📰 Trump Slaps Tariffs on Europe Over Greenland Standoff

President Trump has escalated his campaign to seize control of Greenland, announcing a 10 percent tariff on goods from Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, Britain, the Netherlands, and Finland—NATO allies who have backed Denmark in rejecting his demands. The tariff will rise to 25 percent on June 1 if the countries don’t agree to negotiate the sale of Greenland, according to Trump’s social media post.
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Tariff Threats and Legal Uncertainty
The move marks a sharp escalation in Trump’s pressure campaign, targeting European allies with economic measures. The Supreme Court is currently weighing whether Trump can legally use emergency powers to impose such tariffs, and if it rules against him, he may be forced to seek other legal avenues.
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Trump’s Justification
Trump claims the U.S. has long subsidized Europe and is now demanding payback.

“Now, after Centuries, it is time for Denmark to give back — World Peace is at stake!”

he wrote, echoing his longstanding worldview that America has been taken advantage of for decades.
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Allies Under Fire
Trump’s threats come as European countries, including France, send troops to Greenland for joint military exercises with Denmark. With tensions rising, the question is whether economic coercion will break the deadlock—or just deepen the rift between the U.S. and its closest allies.
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#Trump #Greenland #Tariffs #Denmark #Europe #NATO #TradeWar

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📰 Europe Refuses to Be Blackmailed: Trump’s Tariff Threats Backfire

European leaders are standing firm against President Donald Trump’s threat to impose tariffs on eight countries unless they give in to his demands for Greenland. Sweden’s Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson declared, “We will not let ourselves be blackmailed,” while French President Emmanuel Macron said, “No intimidation nor threat will influence us.”

Unity in the Face of Pressure
The eight countries—Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, Britain, the Netherlands, and Finland—issued a joint statement affirming their solidarity with Denmark and Greenland. They stressed that tariff threats undermine transatlantic relations and risk a dangerous downward spiral. European officials warned that such actions could fracture NATO and embolden Moscow and Beijing.

Mixed Reactions, Muted Responses
While most leaders condemned Trump’s threats, Germany’s official response was more cautious, announcing only a brief statement and the withdrawal of its small troop contingent from Greenland. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer called the tariffs “completely wrong,” and Italy’s Giorgia Meloni described them as “an error”.

Who’s Playing the Game?
Europe’s refusal to be bullied may signal a new era of transatlantic tension. As Trump pushes for Greenland, Europe is rallying behind sovereignty and territorial integrity. But with NATO on the line and Russia and China watching, the question is: Who’s really winning—and who’s being played?

#Europe #Trump #Greenland #Tariffs #NATO #Diplomacy #Transatlantic

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📰 Bessent to Europe: Don't Fight Back—Just Wait

The Davos Deep Breath
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has a message for Europe at Davos: chill out. Don't retaliate against Trump's Greenland tariffs.

"Sit back, take a deep breath, and let things play out,"

he urged, dismissing market panic as "hysteria" like last April's tariff freakout.

"Very Unwise" Warning
Bessent waved off Europe's €93bn retaliation list as a bad idea. "The worst thing countries can do is escalate against the United States," he warned. He laughed off Deutsche Bank's threat to dump US Treasuries: "a completely false narrative. It defies any logic." Europe holds $8tn in US debt—good luck finding buyers elsewhere.

"What President Trump is threatening on Greenland is very different than the other trade deals. So I would urge all countries to stick with their trade deals."

Markets in Freefall
Global stocks tanked—Nikkei -1.1%, FTSE 100 -1.1%, dollar -0.8%. Gold and silver hit records. Trump piled on, threatening 200% tariffs on French champagne after Macron snubbed his Gaza "peace board." LVMH shares dropped 2.4%.

The Real Power Play
IMF's Kristalina Georgieva begged leaders to avoid tit-for-tat wars:

"It would be very good if we keep it this way."

Translation: Europe's "trade bazooka" stays holstered while Trump calls the shots.

Europe's choice: swallow the tariffs or watch the alliance burn. Bessent's betting on surrender.

#trump #greenland #davos #tariffs #tradewar

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India to Slash Car Tariffs to 40% in Landmark EU Trade Deal

India is set to slash tariffs on cars imported from the European Union to 40%, down from as high as 110%, as part of a sweeping free trade pact expected to be announced Tuesday. The deal, dubbed the “mother of all deals,” will immediately lower duties for about 200,000 combustion-engine cars priced above 15,000 euros, with rates eventually dropping to 10% over time.

