Live updates: Mike Waltz will face questions over Signal chat at Senate hearing for new UN job
He is set to appear before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee at 10 a.m. ET.
The hearing will provide senators with the first opportunity to grill Waltz over revelations in March that he added The Atlantic editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg to a private text chain on an unclassified messaging app that was used to discuss planning for strikes on Houthi militants in Yemen.
Waltz has spent the last few months on the White House payroll despite being removed as national security adviser. The latest list of White House salaries, current as of July 1, includes Waltz earning an annual salary of $195,200.
Update:
Date: 2025-07-15 12:03:05
Title:
The Kremlin says more U.S. weapons for Ukraine will extend the war
Content: The Kremlin said Tuesday that new supplies of U.S. weapons to Ukraine announced by President Trump will extend the conflict.
Asked about comments by Trump, who threatened Russia with steep tariffs if it fails to agree to a peace deal in 50 days and announced a rejuvenated pipeline for American weapons to reach Ukraine, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that 'such decisions made in Washington, in NATO members and in Brussels are perceived by the Ukrainian side as a signal for continuing the war, not a signal for peace.'
He reaffirmed that Russia is open to continuing the talks with Ukraine in Istanbul, but is still waiting for Kyiv to offer a date for their new round. 'We are ready to continue the dialogue,' he said, adding that 'we haven't yet received signals about the third round and it's hard to say what's the reason.'
Update:
Date: 2025-07-15 11:59:38
Title:
Ask AP reporters a question
Content:
Update:
Date: 2025-07-15 11:59:04
Title:
Catch up on the latest headlines
Content: AP Morning Wire curates the most important stories and sends them straight to your inbox. Sign up for the free newsletter here.
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Yahoo
a few seconds ago
- Yahoo
Exclusive-Meta, X and LinkedIn appeal unprecedented VAT claim by Italy
By Emilio Parodi MILAN (Reuters) -U.S. tech giants Meta, X and LinkedIn have lodged an appeal against an unprecedented VAT claim by Italy that could influence tax policy across the 27-nation European Union, four sources with direct knowledge of the matter said on Monday. This is the first time that Italy has failed to reach a settlement agreement after bringing tax cases against tech companies, resulting in a fully-fledged judicial tax trial being launched. According to the sources, this came about because the case went beyond agreeing on a settlement figure and sought to establish a broader approach focused on how social networks provide access to their services. Italian tax authorities argue that free user registrations with X, LinkedIn and Meta platforms should be seen as taxable transactions as they imply the exchange of a membership account in return for a user's personal data. The issue is especially sensitive given wider trade tensions between the EU and the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump. Italy is claiming 887.6 million euros ($1.03 billion) from Meta, 12.5 million euros from X and around 140 million euros from LinkedIn. Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, Elon Musk's social network X and Microsoft's LinkedIn filed their appeals with a first instance tax court after mid-July, when the deadline for responding to a tax assessment notice issued by Italy's Revenue Agency in March passed. According to several experts consulted by Reuters, the Italian approach could affect almost all companies, from airlines to supermarkets to publishers, who link access to free services on their sites to users' acceptance of profiling cookies. It could also eventually be extended across the EU where VAT is a harmonised tax. In a statement to Reuters, Meta said that it had cooperated "fully with the authorities on our obligations under EU and local law". It added that the company "strongly disagrees with the idea that providing access to online platforms to users should be subject to VAT". LinkedIn said it had "nothing to share at this time". X did not respond to a request for comment from Reuters. ROME SEEN SEEKING EU ADVISORY It is uncertain whether a full trial of the matter, which involves three levels of judgement and takes an average of 10 years, will go ahead. Following discussions with the three companies, Italy is preparing as a next step to seek an advisory opinion from the European Commission, the sources said. The Italian Revenue Agency will have to prepare specific questions, which the Economy Ministry will then send to the EU Commission's VAT Committee, which meets twice a year. Rome aims to submit its questions for the meeting scheduled to be held by early November, in order to receive the EU's comments in time for the following meeting in spring 2026. Italy's Economy Ministry and Revenue Agency declined to comment. The EU Commission's VAT Committee is an independent advisory group. While its assessment will be non-binding, a "No" could prompt Italy to halt the case and ultimately drop the criminal investigation by Italian prosecutors, according to the sources. The dispute is one of several between Europeans and U.S. Big Tech. On July 11 Reuters exclusively reported that Meta would not be tweaking its pay-or-consent model further despite the risk of EU fines. According to a Financial Times report on July 17, the European Commission has stalled one of its investigations into Musk's platform X for breaching its digital transparency rules while it seeks to conclude trade talks with the U.S. ($1 = 0.8588 euros) Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data


Chicago Tribune
2 minutes ago
- Chicago Tribune
US stocks edge higher ahead of a busy week of profit reports
