Trump Tariffs

Blurb:

As trade tensions between the United States and Communist China intensify, President Donald Trump’s administration has called on the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank to take a tougher stance against Beijing’s economic manipulation and preferential treatment within global financial institutions.

The move marks a new front in the U.S.–China standoff, shifting from tariffs to a broader confrontation over global trade rules and institutional influence, as both nations vie for dominance in the post-pandemic economy.

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US President Donald Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrive to hold a joint press conference in the East Room of the White House in Washington, DC, on February 13, 2025.

The U.S. could substantially slash tariffs on Indian exports as the two countries near a trade deal that could see New Delhi cutting oil purchases from Russia, Indian media outlet Mint reported Wednesday.

As part of the trade deal, Washington could slash tariffs on Indian exports to 15%-16% from the current 50%, Mint reported citing three unnamed sources aware of the matter.

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President Donald Trump and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese signed a critical minerals agreement to counter China, which is holding tight to its own rare earth metals.

According to Bloomberg, Australia “holds the world’s fourth-largest deposits of rare earths.”

With China trying to control the rare earths and critical minerals market, Australia hopes to become “a viable alternative” for countries.

Australia has these key elements:

  • Neodymium and praseodymium: needed for high-strength magnets for electric vehicles and wind turbines
  • Dysprosium and terbium: needed for magnets used in high temperatures
  • Lanthanum and cerium: used in catalytic converters and batteries
  • Europium and gadolinium: needed for phosphors used in screens and medical imaging
  • Samarium: used in high-temperature permanent magnets and lasers

 

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DJI is continuing to fight the U.S. government’s classification of it as a “Chinese military company,” filing an appeal in its unsuccessful lawsuit against the Department of Defense (DoD, recently renamed the Department of War).

In a ruling against DJI last month, a U.S. district court allowed the DoD’s designation of the Chinese drone manufacturer as a “Chinese military company” to stand. Despite disagreeing with the DoD’s allegation that DJI is “indirectly owned by the Chinese Communist Party,” the judge determined that there is evidence that the company does contribute to the “Chinese defence industrial base,” as drones are of substantial use in military contexts.

Trump’s lowered 15% tariff on cars from Japan to take effect Tuesday– japantoday.com
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U.S. President Donald Trump’s lowered tariff of 15 percent on automobiles from Japan will take effect Tuesday, the Commerce Department said, about four months after his aggressive trade agenda started damaging the industrial backbone of one of Washington’s key allies.

The department announced the timing of the adjustment on Monday. The U.S. tariff rate for foreign-origin cars rose to 27.5 percent after Trump imposed in April an additional auto tariff on national security grounds, squeezing the margins of Japanese automakers and other manufacturers.

The reduced tariff is part of a trade deal the Trump administration struck on July 22 with Japan, which in return has committed to investing heavily in the United States and increasing imports of American agricultural products during the president’s nonconsecutive second term.

Trump signed an executive order on Sept. 4 formally implementing the trade agreement, which also granted Japan special treatment on what he calls “reciprocal” tariffs.

The department’s notice to be published Tuesday said that as agreed by the two countries, Trump’s additional 25 percent tariff imposed in May on major auto parts, including engines and transmissions, will also be cut to 15 percent for those coming from Japan.

House of Representatives | Definition, History, & Facts | Britannica

House of Representatives | Definition, History, & Facts | Britannica

House GOP leaders move to extend block on tariff termination votes– www.politico.com
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House Republican leaders are moving to again head off votes trying to cancel much of President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariff regime.

A procedural measure Republicans on the Rules Committee advanced Monday night would extend until March 31 a block on efforts by Democrats and several Republicans to end the national emergencies underlying Trump’s sweeping tariffs — including on Mexico, Canada, Brazil and his “liberation day” levies from April.

It would also block “resolutions of inquiry,” measures that can be used by the House to compel the release of information from the executive branch.

The House is set to vote Tuesday on the measure, which also tees up several D.C. crime- and governance-related bills for floor debate.

