countries that are fueling Russia's invasion of Ukraine by buying its oil, gas, uranium, and other exports. The legislation has the backing of 85 senators, but Trump has yet to endorse it. Republican leaders have said they won't move without him. 'If we don't have this thing moving in the right direction by the time we get back, then I think that plan B needs to kick in,' Graham said in a phone interview with The Associated Press on Tuesday. The Senate, now away from Washington for the August recess, is scheduled to return in September. Graham's call with Trump came less than 24 hours after high-stakes meetings at the White House with Zelenskyy and several European leaders. Trump and the leaders emerged from those talks sounding optimistic, with the expectation being that a Putin and Zelenskyy sit-down will happen soon. Still, Trump's comments to Graham, one of his top congressional allies, mark the latest sign that pressure is building — not just on Putin, but on Trump as well. 'Trump believes that if Putin doesn't do his part, that he's going to have to crush his economy. Because you've got to mean what you say,' Graham told reporters in South Carolina on Tuesday. As Congress prepares to return to session in early September, the next few weeks could become a defining test of whether lawmakers and international allies are prepared to act on their own if Trump doesn't follow through. Connecticut Sen. Richard Blumenthal, the lead Democrat pushing the bill with Graham, says there is a 'lot of reason for skepticism and doubt' after the meetings with Trump, especially because Putin has not made any direct promises. He said the Russian leader has an incentive to play 'rope-a-dope' with Trump. 'The only way to bring Putin to the table is to show strength,' Blumenthal told the AP this week. 'What Putin understands is force and pressure.' Still, Republicans have shown little willingness to override Trump in his second term. They abruptly halted work on the sanctions bill before the August recess after Trump said the legislation may not be needed. Asked Tuesday in a phone interview whether the sanctions bill should be brought up even without Trump's support, Graham said, 'the best way to do it is with him.' 'There will come a point where if it's clear that Putin is not going to entertain peace, that President Trump will have to back up what he said he would do,' Graham said. 'And the best way to do it is have congressional blessing.' The legislation would impose tariffs of up to 500% on countries such as China and India, which together account for roughly 70% of Russia's energy trade. The framework has the support of many European leaders. Many of those same European leaders left the White House on Monday with a more hopeful tone. Zelenskyy called the meeting with Trump 'an important step toward ending this war.' German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said that his expectations 'were not just met, they were exceeded.' Still, little concrete progress was visible on the main obstacles to peace. That deadlock likely favors Putin, whose forces continue to make steady, if slow, progress on the ground in Ukraine. French President Emmanuel Macron told reporters after talks at the White House that Trump believes a deal with Putin is possible. But he said sanctions remain on the table if the process fails.
CNN
18 minutes ago
- CNN
Chinese refineries purchase Russian oil as Indian demand drops following Trump tariffs
Chinese refineries have placed new orders for Russian crude that will be shipped from ports that typically supply India, as demand from the South Asian country for Moscow's crude slips following US President Trump's tariffs. At least 15 cargoes of Russian oil have been secured by Chinese refineries for October and November delivery, analysts said. China and India emerged as the top buyers of Russian oil following Moscow's 2022 invasion of Ukraine, which prompted Western countries to shun its exports. Trump in July threatened to impose secondary tariffs on goods from countries importing Russian oil to pressure Moscow to end the war in Ukraine. Earlier this month, he announced an additional 25% tariff on Indian exports to the US, on top of another 25% levy, for its Russian oil and gas imports. That led to the country sharply cutting down on its purchases. As of last week, China's state-owned and large private refiners had purchased around 13 cargoes of western Russian crude for October delivery and at least two cargoes for November, said Muyu Xu, senior crude oil analyst at Kpler, which tracks commodities and shipping data. The 15 cargoes of oil, each typically ranging from 700,000 to 1 million barrels, will be loaded from Russia's Arctic and Black Sea ports – supplies that usually go to India instead of China, given its distance, Xu said. Reuters reported earlier this week that China had secured 15 Russian cargoes for the same period, citing analysts. Xu said the buying reflected an 'opportunistic' move, with the price of Russian oil remaining at least $3 per barrel cheaper than Middle Eastern alternatives. 'As for whether China will continue buying, I personally believe that right now is still a very good opportunity, because over in India, Trump is still pressing hard on them,' she said. On Friday, following his landmark meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Trump told Fox News that he was not immediately considering retaliatory tariffs on China over its purchase of Russian oil, but suggested he may do so 'in two weeks or three weeks.' 'Taking advantage of this opportunity while prices are low, I think more refineries will probably consider buying more, within a week or two,' Xu said, referring to Chinese refiners. Last year, India imported $53 billion worth of petroleum and crude oils from Russia, according to data aggregated by the United Nations. Before the recent cuts, Russian supplies accounted for 36% of Indian market, making the country its largest source of crude, according to Vortexa, an energy data firm. China has also increased imports of discounted Russian oil since Moscow's invasion of Ukraine. Russia provides 13.5% of China's crude imports, according to Vortexa. Last year, China imported $62.6 billion worth of Russian petroleum and crude, the UN data shows. Xu said China is unlikely to make up for the shortfall in India's purchases of Russian oil, as India buys around 1.7 million barrels per day from Russia, while China purchases only about 1.2 million barrels of seaborne Russian oil per day. 'If India keeps holding off on buying, that's going to be a real problem for Russia – China just can't take on all of India's volume by itself,' she said. CNN's Lauren Kent contributed reporting.