This agreement is seen as a strategic pivot by the EU toward the East, signaling a shift away from the Trump-era protectionism that dominated transatlantic trade. While Trump championed tariffs and isolation, the EU is betting on deeper ties with India to counterbalance U.S. unpredictability and secure new markets.

The move is a major boost for European automakers like Volkswagen, Renault, Mercedes-Benz, and BMW, which have struggled to gain traction in India’s fiercely protected market. Battery electric vehicles (EVs) will be excluded from tariff cuts for the first five years to shield domestic investments by companies like Mahindra & Mahindra and Tata Motors.

India’s car market is the world’s third-largest, but until now, high tariffs have kept European brands out. The new deal could see luxury and mainstream European cars flooding in, testing the appetite of Indian buyers before more local manufacturing kicks in.

But the pact isn’t just about cars. It’s expected to lift Indian exports of textiles and jewellery, sectors hit hard by U.S. tariffs. With India’s car market projected to hit 6 million units by 2030, European firms are already lining up new investments.

So who wins? European carmakers, Indian consumers, or the politicians cutting the deals?

#trade #India #EU #cars #tariffs #Volkswagen #Renault #Mercedes #BMW #antitrump #EUpivot

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Tariffs, Truth, and the Fed Hit List

Kevin Hassett just turned a routine Fed research note into a loyalty test. On CNBC, Trump’s top economic adviser called a New York Fed study an “embarrassment” and said the central bank should punish its own researchers for concluding that U.S. companies and consumers ate nearly 90% of the cost of 2025 tariffs rather than China. The message wasn’t subtle: if your math makes the White House look bad, the problem isn’t the policy, it’s you.
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The Fed paper did something boring and dangerous: it compared import prices and volumes and found that most of the tariff burden was passed through into higher U.S. prices, in line with other independent studies. Hassett’s counter‑argument was a story, not a rebuttal: tariffs “bring stuff home,” raise demand, lift wages, and leave Americans better off.

No numbers, just vibes. In the same ecosystem, Trump has already demanded that Goldman Sachs dump its chief economist for saying tariffs hit Americans, fired the head of the Bureau of Labor Statistics after ugly jobs data, and is watching a criminal probe hang over Jerome Powell’s head while pushing him out in favor of a more obedient Fed chair.
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You can see the new hierarchy: politics first, narrative second, data last. Tariffs are good by definition; if the numbers say otherwise, the numbers must be “partisan.” The target isn’t just one study, it’s the idea that independent stats offices and central bank researchers get to describe reality instead of marketing it.

When the White House starts talking about “punishing” people for adding up the bill, the real policy isn’t about trade anymore. It’s about teaching everyone in the system that truth is whatever makes the president look like he’s winning.

#trump #tariffs #Fed #Hassett #economy #fakePopulism

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📰 Tariff Emperor Loses His Clothes

The Supreme Court just told Donald Trump he can’t run U.S. trade policy like a personal Patreon paywall. In a 6–3 ruling, Chief Justice John Roberts said Trump blew past his authority by slapping emergency‑law tariffs on almost every major trading partner, using a statute that never actually gave him the power to tax imports. More than $200 billion in tariffs are now legally radioactive, with companies already lawyering up to claw back billions in refunds.

Trump’s reaction was pure brand: he reportedly called the decision a “disgrace” and immediately promised a backup plan — new tariffs under “different authorities,” maybe even an across‑the‑board fee on imports. Translation: if the court says no to emergency‑tariff cosplay, he’ll just go shopping in the rest of the legal code until something breaks. Three justices — Kavanaugh, Thomas, Alito — even wrote that presidents should be free to do exactly that in the name of foreign affairs, and warned of chaos as importers rush to demand refunds.

Congress, which actually owns tariff power under the Constitution, is suddenly remembering it exists. One Republican lawmaker basically posted “the checks and balances still work” and reminded everyone tariffs are supposed to be a legislative job, not a vibe. Business groups are cheering, not because they love the rule of law, but because they smell cash coming back and hate paying a tax sold as “America First” while the bill lands on them.

So what’s left? The White House says it will “move quickly” to reimpose many of these fees using other laws, financial markets now have to price in tariff whiplash, and global partners get to watch the U.S. lecture them on rules‑based trade while the president tries to brute‑force tariffs through any legal side door he can find. The Supreme Court just reminded everyone there is a line; Trump’s already testing how fast he can redraw it.

#Trump #tariffs #SupremeCourt #tradewar #economy #fakeDemocracy

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📰 Supreme Court Says No. Trump Says 15%.

