Iran returns to talks as ‘non-declared' nuclear power
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
&w=3840&q=100)
First Post
21 minutes ago
- First Post
‘Everyone's a loser': From Canada to Laos, Trump's sweeping tariffs spare no one, not even the US
President Donald Trump's tariff onslaught this week left a lot of losers – from small, poor countries like Laos and Algeria to wealthy US trading partners like Canada and Switzerland. They're now facing especially hefty taxes – tariffs – on the products they export to the United States starting Aug. 7. read more President Donald Trump's latest wave of sweeping tariffs is shaking the foundations of global trade and leaving a trail of economic pain across rich and poor nations alike. Countries such as Laos, Algeria, Canada and Switzerland are now facing steep levies as Trump intensifies his protectionist agenda. But while allies scramble for exemptions and rivals brace for economic fallout, but analysts say no one has truly come out ahead not even the United States. 'In many respects, everybody's a loser here,'' Barry Appleton, co-director of the Center for International Law at New York Law School told AP. Since returning to the presidency six months ago, Trump has torn up traditional trade norms, replacing multilateral agreements with a unilateral approach driven by threats and economic clout. 'The biggest winner is Trump,' said Alan Wolff, former deputy director-general of the World Trade Organization. 'He bet that he could get other countries to the table on the basis of threats, and he succeeded dramatically.'' STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Trump's tariff regime began on April 2, dubbed 'Liberation Day' when he imposed 'reciprocal' taxes of up to 50% on imports from countries with which the U.S. runs trade deficits, and a 10% baseline tax on others. Declaring the trade imbalance a national emergency under a 1977 law, Trump bypassed Congress to implement the sweeping changes, now being challenged in court. After an initial market selloff, Trump paused the new tariffs for 90 days to allow room for negotiations. Some countries took the opportunity to strike deals, though often under heavy pressure. The United Kingdom agreed to a 10% tariff, up from 1.3%, despite having maintained a trade surplus with the U.S. for nearly two decades. The European Union and Japan settled for 15%, lower than the threatened 30% and 25%, respectively. Other countries that agreed to higher tariffs include Pakistan, South Korea, Vietnam, Indonesia, and the Philippines. Even those with reduced levies compared to April levels remain far worse off than pre-Trump norms. Angola's tariffs dropped from 32% to 15%, but were below 1.5% in 2022. Taiwan saw its April rate of 32% lowered to 20%, but still faces a financial burden. '20% from the beginning has not been our goal, we hope that in further negotiations we will get a more beneficial and more reasonable tax rate,' Taiwan's President Lai Ching-te said Friday. Trump also rolled back Lesotho's tariff from 50% to 15%, but economic damage there may already be done. On the harsher end, nations that refused to bend or angered Trump in other ways got slammed. Laos and Algeria whose GDPs per capita are a fraction of America's now face tariffs of 40% and 30%, respectively. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Brazil was hit with a 50% tax, reportedly in retaliation for its treatment of former President Jair Bolsonaro. Despite a consistent U.S. trade surplus with Brazil, the tariff went ahead. Canada was slapped with a 35% import tax, a move some analysts tie to Ottawa's plan to recognise Palestinian statehood, a position contrary to Trump's strong support of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Switzerland, which didn't secure a deal, was struck with a 39% tariff, more than the 31% initially proposed. 'The Swiss probably wish that they had camped in Washington'' to make a deal, Wolff commented. 'They're clearly not at all happy.'' Trump's actions are now facing legal scrutiny. A group of American companies and a dozen states are suing, arguing that he overstepped his authority under the 1977 law. A New York court recently blocked the tariffs, but allowed collection to continue pending appeal, which may end up before the US Supreme Court. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Judges on the US Court of Appeals have expressed scepticism about the justification behind Trump's measures. 'If (the tariffs) get struck down, then maybe Brazil's a winner and not a loser,'' Appleton said. Although Trump frames tariffs as a way to tax foreign countries, in practice, U.S. importers bear the cost and pass it on to American consumers. Goldman Sachs estimates that foreign exporters have absorbed only a fifth of the tariff burden, leaving U.S. businesses and households to shoulder the rest. Major retailers and manufacturers including Walmart, Nike, and Ford — have raised prices in response. 'This is a consumption tax, so it disproportionately affects those who have lower incomes,'' said Appleton. 'Sneakers, knapsacks … your appliances are going to go up. Your TV and electronics are going to go up. Your video game devices, consoles are going to up because none of those are made in America.'' With average U.S. tariffs rising from 2.5% at the start of 2025 to 18.3% — the highest since 1934 — Yale's Budget Lab estimates the policy will cost the average American household $2,400 this year. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD 'The U.S. consumer's a big loser,″ Wolff concluded. With inputs from agencies