GOP leaders have struggled to keep their ranks in line on tariff-related votes. On Monday, their bid to strangle a Democratic-led effort to end Trump’s Brazil levies succeeded only narrowly, 200-198.

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Goldman Sachs is taking the heat for its call that heavier tariff-induced consumer inflation is ahead, but it’s far from alone in that view among its Wall Street brethren.

Despite investors’ embrace of Tuesday’s fairly benign consumer price index report, economists expect that the biggest impact to inflation is yet to come.

With pre-tariff inventories rolling off, effective tariff rates climbing higher and companies less willing to absorb higher costs from the duties, the general feeling is that consumers are increasingly going to feel the bite through the rest of the year.

China Limits Critical Mineral Supplies to Western Defense Manufacturers– legalinsurrection.com
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Our amazing Leslie Eastman has been reporting on this subject since January:

Defense manufacturers must “stop buying rare-earth magnets that contain China-sourced minerals by 2027.”

Well…it looks like China will make that happen before 2027.

The Wall Street Journal reported that China is now limiting the flow of critical minerals to Western defense manufacturers:

Earlier this year, as U.S.-China trade tensions soared, Beijing tightened the controls it places on the export of rare earths. While Beijing allowed them to start flowing after the Trump administration agreed in June to a series of trade concessions, China has maintained a lock on critical minerals for defense purposes. China supplies around 90% of the world’s rare earths and dominates the production of many other critical minerals.

As a result, one drone-parts manufacturer that supplies the U.S. military was forced to delay orders by up to two months while it searched for a non-Chinese source of magnets, which are assembled from rare earths.

Certain materials needed by the defense industry now go for five or more times what was typical before China’s recent mineral restrictions, according to industry traders. One company said it was recently offered samarium—an element needed to make magnets that can withstand the extreme temperatures of a jet-fighter engine—for 60 times the standard price. That is already driving the cost of defense systems higher, say suppliers and defense executives.

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CBS News is tracking the rising cost of products, including those most likely to be impacted by tariffs imposed earlier this year and new ones announced by President Trump on August 1, from the cost of common grocery items to the price of owning a vehicle.

Economists and other experts say consumers can expect to see higher prices in coming weeks and months for imported items.

Perhaps the most impacted day-to-day purchases for American families will be at the grocery store, where a large share of our most commonly purchased fruits and vegetables are imported from Mexico, Canada, China and other countries facing tariffs. Experts suggest the cost of those tariffs will be passed on to consumers in the grocery checkout lane.

The categories in this tracker reflect a selection from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Consumer Price Index and average price data. We focused on goods and services that make up a meaningful share of household budgets and have noted with a special orange marker those that could be affected most by tariffs.

Trump announces 25% tariffs on India over ties to Russia– www.washingtonexaminer.com
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President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday morning that he is authorizing 25% tariffs on India, which will take effect Aug. 1, due to the country’s import of Russian energy and military equipment.

“Remember, while India is our friend, we have, over the years, done relatively little business with them because their Tariffs are far too high, among the highest in the World, and they have the most strenuous and obnoxious non-monetary Trade Barriers of any Country,” the president said in a post on Truth Social.

“Also, they have always bought a vast majority of their military equipment from Russia, and are Russia’s largest buyer of ENERGY, along with China, at a time when everyone wants Russia to STOP THE KILLING IN UKRAINE — ALL THINGS NOT GOOD! INDIA WILL THEREFORE BE PAYING A TARIFF OF 25%, PLUS A PENALTY FOR THE ABOVE, STARTING ON AUGUST FIRST,” he continued.