The Supreme Court just tore up Trump’s emergency‑law tariffs — so he immediately slapped a brand‑new, across‑the‑board 15% tax on almost everything that crosses the U.S. border. The legal message was “you overstepped your powers”; his political answer is

“I’ll do it again, just within a different clause.”

He’s now using a little‑known provision that lets a president impose a global tariff for 150 days unless Congress votes to keep it. First he said 10%. Less than a day later, with no serious policy review process, he jumped straight to the legal maximum of 15%. Some of his own staff reportedly found out the way everyone else did — by reading his social‑media post.

The result is chaos economics. For countries like the U.K. and Australia, 15% is worse than what they faced before. For China, India, Vietnam or Brazil, it’s lower than the illegally high rates the Court just killed — meaning the “punishment” for America’s top trade villains just softened while some allies get hit harder. This isn’t calibrated strategy, it’s a flat tax on the entire planet.

Trump is selling it as “fully allowed” and “legally tested,” skipping over the fact that the Court just ruled he had broken the law on tariffs the previous day. He’s also threatening to pile on more duties later using other tools — Section 301, Section 232, whatever else he can dust off — which forces foreign leaders to decide whether to stick with deals they signed under tariff pressure or walk away and wait for the next round.

On paper, tariffs are supposed to fix unfair trade. In practice, this 15% blanket rate looks like a campaign‑season lever: higher costs for U.S. consumers, more uncertainty for businesses, and one man proving he can still move global markets with a single post. Everyone else gets to pay for the performance.

#Trump #tariffs #SupremeCourt #trade #economy #fakeDemocracy

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📰 Supreme Court Disarms Trump. Xi Walks In Stronger.

Xi Jinping is about to host Donald Trump in Beijing with something no Chinese leader has had in years: a U.S. president who just had his favorite weapon taken away by his own Supreme Court. The court killed Trump’s emergency mega‑tariffs, wiping out second‑term levies that hit Chinese goods as high as 145% and dropping Beijing into the same temporary 15% global rate the U.S. now slaps on allies — a fee that expires in 150 days unless Congress renews it.

That ruling strips Trump of the instant “tariff hammer” he used to strong‑arm China into buying around 25 million tons of soybeans and making other one‑off concessions. As Fudan University’s Wu Xinbo puts it, the “soybean card” is now back in China’s hand: if those tariffs were illegal, Beijing can demand better terms or simply walk away from purchase pledges tied to them. Xi’s negotiators are already expected to push harder for access to advanced semiconductors, looser export controls, fewer restrictions on Chinese firms, and softer U.S. language and arms sales around Taiwan.

Trump isn’t disarmed, just downgraded. He’s rushed to slap a replacement 15% global tariff using Section 122 of the Trade Act — legally capped, short‑lived, and far less targeted than his old IEEPA arsenal. He can still revive pressure through slower tools like Section 301 (where China already faces an investigation over missed “Phase One” pledges) and Section 232 national‑security tariffs, or by tightening export controls if Beijing plays games with rare earths. But none of that has the same shock‑and‑awe leverage ahead of a summit.

Beijing, meanwhile, is keeping the victory low‑key. Chinese officials and state media are measured, investors are quietly optimistic, and exporters are talking about front‑loading shipments to exploit the lower, time‑limited U.S. tariff window. Trade insiders quoted in Chinese media say they’ll stay “low profile” to ensure Trump’s late‑March visit goes smoothly — celebrate in private, act calm in public, and let U.S. institutions do the work of constraining the American side.

Strip away the legal charts and this is the picture: the U.S. president who built his brand on unilateral tariff power now walks into Beijing with the court, Congress and the calendar limiting his moves, while Xi arrives with time, discipline, and a clearer playbook — chips, Taiwan, tech bans, market access. Trump can still rage about “ripping off America,” but for once, the other guy at the table is the one who just got a boost from Washington’s rule of law.

#Trump #Xi #China #tariffs #tradeWar #USA #fakeDemocracy

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📰 Merz Discovers Separation of Powers, Walks Into Trump’s Tariff Circus

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz is flying to Washington with what he promises will be a “very clear European position” on Trump’s new global tariffs — which is adorable, given that Trump’s trade policy changes faster than his social‑media posts.

Merz told German TV that customs policy is an EU competence, so he’ll coordinate a joint line on the fresh 15% blanket tariff the White House just slapped on nearly all imports for 150 days, after the Supreme Court killed Trump’s emergency mega‑tariffs.