NDTV
39 minutes ago
- NDTV
'US Tariffs Will Hurt Andhra Aqua Farmers, We Will Help Them': Chandrababu Naidu
Hyderabad: Andhra Pradesh is exploring options to ensure the fallout of the US imposing 25 per cent tariffs on India does not affect the state's aqua farmers, Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu said on Saturday. Addressing farmers for the first time since US President Donald Trump announced the tariff hike, Mr Naidu in his first comment on the US tariff hike said the state government is supporting aqua farmers by giving them electricity at 1.50 paise per unit. "The increase in tariffs in America will burden the aqua farmers in the state," he said. "We have taken note of the matter and we will discuss it with farmers in a day or two. Then we will make an action plan." The chief minister said fishermen were given Rs 10,000 earlier. "But now we will give Rs 20,000 each. We have given financial aid to 1.30 lakh people under the Matsyakarula Sevalo," he added. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has also said the welfare of farmers, small industries and young people remains the government's "top priority" as the country stays on track to become the world's third-largest economy. At an event in Uttar Pradesh's Varanasi, his Lok Sabha constituency, the prime minister reaffirmed the resilience of the Indian economy amid turbulence triggered by the US tariff hike, saying India must remain vigilant about its economic interests and adopt "swadeshi (indigenous)" products. "There is an atmosphere of global instability. All countries are focusing on their individual interests. India is going to become the third biggest economy in the world and this is why India will have to stay alert as far as its economic interests are concerned," PM Modi said. Apart from the tariffs, Mr Trump announced a penalty on India for buying Russian oil.
NDTV
39 minutes ago
- NDTV
Ukraine Uncovers Major Drone Procurement Corruption Scheme
Kyiv: Ukraine's anti-corruption bodies said on Saturday they had uncovered a major graft scheme that procured military drones and signal jamming systems at inflated prices, two days after the agencies' independence was restored following major protests. The independence of Ukraine's anti-graft investigators and prosecutors, NABU and SAPO, was reinstated by parliament on Thursday after a move to take it away resulted in the country's biggest demonstrations since Russia's invasion in 2022. In a statement published by both agencies on social media, NABU and SAPO said they had caught a sitting lawmaker, two local officials and an unspecified number of national guard personnel taking bribes. None of them were identified in the statement. "The essence of the scheme was to conclude state contracts with supplier companies at deliberately inflated prices," it said, adding that the offenders had received kickbacks of up to 30% of a contract's cost. Four people had been arrested. "There can only be zero tolerance for corruption, clear teamwork to expose corruption and, as a result, a just sentence," President Volodymyr Zelenskiy wrote on Telegram. Zelenskiy, who has far-reaching wartime presidential powers and still enjoys broad approval among Ukrainians, was forced into a rare political about-face when his attempt to bring NABU and SAPO under the control of his prosecutor-general sparked the first nationwide protests of the war. Zelenskiy subsequently said that he had heard the people's anger and submitted a bill restoring the agencies' former independence, which was voted through by parliament on Thursday. Ukraine's European allies praised the move, having voiced concerns about the original stripping of the agencies' status. Top European officials had told Zelenskiy that Ukraine was jeopardising its bid for European Union membership by curbing the powers of its anti-graft authorities. "It is important that anti-corruption institutions operate independently, and the law adopted on Thursday guarantees them every opportunity for a real fight against corruption," Zelenskiy wrote on Saturday after meeting the heads of the agencies, who briefed him on the latest investigation.
