President Donald Trump announced a new peace pact between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo, which he linked to US access to critical minerals. At a meeting in Washington, Trump claimed his administration had "succeeded where many others have failed," calling this the eighth war he has ended in less than a year. However, the reality on the ground is far more complicated, as fighting in eastern Congo continues despite the signing of the previous peace agreement. The agreement is not just about a ceasefire; it also concerns the mineral trade. The agreement grants US companies access...
A U.S. federal appeals court has upheld President Trump's sweeping "Liberation Day" tariffs, allowing them to remain in effect while it reviews a lower court's ruling that blocked them. The lower court had found that Trump exceeded his authority. These tariffs affect most U.S. trading partners, including Canada and China. Although the appeals court has yet to decide whether the tariffs comply with the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), it has temporarily suspended the lower court's ruling. On May 28, the U.S. Court of International Trade ruled that only Congress has the...
The World Bank lowered its global growth forecasts for 2025 to 2.3%, from 2.7% projected in January, which would be the weakest in 17 years, outside of the recessions in 2009 and 2020. For 2026, global growth is seen at 2.4%, also below 2.7% previous expected. The bank said global growth is slowing due to a substantial rise in trade barriers and the pervasive effects of an uncertain global policy environment. It also added that if trade disputes were resolved with agreements that halve tariffs relative to their levels in late May, 2025, global growth could be stronger by about 0.2 pp on...
The U.S. Federal Reserve will keep interest rates on hold for at least another couple of months, according to most economists polled by Reuters, as risks linger that inflation may resurge due to President Donald Trump's tariff policies. With most trade negotiations incomplete as the July 9 deadline for a 90-day pause on tariffs announced in April approaches, forecasters have been reluctant to change their already fragile economic outlook. Rising concerns about U.S. debt and a deluge of bond issuance fuelled by a sweeping tax cut bill passed by the House of Representatives, but not the...
Russia is ramping up production of drones, enabling massive daily attacks on Ukrainian cities as its forces slowly advance on the battlefield and Moscow pressures Kyiv to accept its peace terms. The Kremlin unleashed deadly destruction on the capital Kyiv and the Black Sea city of Odesa overnight, firing 315 drones and seven missiles, according to Ukraine. That followed a record 479 drones the night before, which topped the record set on June 1. Moscow has been relentlessly ramping up drone attacks since the start of the year, when the scale of the attacks in February hit a daily record of...
U.S. President Donald Trump's top trade officials are meeting their Chinese counterparts in London on Monday for talks aimed at resolving an ongoing trade dispute between the world's two largest economies. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer are representing the U.S. China's Foreign Ministry said Saturday that Vice Premier He Lifeng, Beijing's lead trade negotiator, will be in the U.K. between June 8-13, and that a meeting of the "China-U.S. economic and trade consultation mechanism" would take place. National...
Asian stock markets fell in unison on Thursday, following Wall Street's decline. A brief rally in tech stocks led by Nvidia quickly faded, prompting investors to turn away from riskier assets like...
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...
President Donald Trump announced a new peace pact between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo, which he linked to US access to critical minerals. At a meeting in Washington, Trump claimed...