On paper, he’s not wrong to sound upbeat. The court’s ruling is a rare institutional slapdown that limits Trump’s ability to randomly hike duties into triple digits and forces him back into narrower legal lanes.

Merz even called it “reassuring,” proof that U.S. checks and balances still work. In practice, though, Berlin’s exporters are still staring at a flat 15% tax until further notice, layered on top of years of whiplash over which car part, machine tool, or chemical input is suddenly a “national security threat.”

Brussels will now try to do what it always does: draft a common script, rattle the sabre about “appropriate countermeasures,” and quietly pray Trump doesn’t wake up one morning and decide BMWs are Chinese by association. Merz can arrive in Washington waving a united‑EU memo; Trump arrives with a pen that can still rewrite everyone’s cost structure overnight for five months at a time. The separation of powers may be working — it just hasn’t separated Europe from the bill.

#Germany #EU #Trump #tariffs #Merz #tradeWar #fakeDemocracy

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📰 Trump’s Tariff War Meets a Cowardly Congress

Speaker Mike Johnson is basically admitting Trump’s new 15% global tariffs are on political life support. He told reporters Congress is unlikely to “find consensus” on any legislation to codify the tariff agenda after the Supreme Court struck down the previous emergency levies, and he waved off the idea of jamming them into a reconciliation mega‑bill.
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Trump’s Section 122 tariffs automatically expire after 150 days; extending them would require Congress to vote, which senior Republicans privately say they don’t have the numbers to do. Senate Democrats have already promised to block any extension, and with a 60‑vote threshold they can make sure the import tax dies on schedule.

Even swing‑district Republicans like Don Bacon are breaking, calling the tariffs a “ball and chain” on the GOP ahead of the midterms and predicting the new levies will “fail in the courts” as well.

Johnson is also punting on refunds for the illegal tariffs the Court just killed, saying that’s for the White House to sort out and “doesn’t really involve the House at this point.”

Congress doesn’t want to own either the cost of paying companies back or the politics of defending Trump’s trade taxes. Trump can still improvise new workarounds from the Oval Office, but the branch that actually controls tariff power under the Constitution is quietly signaling it has no intention of bailing him out.

#Trump #tariffs #MikeJohnson #Congress #trade #fakeDemocracy

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📰 Trump’s Casino Economy Hits the Iran Table

Trump has spent his second term treating the U.S. economy like one long night at the tables — tariffs, immigration cuts, Fed‑bashing, and now a shooting war with Iran that should, in theory, blow up his favorite political barometer: cheap gas.

Yet every time he shoves the stack forward, the macro dashboard mostly stays green. Growth holds up, unemployment sits around 4.3 percent, real wages rise, stocks climb, and an AI investment boom quietly turns data centers into a national life‑support system.

“He’s got an unemployment rate of 4.3 percent. He’s got rising real wages. That by itself helps move consumer spending forward,” says Jared Bernstein, Biden’s former chief economist.
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On one side of the ledger are the self‑inflicted shocks: sweeping global tariffs that push up costs, a squeeze on immigration that tightens the labor market, and a manufacturing sector that still looks weak despite all the “reshoring” rallies. Add in a rising share of household debt sliding into serious delinquency, and you get an affordability crisis that doesn’t show up in headline GDP but screams in people’s bills.

On the other side are the steroids: GOP tax cuts that fatten refunds and let firms write off investments immediately, deregulation that keeps pushing stocks to fresh highs, and an AI build‑out so aggressive it papers over a lot of political risk.

Even the Supreme Court is doing macro choreography — cutting back some of Trump’s own tariffs just as the Iran war nudges oil higher, one shock muting another. The message to any future president watching is simple and dangerous: you can light fires and the spreadsheet will probably eat it.

The Iran gamble should have been the one that breaks the spell: a major Middle East war, oil jumping above 80 dollars a barrel with clear paths to 100 if infrastructure gets hit, and a wounded Iran with every reason to treat Gulf energy flows as a hostage. Yet for now, even bearish analysts concede the growth hit still looks modest, more like a drag than a crash. The “teflon economy” story writes itself — which is exactly why someone will try an even wilder experiment next time.

Voters, however, are not teflon. Only about a third of Americans approve of Trump’s handling of the economy, and under a third like his approach to inflation, even as he declares victory on prices at every podium.

If this casino run ever ends — through an AI bust, an oil spike, or a war that finally hits harder than the models expect — the bill will land on a public that never signed off on being the collateral to prove how “resilient” the system is.

