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Yahoo
17 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Trump a boon for deep-sea mining: industry boss
A leading deep-sea mining company in the paradisal Cook Islands is aiming to start commercial production by 2030, spurred on by Donald Trump's recent backing for the much-maligned industry. Moana Minerals wants to mine a swathe of deep ocean in the South Pacific nation for polymetallic nodules, golf-ball sized lumps studded with metals like cobalt, nickel and manganese. Efforts to start commercial-scale production have been dogged by growing calls to ban the industry until its environmental impact is clear. But Moana Minerals boss Hans Smit said fresh momentum was building, citing the support of US President Trump. Trump earlier this year signed an executive order targeted at "unleashing" mineral resources found in the deep ocean. "What he's done is tasked his people to go and look at it seriously," Smit said. "It certainly is helpful that we are engaging with a lot of people that in the past would not give us the time of day. But they are listening." Both the United States and China have signalled renewed interest in deep-sea mining, which could offer a pipeline of critical minerals that helps insulate them from future trade ructions. Trump is eager to weaken China's stranglehold on the coveted metals, which are used in everything from rechargeable batteries to military technology. Cook Islands -- which lays claim to one of the world's biggest deposits of polymetallic nodules -- signed a contentious deep-sea mining cooperation deal with China earlier this year. US-based Smit had a simple message for those worried about China's foray into the industry. "The people yelling at the Cook Islands for talking to the Chinese, I have a very simple statement for them: If you want to counter the Chinese, get off your arse and do something proactive." Cook Islands' Pacific neighbour Kiribati is also exploring a deep-sea mining deal with China. China already holds some of the world's largest deposits of critical minerals and is fiercely protective of its position. Smit said he hoped to start industrial-scale deep-sea mining by the end of the decade. "I want to be mining before 2030. Yeah, absolutely, I think that we can." - Frustration - The International Seabed Authority -- which oversees deep-sea mining in international waters -- has yet to adopt long-awaited rules governing the industry. Canada-based The Metals Company has indicated it could forge ahead and start mining international waters without the authority's approval, applying instead for a mining permit under obscure and untested US laws. Those laws say US citizens can mine the ocean, as long as their activities lie outside the nation's maritime territory. "I can understand why The Metals Company have done it," Smit said. "I can understand their frustration and empathise with it. "But I still think there's a lot to be unpacked before we're going to have any clarity as to which way it's going to go." The Cook Islands government, which is supportive of deep-sea mining, said it would not set a time frame on when it hoped to have the industry under way. But the government said it remained "aligned" with the International Seabed Authority's approach. "Cook Islands will remain steadfast in our precautionary approach," government spokesman Edward Herman told AFP. "We believe that the Cook Islands government and the people can make an informed decision." sft/lb
Yahoo
17 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Trump announces trade deal with Japan that lowers threatened tariff to 15%
US President Donald Trump announced a new trade framework with Japan on Tuesday that will impose a 15% tariff on Japanese imports, easing back from a previously threatened 25% levy. Under the new agreement, Trump said Japan would invest $550 billion in the US 'at my direction' and 'open' its economy to US rice and cars. 'This Deal will create Hundreds of Thousands of Jobs – There has never been anything like it,' Trump posted on Truth Social, adding that the United States 'will continue to always have a great relationship with the Country of Japan.' Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba welcomed the deal on Wednesday and said it would benefit both nations while strengthening bilateral cooperation. His ruling coalition had failed on Monday to secure a majority, but he said he would stay in office to avoid creating a political vacuum and to deal with looming US tariff threats. Key details of the deal remain unclear, including whether Japanese-made cars would still be subject to the 25% tariff Trump has proposed on the automobile sector. Related President Trump: Pharma tariff is coming, Indonesia deal sealed Brazilian demonstrators rally against Trump and urge taxing the rich Trump talks of new August tariff date and looks for more trade deals The Trump administration argues the new tariffs will boost domestic manufacturing, shrink trade deficits and raise revenue. However, businesses warn of cost increases which could be passed on to consumers. Trump also announced a trade framework with the Philippines that would impose a tariff of 19% on its goods, while American-made products would face no import taxes. He reaffirmed 19% tariffs on Indonesia as well. The US president is set to impose the broad tariffs listed in his recent letters to other world leaders on August 1, raising questions of whether there will be any breakthrough in talks with the European Union. At a Tuesday dinner, Trump said the EU would be in Washington on Wednesday for trade talks. 'We have Europe coming in tomorrow, the next day,' Trump told guests. The president earlier this month sent a letter threatening the 27 member states in the EU with 30% taxes on their goods. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
29 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Trump announces ‘massive' trade agreement with Japan
