India will buy Russian oil despite Trump's threats, NYT reports
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Daily Mirror
a few seconds ago
- Daily Mirror
Apple CEO Tim Cook gives Donald Trump enormous block of gold in weird Oval Office love-in
Tim Cook, whom Donald Trump once referred to as "Tim Apple", handed the US President a large glass desk ornament with a 24 karat gold base as he bid to avoid his wrath with manufacturing investment Apple CEO Tim Cook gave Donald Trump a large block of gold last night in a bizarre Oval Office love-in. The iPhone boss is the latest in a string of tech CEOs to lay it on thick for the "transactional" President, hoping to keep him sweet and avoid his wrath. The tech boss stood alongside Trump in the Oval and announced Apple would increase investment in US manufacturing by $100m over the next four years. It comes after Donald Trump made an unfortunate arm gesture during a tour of the White House roof. READ MORE: What Ghislaine Maxwell said about Donald Trump in 9-hour prison interview READ MORE: MIKEY SMITH: 10 unhinged Donald Trump moments as White House prepares for mystery 'announcement' After they spoke, Cook - whom Trump once referred to as "Tim Apple" - gave the President a desk ornament made from glass manufactured in a Kentucky factory they plan to use for iPhone parts - with a huge base made of 24 carat gold. Although Trump appeared much more enthusiastic about a plastic miniature model of a new kind of stealth bomber he'd been given earlier in the day. It came after Trump criticised Apple and Cook for efforts to shift iPhone production to India to avoid the tariffs his Republican administration had planned for China. While in Qatar earlier this year, Trump said there was 'a little problem' with the Cupertino, California, company and recalled a conversation with Cook in which he said he told the CEO, 'I don't want you building in India.' India has incurred Trump's wrath, as the president signed an order Wednesday to put an additional 25% tariff on the world 's most populous country for its use of Russian oil. The new import taxes to be imposed in 21 days could put the combined tariffs on Indian goods at 50%. "This is a significant step toward the ultimate goal of ensuring that iPhones sold in the United States of America also are made in America," Trump said at the press conference. 'Today's announcement is one of the largest commitments in what has become among the greatest investment booms in our nation's history." As part of the Apple announcement, the investments will be about bringing more of its supply chain and advanced manufacturing to the United States as part of an initiative called the American Manufacturing Program, but it is not a full commitment to build its popular iPhone device domestically. 'This includes new and expanded work with 10 companies across America. They produce components — semiconductor chips included — that are used in Apple products sold all over the world, and we're grateful to the President for his support,' Cook said in a statement announcing the investment. The new manufacturing partners include Corning, Coherent, Applied Materials, Texas Instruments and Broadcom among others. Apple had previously said it intended to invest $500 billion domestically, a figure it will now increase to $600 billion. Trump in recent months has criticized the tech company and Cook for efforts to shift iPhone production to India to avoid the tariffs his Republican administration had planned for China. Apple's new pledge comes just a few weeks after it forged a $500 million deal with MP Materials, which runs the only rare earths producer in the country. That agreement will enable MP Materials to expand a factory in Texas to use recycled materials to produce magnets that make iPhones vibrate. Speaking on a recent investors call, Cook emphasized that 'there's a load of different things done in the United States.' As examples, he cited some of the iPhone components made in the U.S. such as the device's glass display and module for identifying people's faces and then indicated the company was gearing to expand its productions of other components in its home country. 'We're doing more in this country, and that's on top of having roughly 19 billion chips coming out of the US now, and we will do more,' Cook told analysts last week, without elaborating. Get Donald Trump updates straight to your WhatsApp! As the world attempts to keep up with Trump's antics, the Mirror has launched its very own US Politics WhatsApp community where you'll get all the latest news from across the pond. We'll send you the latest breaking updates and exclusives all directly to your phone. Users must download or already have WhatsApp on their phones to join in. All you have to do to join is click on this link, select 'Join Chat' and you're in! We may also send you stories from other titles across the Reach group. We will also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose Exit group. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. News of Apple's latest investment in the U.S. caused the company's stock price to surge by 5% in Wednesday's midday trading. That gain reflects investors' relief that Cook 'is extending an olive branch' to the Trump administration, said Nancy Tengler, CEO of money manager Laffer Tengler Investments, which owns Apple stock. Despite Wednesday's upturn, Apple's shares are still down by 15% this year, a reversal of fortune that has also been driven by the company's botched start in the pivotal field of artificial intelligence.