#trump #economy #iran #war #ai #inflation #gasPrices #tariffs #usa

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Trump: 50% Tariffs On Most Canadian Goods

🔠🔠🔠🔠1️⃣

Trump is imposing 50% tariffs on most Canadian goods in response to the country retaliating against previous US tariffs, the White House announced Monday, declaring Canada has unfairly discriminated against American cars, alcohol and dairy products.

The tariffs will hit a wide range of products, the White House said, including wine, hockey sticks and cement. They also include goods previously protected from import taxes under the United States-Mexico-Canada (USMCA) agreement.

The new tariffs will exclude energy products, fish, critical minerals and potash. They also exclude products already subject to tariffs aimed at protecting national security, such as steel and aluminum.

The steep tariffs will probably unleash a new wave of economic chaos, with risks of higher inflation and further fraying of relations between two nations that had been closely woven together before Trump’s return to the White House.

The Canadian prime minister, Mark Carney, said in a statement that his government has made comprehensive proposals ‌to resolve trade disputes with Washington, asserting that Trump’s past tariffs violated ‌a trade pact between the two countries.

“This trade dispute has raised costs for families, particularly in the US,” he said. “Canada stands ready to engage intensively to address outstanding issues with the US to the mutual benefit of our citizens.”

The White House said the tariffs will go into effect in 30 days, leaving time for possible negotiations between the two countries.

Trump signed three proclamations to launch the tariffs under Section 338 of the 1930 Trade Act. Several Democratic lawmakers last year proposed repealing the section because they said Trump could use it to destabilize the economy.

A White House fact sheet claims Trump is “taking action to hold Canada accountable for its continued discrimination against and unreasonable and unequal treatment of U.S. commerce that has burdened and disadvantaged hardworking Americans”.

Trump claims in the proclamations that Canada discriminates against American automobiles, alcohol and cheese relative to other nations, but his argument rests in large part on retaliatory actions taken by Canada after the US president imposed tariffs on Canada under the pretext that it should do more to stop fentanyl smuggling into the US.

Trump noted in his autos proclamation that Canada maintained, starting in April 2025, a 25% tariff on the imports of US motor vehicles that did not qualify for preferential treatment under the USMCA.

The White House also cited all but two Canadian provinces and territories stopping the sale of US alcoholic beverages, while not imposing similar restrictions on other countries.

Trump also objected to Canada’s treatment of US cheese, saying in his proclamation that Canada discriminates against the US compared to Europe on dairy products.

#trump #carney #canada #tariffs #ontario

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🔠🔠🔠🔠2️⃣

Trump had threatened last week to impose tariffs due to smoke from devastating wildfires in Canada drifting across large portions of the US.

“We are holding Canada responsible for the fact that they are not properly maintaining their Forests, and Brush therein, and the United States is being unnecessarily invaded by filthy, polluted, and unhealthy air, the quality of which is dangerous, and totally unacceptable!” he wrote on Truth Social.

Trump watched Sunday’s World Cup final with Mark Carney, the Canadian prime minister who has previously pushed back on the US president and won the premiership last year on a platform of promising to stand up for Canada.

After the match, Trump told reporters he had raised the issue of wildfire smoke with Carney.

A White House official who previewed the new tariffs to reporters said Trump has requested aides explore additional tariffs due to Canadian wildfires harming US air quality.

The Canadian federal government did not immediately comment on Trump’s action, but Doug Ford, the Ontario premier, said he’d “never stop fighting to protect Ontario”.

“If these tariffs proceed, Canada should respond tariff for tariff, dollar for dollar,” Ford posted on social media.

Candace Laing, the CEO of the Canadian chamber of commerce, said the Trump administration’s moves were “regrettable” but the two countries need to use the 30-day window before the tariffs start “to make meaningful progress in advancing formal talks”.

The new taxes on Canadian imports could carry serious political and economic risks for Trump ahead of the November midterm elections for control of Congress.

His so-called “liberation day” tariffs last year in April provoked a financial market meltdown over concerns about inflation and a recession, prompting him to walk back the rates for a period of negotiation.

#trump #carney #canada #tariffs #ontario

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🛢 War, Tiered Tariffs, and an Economy on a Short Leash

The Iran war and Trump’s new tariff system both push US prices higher, but in a more conditional — and more political — way than a blunt “global tax.”

The renewed fighting has pushed Brent back near $100, slowed Hormuz, and driven average US gas prices back above $4 a gallon, roughly 30% higher than pre‑war levels.

Inflation had just slipped to 3.5% in June, down from 4.2% in May but still above the Fed’s 2% target; the new energy spike makes the path back to 2% much rougher.