NEW YORK — U.S. stocks are edging higher ahead of a week full of profit updates from big U.S. companies, which Wall Street expects to keep growing despite pressure from President Donald Trump's tariffs. The S&P 500 was up 0.2% in early trading Monday and slightly above the all-time high it set on Thursday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 86 points, or 0.2%, and the Nasdaq composite was adding 0.4% to its own record. Verizon Communications rose after reporting stronger profits and revenue for the latest quarter than analysts expected. Treasury yields eased in the bond Street was poised to open with gains Monday ahead of a busy week of corporate earnings reports. Futures for the S&P 500, the Dow Jones Industrial Average and Nasdaq were all up more than 0.2% before the bell. Markets have stabilized since spring, when President Donald Trump's tariff announcements and pullbacks sent markets swinging wildly from day-to-day and sometimes hour-to-hour. Trump pushed back the deadline for most countries to negotiate on tariffs to Aug. 1, which along with stronger-than-expected earnings reports, has helped to lift markets to record levels in recent weeks. Domino's Pizza jumped 5.2% in premarket trading Monday after posting strong same-store sales in the U.S., even though the pizza chain just missed Wall Street's sales and profit targets. Verizon climbed 4.6% after the phone and broadband giant beat analysts' sales and profit targets and raised its full-year guidance. Other companies reporting this week include General Motors, Coca-Cola, Tesla and Google parent Alphabet. This week also will bring updates on U.S. home sales, jobless claims and manufacturing. Bitcoin rose more than 1% to more than $118,500 early Monday, just off all-time highs. Trump on Friday signed into law the GENIUS Act, which sets initial guardrails and consumer protections for stablecoins, a type of cryptocurrency that is tied to assets like the U.S. dollar to reduce volatility. Elsewhere, in Europe at midday, Germany's DAX edged 0.1% lower, while the CAC 40 in Paris slipped 0.4%. Britain's FTSE 100 was essentially flat. Markets were closed for a holiday in Japan, where the ruling Liberal Democrats have lost their coalition majorities in both houses of parliament for the first time since 1955 following Sunday's upper house election and the loss of their lower house majority in October. A grim Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba has vowed to stay on after the drubbing by voters frustrated over rising prices and political instability. Analysts said they expect his weakened government to crank up spending, adding to Japan's huge debt burden. Japan is also facing the imposition of 25% tariffs across the board on its exports to the U.S. as talks with the Trump administration appear to have made little headway. 'We expect short-term political instability to intensify due to the difficulties of forming a majority coalition, a likely change in leadership, and a potential deadlock in trade negotiations,' Peter Hoflich of BMI, a part of the Fitch Group, said in a commentary. 'Without a structural reset through snap elections, Japan is likely to face prolonged policy drift throughout 2026,' he said. Chinese shares advanced after the central bank kept its key 1-year and 5-year loan prime interest rates unchanged. Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 0.7% to 24,994.14, while the Shanghai Composite index gained 0.7% to 3,559.79. Recent improved economic data have eased pressure on the Chinese leadership to soften credit. Meanwhile, President Donald Trump's administration has softened its criticism of Beijing, raising hopes that the two sides can work out a trade deal and avert the imposition of sharply higher tariffs on imports from China. South Korea's Kospi picked up 0.7% to 3,210.81 after the government reported a slight improvement in exports in June. In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 shed 1% to 8,668.20, while Taiwan's Taiex dropped 0.2%. In India, the Sensex rose 0.3%. Bangkok's SET gained 0.2%. In other trading early Monday, U.S. benchmark crude oil reversed gains, leaving it essentially unchanged at $66.05 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, lost 8 cents to $69.20 per barrel. The U.S. dollar fell to 147.55 Japanese yen from 147.98 yen. The euro climbed to $1.1667 from $1.1629.


Axios
2 minutes ago
- Axios
Washington sets record for concealed pistol licenses
More Washingtonians than ever have a license to carry a concealed weapon, state data shows. Why it matters: The rise comes as state legislators have moved to tighten rules surrounding gun purchases. A new state law, which goes into effect in 2027, will require Washington residents to receive live-fire training, be fingerprinted and get a permit before buying guns, a change expected to affect thousands of potential buyers each year. Driving the news: Washington reached 709,334 active concealed pistol licenses (CPLs) at the end of June, an all-time high, Christine Anthony of the Department of Licensing tells Axios. That's an increase of more than 10,000 since December, per state data. By the numbers: About 20% of CPL holders in Washington are women. King County, the state's most populous county, also has the highest number of CPLs, nearly 114,000. Pierce County posted the biggest one-month gain, from May to June of this year, with 882 licenses. What they're saying:"Long story short, people are arming up, and they're going to keep doing so ahead of the new restrictions," Dave Workman, editor in chief of TheGunMag, a publication of the Bellevue-based Second Amendment Foundation, tells Axios. With a state population of close to 8 million, "that means possibly 1 out of every 10 people you pass on any given day is licensed to carry concealed, and may even be armed," he says. The other side: Renée Hopkins, CEO of the Washington-based Alliance for Gun Responsibility, which backed the permit-to-purchase law, said the organization advocates for safe and responsible firearm ownership. "While we acknowledge more guns pose a greater threat to our communities, CPL holders tend to be responsible gun owners," Hopkins tells Axios. Between the lines: Washington — among the top 10 states for the highest percentage of residents holding a concealed carry license — is a " shall issue" state, meaning the state must issue gun licenses to people who meet the requirements and pass a background check. What we're watching: Whether demand for concealed pistol licenses keeps rising as the 2027 permit-to-purchase law approaches — and what legal challenges emerge against the law.