Donald Trump is teaching the world a lesson, but not the one he thinks. The attack on Iran was meant to be a dazzling display of military supremacy. It has instead illuminated chinks in the US’s armour. The US president’s formidable arsenal cannot summon up an insurrection from Iran’s tyrannised and leaderless opposition. It cannot force merchant ships to run a gauntlet of missile and drone attacks in the strait of Hormuz. The government in Tehran and the facts of geography that give it leverage over global trade are unchanged.…
Tag: Tariffs
Trump claims he has ‘absolute right’ to impose new tariffs after supreme court blow
Donald Trump has claimed he has “the absolute right” to impose new tariffs after the US supreme court ruled many of the import duties he imposed last year were illegal. The president attacked the court in a late night broadside on Sunday, accusing it of having “unnecessarily RANSACKED” the US – and failing to show him sufficient loyalty. In February, the supreme court found that a 1977 law designed to address national emergencies did not provide the legal justification for many of the tariffs the Trump administration had put on…
As US influence wanes, the Chinese trade surplus strangles manufacturing across the globe
When the Canadian prime minister, Mark Carney, took to the podium at the World Economic Forum in Davos last week to lament how “great economic powers” were dismantling the international order, it seemed clear that he was talking about the United States. He might have been talking about China as well. Not a week earlier, Beijing had revealed that China’s trade surplus ballooned by 20% in 2025, to $1.2tn. Despite Donald Trump’s wall of tariffs that crashed Chinese sales to the US, its overall exports expanded more than 5%. Sales…
Starmer says progress made on tariffs and visa-free travel in Beijing talks – video
Keir Starmer hailed the economic benefits of resetting relations with China during a visit to Beijing – the first by a British prime minister in eight years. Starmer said bilateral meetings with China’s president, Xi Jinping, and its premier, Li Qiang, ‘made some real progress’, and announced the halving of tariffs on whisky and visa-free travel to China for British citizens. It comes after Donald Trump warned the UK against doing business with China The Guardian
Canada has no intention of pursuing free trade with China, says Carney
Canada’s prime minister, Mark Carney, said on Sunday his country had no intention of pursuing a free trade deal with China, responding to Donald Trump’s threat to impose a 100% tariff on goods imported from Canada if the US’s northern neighbour went ahead with a trade deal with Beijing. Carney said his recent agreement with China merely cut tariffs on a few sectors that were recently hit with them. The prime minister said that, under the free trade agreement with the US and Mexico, there were commitments not to pursue…
Trump threatens Canada with 100% tariff over possible deal with China
Donald Trump on Saturday said he would impose a 100% tariff on all Canadian imports if the North American country makes a trade deal with China. Beside that tariff threat, another Trump foreign policy maneuver to make news on Saturday involved the president announcing the US had taken the oil that was on recently seized Venezuelan tankers. The US president wrote on social media that if the Canadian prime minister, Mark Carney, “thinks he is going to make Canada a ‘Drop Off Port’ for China to send goods and products…
Canada PM hails new partnership with China in wake of ‘new global realities’
Canada’s prime minister Mark Carney hailed a “new strategic partnership” with China as he held talks in Beijing with president Xi Jinping on Friday, the first visit there by a Canadian leader in eight years. Addressing Xi in the Great Hall of the People, Carney said that “together we can build on the best of what this relationship has been in the past to create a new one adapted to new global realities”. Engagement and cooperation would be “the foundation of our new strategic partnership”, he said. “Agriculture, energy, finance,…
China threatens to retaliate over Trump’s 25% tariff on countries trading with Iran
US president announces measure in response to situation in Iran, which is facing anti-government protests Business live – latest updates US politics – live updates China has threatened to retaliate against Donald Trump after the US president said he would impose 25% tariffs on countries that trade with Iran as a way of punishing Tehran for its brutal crackdown on the biggest anti-regime protests in years. Liu Pengyu, the spokesperson for the Chinese embassy in Washington, said Beijing would “take all necessary measures to safeguard its legitimate rights and interests”…
Influx of cheap Chinese imports could drive down UK inflation, economists say
As Trump’s tariffs take effect, Britain is likely alternative destination for cars, telecoms and sound equipment Business live – latest updates The UK is poised for an influx of cheap Chinese imports that could bring down inflation amid the fallout from Donald Trump’s global trade war, leading economists have said. After figures showed China’s trade surplus surpassed $1tn (£750bn) despite Washington’s tariff policies hitting exports to the US, the Bank of England said the UK was among the nations emerging as alternative destinations for the goods. Continue reading… The Guardian
China hits EU dairy industry with tariffs of up to 42.7%
China will impose provisional duties of up to 42.7% on certain dairy products imported from the EU from Tuesday after concluding the first phase of an anti-subsidy investigation widely seen as retaliation for the bloc’s electric vehicle tariffs. The tariffs will range from 21.9% to 42.7% – although most companies will pay about 30% – and target products such as milk and cheese, including protected origin brands such as French roquefort and Italian gorgonzola. The European Commission attacked the decision as “unjustified and unwarranted” and said it was examining it…