Higher oil feeds into everything that has to be shipped, heated or fertilized, and winter heating bills for oil‑heated homes could jump toward $1,700 if crude stays at that level, versus about $1,100 last winter.

The new tariffs are the second shock, and they are tiered. Section 301 duties of 10% and 12.5% are keyed to forced‑labor rules: the 10% tier hits partners like the EU, Canada, Mexico, India and the UK that enforce bans on such imports; 12.5% lands on countries that do not, including China, Japan, Brazil and Australia.

Most Canadian and Mexican trade still moves under USMCA preferences, and existing steel and aluminum tariffs are not stacked on top. Separately, Trump just used Section 338 to slap 50% tariffs on selected Canadian goods like wine, spirits, hockey sticks and cement, regardless of USMCA — a different, harsher tool.

Underneath that machinery is a governance story. In February, the Supreme Court ruled that the 1977 emergency law Trump used for his “Liberation Day” tariffs did not authorize them, wiping out that scheme.

The new 301 matrix, refreshed 232 metals setup and 338 Canada proclamations are all ways to rebuild the same basic policy on firmer statutory ground after losing in court, while still reaching 99.4% of imports.

Studies on the first Trump tariff wave found it added roughly 0.7 points to inflation and shifted most of the cost onto US consumers; analysts now warn that combining renewed war with fresh duties could keep core inflation above 4% into 2026.

The risk isn’t that everything explodes in price overnight. It’s that Washington has turned open‑ended war and long‑running trade conflict into a semi‑permanent floor under inflation — and is asking voters to call that resilience.

#USA #Trump #Iran #oil #tariffs #inflation #Fed #economy #fakeDemocracy #oligarchy

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The Ring, the Paprika, and a Tariff Wall With a Diamond-Sized Hole

Weeks after Antwerp's diamond guild handed Donald Trump an 18-karat gold ring stacked with 321 diamonds for America's 250th birthday, the White House quietly exempted natural diamonds from its newest round of tariffs.

"A very special thank you to my friends from Antwerp for the magnificent Freedom 250 ring," Trump said in a recorded message played at a Brussels party featuring Budweiser, bourbon, and the FBI director's girlfriend singing the anthem. Nobody is alleging a bribe. Everybody noticed the timing anyway, The New York Times reports.

White House spokesman Kush Desai insists the exemption just honors last year's EU trade deal, adding, "the only special interest guiding the Trump administration's decision-making is the best interest of the American people."

The Trade Representative's office says it never even heard about the ring. So the diamond industry spent "months of sustained advocacy" chasing "exactly this outcome," commissioned a custom Superman-logo ring engraved "Crafted in Antwerp for Donald John Trump," and got the outcome, purely on the merits.

Diamonds aren't the only forced-labor flashpoint that walked away clean. Paprika, a MAHA-movement favorite as a red-dye substitute, also got exempted, despite testing showing much of the "Made in USA" supply actually traces back to Xinjiang and a Chinese producer already on the U.S. forced-labor blacklist.

"The exemptions list practically reads like a list of products we know to be made with forced and child labor," says Sheffield Hallam professor Laura Murphy.

Trade analyst Dan Anthony puts it more bluntly: "You can't address forced labor concerns when giving a Get Out of Tariffs Free card to the most problematic areas and products." Meanwhile gold, cobalt, and tantalum from the Democratic Republic of Congo, also flagged repeatedly for forced labor, sit untouched by tariffs entirely.

So the policy sold as America's toughest-ever stand against forced labor exempts the diamond that got a president a ring and the paprika that seasons his base's ketchup substitute, while leaving the actual mining conflict zones off the list. Whose supply chain gets punished here, and whose just needs better gift-giving?

#Tariffs #Trump #Diamonds #ForcedLabor #Lobbying

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Trade Deficits Are Now Hostile Acts

Trump allies in the Senate want to give the president a new weapon: tariffs against countries that sell more goods to America than America sells to them.

Sen. Rick Scott’s proposed Trade Deficit Elimination Act would require the U.S. Trade Representative to draw up an annual watch list of “trade deficit economies.”

Trump could then impose, raise, lower, suspend or alter tariffs on imports from those countries in an effort to eliminate bilateral goods deficits. Congress would be consulted, but would not have to approve each tariff decision.

The legal pitch is elegant. The Supreme Court struck down Trump’s universal tariffs because he used emergency powers that did not authorize them. So Congress should now write him a new authority — one aimed at any country whose trade relationship Washington decides is economically, strategically or politically offensive.

The political pitch is even simpler: other countries are “ripping off” America.