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The inability to get Trump, for lack of a better term, reared its head again, as the legacy media and the panicans were left shattered and bloody over the latest economic report. They were lusting for a recession. They were hoping the tariffs would increase prices—neither of those things happened. Instead, what we got was a robust report of three percent economic growth in the second quarter. The experts were wrong again. They were off about inflation, tariffs—when will they hide away in a cave in abject shame? You don’t get it. You never will, and it’s time to admit you’ll never beat Trump, ever. Also, Powell, cut the rates, a sentiment echoed in White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt’s statement on today’s robust economic news:

 

Today, GDP growth came in above market expectations, and yesterday, consumer confidence rose. Americans trust in President Trump’s America First economic agenda that continues to prove the so-called ‘experts’ wrong. President Trump has reduced America’s reliance on foreign products, boosted investment in the US, and created thousands of jobs — delivering on his promise to Make America Wealthy Again. The data is clear, and there are no more excuses — now is the time for ‘too late’ Powell to cut the rates!”

 

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Former Fox News host Bill O’Reilly on Tuesday condemned Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer on his show, “No Spin News,” after he called President Donald Trump’s trade deal with the European Union “fake.”

Schumer on Monday delivered remarks on the Senate floor criticizing the agreement and rebutting Trump’s claim that it was the “biggest deal ever” in a clip O’Reilly played. In a video of the show posted on O’Reilly’s YouTube channel, the host accused Schumer of “lying” and said he does not believe the senator loves the United States or cares for its citizens. (RELATED: Howard Lutnick Reveals How Trump Admin Secured Massive Trade Deal With Japan)

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“Trump would have you believe it’s the ‘biggest deal ever,’ that’s his words, dangling $250 billion of new energy purchases and more in new investments,” Schumer said in the clip. “There’s just one hiccup – it’s fake.”

“No, it’s not. Schumer is lying. And I very rarely use that word. I usually say he’s misleading or he’s a propagandist, which he is,” O’Reilly said after playing the clip. “But he’s just lying. He’s just head down, reading something that’s been written for him by one of his propaganda people.”

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The mainstream media’s reaction to President Donald Trump’s trade agreement with the European Union was priceless, as multiple outlets had to admit he got the better end of the deal and achieved a huge victory.

Axios led the way with an article titled “Trump trade deals prove access to the U.S. still matters above all else,” stating that “in the Trump-dominated global economy, the U.S. gets plenty but gives nothing in return.”

They also highlighted “how far foreign leaders will go to safeguard access to the U.S. market,” and called the massive investments from the EU “eye-popping.”

The deal imposes a 15 percent tariff on almost all goods entering the U.S. from the E.U. and requires them to make massive investments in American energy.

Ursula von der Leyen, president of the E.U.’s European Commission, said Europe will purchase $750 billion worth of U.S. energy as part of the deal, in addition to making $600 billion of investments in other U.S. endeavors.

The New York Times seemed dumbfounded with their Tuesday headline: “Europe Made Major Trade Concessions to Trump. How Did That Happen?”

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A weird A-block report on NBC’s Sunday Nightly News makes crystal clear the urgency of narrative for the legacy media. In this instance, a dirty frame sets up a palette cleanser following the lead story- the consequential trade agreement between the United States and Europe announced at President Donald Trump’s Turnberry resort in Scotland.

Watch as Sunday anchor Hallie Jackson repurposes the “distraction from Epstein” narrative in order to reclaim viewer focus:

HALLIE JACKSON: Even overseas, the president

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President Donald Trump said on Friday that he was contemplating sending rebate checks to Americans using tariff revenue.

The U.S. government ran a $27 billion budget surplus in June, fueled partly by record tariff revenue, which exceeded $100 billion for the first time in a fiscal year, Reuters reported. When a reporter asked Trump at the White House if there was a chance of a rebate for Americans due to the revenue, the president said his administration was prioritizing paying off debt, but that a small rebate for some Americans was possible. (RELATED: Trump Locks In China Trade Deal, Keeps Pressure On Beijing)

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“We’re thinking about that, actually. We have so much money coming in,” Trump said. “We’re thinking about a little rebate, but the big thing we want to do is pay down debt. But we’re thinking about a rebate.”

“That’s a very good question. You just made a lot of news,” he continued. “We’re thinking about a rebate because we have so much money coming in from tariffs that a little rebate for people of a certain income level might be very nice.”