Indonesia's sovereign wealth fund, Danantara, plans to sign a USD 8 billion engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contract with US engineering firm KBR Inc. to build 17 modular refineries, according to two sources familiar with the matter and an official presentation by the Economic Ministry, as reported by Reuters. The contract is part of a trade pact reached last week between Indonesia and the US, which resulted in a reduction of proposed US tariffs, from 32% down to 19%. Indonesia's Economic Minister, Airlangga Hartarto, who served as chief negotiator for the deal, revealed...
The annual core consumer price inflation rate in the United States, which excludes volatile items like food and energy, stood at a four-year low of 2.8% in April 2025, unchanged from March and matching market forecasts. The shelter index, accounting for over two thirds of the total 12-month increase, was at 4%, matching March's reading. Increases were also seen for medical care (1%), motor vehicle insurance (+6.4%), education (+3.8%), and recreation (+1.6%). On a monthly basis, core consumer prices rose by 0.2% in April, up from the 0.1% increase in March, just below market expectations of...
The U.S.-China deal to lower the most aggressive import tariffs between the world's two largest economies could lessen the impact of their trade war, though the levies left in place are still steep and will leave a mark on the economy, Federal Reserve officials said on Monday. Federal Reserve Governor Adriana Kugler said the 90-day pause on import levies at levels that threatened to shut down bilateral trade reduces chances that the U.S. central bank will need to lower interest rates in response to an economic slowdown. The outcome of the weekend meetings between Chinese and U.S. officials...
Federal Reserve (Fed) Bank of Chicago President Austan Goolsbee took a cautionary stance on the ever-evolving trade stance of the Trump administration on Monday. According to Goolsbee's interview with The New York Times, constantly-changing tariffs and trade strategies from the White House have thrown a very large wrench in plans for hiring and investment for many industries, pinning the Fed in a wait-and-see mode on interest rates. On the US-China tariff reduction: It is definitely less impactful stagflationarily than the path they were on.Yet it's three to five times higher than what it...
A breakthrough in U.S.-China trade talks has propelled world stocks and the dollar higher, but investors fear further negotiations could prove a long slog, tempering optimism, as risks of a global economic slowdown persist. After two days of talks with Chinese officials in Geneva, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Monday the two sides had agreed to a 90-day pause on measures and that tariffs would fall by over 100 percentage points. That leaves U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods at 30% from May 14 to August 12 and Chinese duties on U.S. imports at 10%, beating investors' best-case...
The United States and China have agreed to temporarily slash reciprocal tariffs in a deal that surpassed expectations as the world's two biggest economies seek to end a damaging trade war that has stoked fears of recession and roiled financial markets. The U.S. will cut extra tariffs it imposed on Chinese imports in April this year to 30% from 145% and Chinese duties on U.S. imports will fall to 10% from 125%, the two countries said on Monday. The new measures are effective for 90 days. The dollar rose against other major currencies and stock markets lifted following the news, which helped...
China's official NBS Manufacturing PMI increased to 49.7 in June 2025 from May's 49.5, matching market expectations while marking the third consecutive month of contraction in factory activity.
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Both the STOXX 50 and STOXX 600 hovered around the flatline on Friday, as investors adopted a cautious stance ahead of further developments in trade talks between US President Trump and Chinese...
Indonesia's sovereign wealth fund, Danantara, plans to sign a USD 8 billion engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contract with US engineering firm KBR Inc. to build 17 modular...