That is a useful phrase because it turns a trade deficit into a crime scene. Americans buy goods from another country; that country earns more from the transaction than U.S. exporters do; therefore, somebody must be cheating. The consumer’s preference becomes foreign aggression. The tariff becomes therapy.

The bill includes exemptions for critical supply-chain goods, national-security items and products without viable alternatives. In other words, the White House may punish trade partners for selling too much to America — except when America needs what they sell.

This is not free trade, protectionism or industrial policy in the old sense. It is a presidential grievance machine with a customs code.

#Trump #tariffs #trade #USA #economy #protectionism #oligarchy

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America’s New Deficit Police

Trump allies want to give the president a new trade weapon: tariffs against countries that sell more to America than America sells to them.

Sen. Rick Scott’s proposed Trade Deficit Elimination Act would require the U.S. Trade Representative to publish an annual watch list of countries with “trade deficit economies.”

Once a country lands on the list, Trump could impose, raise, cut, suspend or alter tariffs on its imports in the name of eliminating the bilateral goods deficit. Congress would be consulted, not asked for permission.

The Supreme Court struck down Trump’s universal tariffs because the White House used emergency powers that did not authorize them. The Senate response is not to reconsider the tariff binge. It is to write the president a new license for it.

Scott says America cannot let other countries “rip us off.” In this model, a trade deficit is no longer an economic result. It is evidence of a crime.

Americans buying foreign products becomes hostile activity by foreign governments. Your choice of a cheaper appliance is now a national-security incident.

The bill includes exemptions for goods essential to supply chains, national security or basic availability. Which means the policy is simple: punish countries for selling too much to America — except when America needs what they sell.

Washington refunded $100 billion in tariff revenue after the Supreme Court ruling. Now the same political class wants to replace the illegal tariff machine with a legal one, fitted with more buttons and fewer brakes.

Free trade is dead. Protectionism is too polite a word. This is trade policy as a presidential loyalty test: prove you buy enough American goods, or prepare for an invoice.

#Trump #tariffs #trade #USA #economy #protectionism #oligarchy

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Carney: Trump's Aggression Will Not Stand 🇨🇦


Mark Carney said on Monday that while American negotiators saw the French language in Canada as an “irritant (…) in Quebec, these are rights,” days after receiving widespread praise from political leaders for rejecting a US trade proposal that many perceived as weakening the country’s Francophone culture.

The prime minister’s remarks came hours after Trump, showed little interest in retreating from the spat, posting on social media that Canada had been “ripping off the United States of America for years” and threatening a swath of new, economically devastating tariffs on cars and trucks.

Carney instructed his negotiators to walk away from trade talks last week. Tariffs on an array of Canadian products took effect over the weekend, affecting around 5% of Canada’s exports to the US, and Canada said it will retaliate in early September.

On Monday, Carney toured a shipyard with Quebec’s premier, telling attendees Canada “could not accept” a proposed trade deal that would have weakened French language protections after trade talks collapsed between the two countries last week, adding that his government “will not give what they have asked”.

Quebec, Canada’s predominantly French-speaking province, has long sought to protect its distinct identity, at times with laws that clashed with the federal government and the Canadian charter of rights and freedoms.

Quebec’s premier, Christine Fréchette, said Carney had made the right decision in walking away from talks that looked to cross a “red line” for Francophones.

“Our culture, our language is central to our identity and it is important to exclude that from the negotiation table,” she told reporters over the weekend. “It’s something that is crucial for us and it won’t change, even though we are threatened with different tariffs, it won’t change. We will stay the way we are.”

Polling from earlier in the month shows that dislike for Trump is highest in Quebec.

Separatists in the province have seen a sharp decline in support amid the economic wounds inflicted by the US.

The Quebec Federation of Chambers of Commerce (FCCQ) called the tariffs a “worst-case scenario” for the province’s businesses.

“Quebec, in fact, has been the most affected by these tariffs since the very beginning of this trade war,” Fréchette said. “In all our regions, businesses risk losing contracts. In fact, it has already begun.”

On Monday, Trump’s top trade representative, Jamieson Greer, called reports that French language protections were up for debate a “a funny fake story”.

“That is not true,” Greer told CNBC. “I like the Quebecois and I like that they speak French.” He said both he and his sons speak the language.

He claimed the issue at stake was that Americans did not like Canada “forcing” streaming giants in the US to pay some of their profits to support Canadian content. Canada had already dropped that position, however, previously abandoning elements of digital services tax.