The Guardian
a few seconds ago
- The Guardian
WPP profits dive 71% as clients cut ad spending amid Trump's tariffs rollout
Clients including carmakers and consumer goods companies are cutting their advertising spending amid Donald Trump's tariffs rollout, WPP has said, as it reported a 71% slump in profits and a strategic review. The advertising agency, formerly the largest in the world, cut its global workforce from 111,000 last year to 104,000 as of the end of June, as it struggles with weak spending and the rise of artificial intelligence. WPP's pre-tax profit dropped by 71% to £98m in the first half of its financial year. It has also halved its interim dividend to 7.5p a share before a strategic review that will be led by its incoming chief executive, Cindy Rose. She will take over from Mark Read on 1 September. The company warned of slowing spending by ad agencies, which worsened between April and the end of June. 'I have never seen a more volatile market,' Read said. 'I think a lot of clients are distracted by the macro, tariffs, figuring out what to do.' Read, who announced his departure in June, leaves WPP in a vulnerable state. Shares in the business have fallen by two-thirds during his tenure, and last year the company lost its crown as the biggest ad agency in the world by revenue as it has struggled to keep pace with its peers and compete with the growing use of AI-generated ad campaigns. Read added that AI developments meant WPP could probably do its work with 'fewer people'. 'But at the same time, there will be more work in the future that AI will enable,' he said. Rose, a top executive at Microsoft, has been on the board of WPP since 2019. At Microsoft she has been responsible for working with large clients to use digital technology and AI for business transformation. Investors hope her appointment will sharpen WPP's focus on its AI capabilities. Read said it was 'only natural' for a new chief executive to look at the strategy of the company. WPP has recently lost a series of significant client work, including Coca-Cola's media business in North America, its two-decade relationship with the US media conglomerate Paramount and Mars's $1.7bn (£1.25bn) global media planning and buying business. While WPP has increased its annual investment in AI to £300m, it faces intense competition from big tech companies such as the Facebook owner Meta, which has developed AI tools that allow advertisers to fully create and target campaigns on social media sites. These tools are expected to be rolled out by the end of next year. Sign up to Business Today Get set for the working day – we'll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning after newsletter promotion Last month WPP cut its forecast of revenues and profits for this year, blaming a challenging economic backdrop, which prompted the shares to drop by 19%. The stock fell by 4.5% in early trading on Thursday and is down by more than half in the year to date. Reuters contributed to this article.
Reuters
a few seconds ago
- Reuters
Apple leads surge in global tech shares after Trump tariff relief
Aug 7 (Reuters) - Global technology stocks advanced on Thursday in a relief rally after the latest tariff salvo from U.S. President Donald Trump largely exempted industry heavyweights from his threat to impose 100% levy on chips and semiconductors. Trump said the new tariff rate would apply to "all chips and semiconductors coming into the United States," but would not apply to companies that had made a commitment to manufacture in the U.S. or were in the process of doing so. Apple's (AAPL.O), opens new tab stock rose 3.3% in premarket trading after Trump's announcement on Wednesday that the company will invest an additional $100 billion in the U.S., a move that could help it sidestep potential tariffs on iPhones. U.S.-listed chipmakers advanced broadly, with Advanced Micro Devices (AMD.O), opens new tab up 2.5%, Intel (INTC.O), opens new tab gaining 2.1% and Nvidia (NVDA.O), opens new tab up 1.1%. "A major uncertainty has been removed and investors can finally move on," UBS analysts said in a note. Semiconductor manufacturing equipment supplier Applied Materials (AMAT.O), opens new tab and chipmakers Texas Instruments (TXN.O), opens new tab, GlobalFoundries (GFS.O), opens new tab and Broadcom (AVGO.O), opens new tab - Apple's partners in the investment effort - climbed between 0.8% and 10.1%. European chipmakers also joined the rally, with ASML ( opens new tab, ASMI ( opens new tab and BE Semiconductor Industries ( opens new tab climbing about 3% each. Germany's Infineon ( opens new tab said it could not speculate on possible semiconductor tariffs, as no details have been disclosed yet. Its shares were up 0.6%. Trump's latest on semiconductor tariffs seemingly rules out Taiwanese chip contract manufacturer TSMC ( opens new tab, which makes chips for most U.S. companies, including Nvidia, as it has factories in the U.S. "The market remains keen to buy TSMC on dips. Investors also believe they need to remain positioned in AI - with or without tariffs," UBS analysts said. TSMC shares closed almost 5% higher to hit all-time highs, while Samsung Electronics ( opens new tab and SK Hynix ( opens new tab climbed 2.5% and 1.4%, respectively. South Korea's Samsung and SK Hynix will also not be subjected to 100% tariffs on chips, the country's top trade envoy said. Samsung has invested in two chip fabrication plants in Austin and Taylor, Texas, while SK Hynix has announced plans to build an advanced chip packaging plant and research and development facility for artificial intelligence products in Indiana. Since stepping into the White House in January, Donald Trump has made several tariff threats, specifically on semiconductors, aimed at reshaping the supply chain of the industry and spurring domestic production. "The (100% tariff) figure fits Trump's approach of 'open high, negotiate down' and the final figure could be similar to reciprocal tariffs to limit inflation in consumer goods, given that many have chips," said Phelix Lee, senior equity analyst at Morningstar. Not everyone has come out of the latest blitz on the right side, with the Philippines and Malaysia looking to find out more details about the tariff rate. Dan Lachica, the president of the trade body for the Philippine semiconductor industry, said 70% of its electronics exports are semiconductors and the new tariff rate would be "devastating". Philippine stocks (.PSI), opens new tab were down 0.1% after falling as much as 0.9% during the day. Malaysia's trade minister said the country has reached out to U.S. counterparts for clarity on the tariffs.