President Donald Trump announced a long-awaited trade agreement with Japan on Tuesday night, a framework between allies and major trading partners that appeared elusive just weeks ago. 'We just completed a massive Deal with Japan, perhaps the largest Deal ever made,' Trump said on Truth Social. As part of the deal, US importers will pay 15% 'reciprocal' tariffs on Japanese goods exported to the United States. Japan also will invest $550 billion dollars into the United States, the president said. Trump added that the US 'will receive 90% of the profits.' He did not specify how those investments would work or how profits would be calculated. No official term sheet has been released. 'This Deal will create Hundreds of Thousands of Jobs — There has never been anything like it. Perhaps most importantly, Japan will open their Country to Trade including Cars and Trucks, Rice and certain other Agricultural Products, and other things. Japan will pay Reciprocal Tariffs to the United States of 15%,' Trump posted. Responding to Trump's announcement, Japan's Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said the government will examine the details of the deal 'carefully,' and will hold a phone or in-person meeting with the American president as necessary. But, like Trump, he gave few concrete details. 'We have been negotiating until the last minute, doing our best to negotiate with each other for automobiles or other products and national interests,' he told reporters at his office on Wednesday. 'We believe that this will contribute to the creation of jobs, the production of good products, and the fulfillment of various roles in the world through the mutual cooperation of Japan and the US.' Shortly after posting, Trump kicked off remarks in the East Room Tuesday night by marking the trade agreement with Japan. 'I just signed the largest trade deal in history; I think maybe the largest deal in history with Japan,' Trump said during a reception with Republican members of Congress. 'They had their top people here, and we worked on it long and hard. And it's a great deal for everybody,' Trump added. The Japan agreement was the third piece of trade-related news Trump announced on Tuesday. This comes after months of negotiations with key trading partners like the European Union, South Korea, India and dozens of others at a standstill as Trump's latest August 1 deadline for higher tariffs looms. Tough negotiations Both sides previously described the negotiations as tense. Asked about the chance of a trade deal with Japan in June, Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One, 'They're tough. The Japanese are tough.' But on Tuesday Trump said the deal marked a 'very exciting time for the United States of America, and especially for the fact that we will continue to always have a great relationship with the Country of Japan.' Late last month, Trump highlighted rice sales as one point of contention between the two nations. 'They won't take our RICE, and yet they have a massive rice shortage,' Trump said in a post on Truth Social. The country bought $298 million worth of rice from the US last year, according to US Census Bureau trade data. Between January and April of this year, Japan bought $114 million worth of rice. But a 2021 report published by the Office of the United States Trade Representative under former President Joe Biden stated that 'Japan's highly regulated and nontransparent system of importation and distribution for rice limits the ability of US exporters to have meaningful access to Japan's consumers.' Cars – a pillar of the Japanese economy – have also been an issue in the negotiations. Trump has said Japan does not import US cars. 'We didn't give them one car in 10 years,' he said earlier this month. Last year, Japan imported 16,707 units of American automobiles, according to the Japan Automobile Importers Association. But US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent met with Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba in Tokyo last week and posted on X that he was optimistic about reaching a deal – a sign of a potential detente in recent tensions. 'A good deal is more important than a rushed deal, and a mutually beneficial trade agreement between the United States and Japan remains within the realm of possibility,' Bessent said. Mary Lovely at the Peterson Institute said the agreement eased the threat of even higher tariffs on Japan. 'The 'deal' relieves Japan of the 25% tariff threat and puts it potentially in a competitive position vis a vis similar US suppliers,' she wrote in an email to CNN. 'The US is unlikely to sell many cars and trucks… from the US. Agricultural liberalization (is) a win for Japanese consumers, assuming they are willing to try excellent California rice.' A major trading partner Unlike some of the agreements Trump has announced recently, including with Indonesia and the Philippines, Japan is a significant trading partner with the United States. Japan is the United States' fifth-largest source of imports. Last year, it shipped $148 billion worth of goods to the US, according to Commerce Department data. Cars, car parts and agricultural and construction machinery were among the top goods Americans bought from there. Goods from Japan briefly faced a 24% 'reciprocal' tariff before Trump enacted a 90-day pause in April. Since then goods have faced a 10% minimum tariff. In early July, Trump sent a letter to Japan's prime minister, Shigeru Ishiba, threatening to enact a 25% tariff on August 1. Meanwhile, the US exported $80 billion worth of goods to Japan last year. Oil and gas, pharmaceuticals and aerospace products were the top exports. Japan has been in an uncomfortable position, since China is its top trading partner and the Trump administration had been looking to pressure allies to reduce their levels of trade with China to get a trade deal with the US, according to multiple reports. The latest agreement between the US and Japan follows an expanded trade agreement the two countries signed in 2019, which went into effect the subsequent year and allowed for more goods to be shipped duty-free. Japan held some leverage over the United States in its trade agreement: The nation is America's biggest foreign creditor. Japan holds $1.1 trillion of US Treasuries, used to finance America's massive and mounting debt. This story has been updated with additional context and developments. CNN's John Liu, Yumi Asada and Matt Egan contributed reporting. Melden Sie sich an, um Ihr Portfolio aufzurufen.