“I understand why the Quebecois want to have French language content. We think that’s a really valuable thing and we encourage countries to really put their own country first and put their national identity first.”

Carney rejected that framing, telling reporters it was not “funny” and there was an “enormous spread” in perspectives.

Trump redoubled his efforts to wage economic war against his country’s longtime political, security and economic ally.

“Canada has been ripping off the United States of America for years,” Trump wrote on social media. Criticizing Canada’s “ridiculously high tariffs” on American farmers, Trump wrote: “Not sustainable, and not anymore !”

#carney #trump #quebec #tariffs

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Carney Against Trump: Canada Strikes Back 🇨🇦


Carney has the support of most Canadians after breaking off trade talks with the U.S., but widespread approval of his pushback against Trump could disappear within months as the ​consequences of the trade war sink in.

Carney's negotiating position could also weaken if Republicans retain power in Congress after November U.S. midterm elections and reinforce American protectionism under Trump.

Carney ‌is one of the few global leaders to retaliate against U.S. tariffs, despite Canada's dependence on U.S. buyers for about 70% of its exports.

On Tuesday, his government announced dollar-for-dollar counter-tariffs on $20 billion of U.S. goods, as well as a C$7.5 billion ($5.41 billion) package of economic support measures.

“Carney’s leverage will start to diminish if this escalating trade war starts to show up in palpable increases in unemployment, factory shutdowns and declining income,”

said Julian Karaguesian, a former adviser at Canada’s Finance ​Ministry and economics professor at McGill University.

“Canada cannot win an economic war of attrition with the U.S.”

The U.S. economy is 13 times larger than Canada's, a country with a population roughly ​the size of California's.

Carney's office did not respond to a request for comment.
The additional tariffs — from both sides of the border — along with Trump’s renewed threats ⁠to Canada’s sovereignty, mark one of the most acrimonious moments in modern Canada-U.S. relations.

Trump’s actions have prompted an outpouring of support for Carney, who has urged middle-power nations to band together to form a ​new global order and pursued new trade and security alliances to disentangle Canada from its reliance on the U.S.

The U.S. introduced last-minute changes to its tentative trade deal with Canada, adjusting U.S. auto tariffs, ​curtailing French-language requirements and restricting Canada's ability to pursue trade agreements with other countries, Carney said on Saturday.

Carney invoked military language to describe the trade dispute, saying Canada had been “attacked.” An Angus Reid poll showed on Sunday 76% of Canadians approved of Carney's decision to suspend trade talks. But the same poll showed 40% of Canadians are worried their jobs are at risk.

Dan Arnold, a former ​research director for ex-Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, said Canadians are aligned with Carney’s approach toward Trump.

“It’s like any kind of war mentality where you see people are willing to make sacrifices to press back ​against the U.S.,”

he said.

“Politics is about storytelling and there is the greatest cartoon villain ever in the form of Trump,”

said Arnold, who now works at the polling firm Pollara.

Trump has accused Canada in recent days of ripping off the United States for decades and threatened to change the name of Lake Ontario to Lake America.

Expected job losses, inflation and cost-of-living ⁠pressures will ultimately ​limit Carney’s ability to push back against the U.S., Karaguesian said. Canada has the highest rate of food inflation among all Group ​of 7 industrial countries and has been facing a housing affordability crisis for years.

“Canada can push out more exports to the rest of the world, but Carney’s clock is already running out,”

he said.

“At some point when more and more people are losing ​their jobs and visiting food banks, the public will say, ‘we know this is not your fault, but go make a deal with Trump.’”

#сanada #сarney #additional #tariffs

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The Border Tollbooth

Canada answered Trump’s tariff threats with a customs invoice. At 12:01 a.m. Tuesday, Ottawa’s new duties of 15%, 25% and 50% hit more than 700 categories of U.S. goods, covering C$27.6 billion in imports.

Steel, dairy, clothing, electronics and industrial equipment all get a front-row seat in the continental family counseling session.

Trump responded by telling Bombardier it cannot sell planes in the United States unless it builds them there. The White House version of free trade now resembles a nightclub bouncer: pay the cover charge, build the venue, praise the owner.

Ottawa says it is matching U.S. tariffs “dollar for dollar.” Washington calls that escalation from a country too small to fight back.

Both capitals have discovered that “integrated North American supply chains” means taxpayers and manufacturers get to finance the politicians’ public divorce.

The real hostages are the factories on both sides of the border. The men shouting “sovereignty” own microphones; the people moving parts across the Blue Water Bridge own deadlines.

#Tariffs #Canada #Trump #TradeWar

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