Trump aims to impose tariffs on steel, aluminium imports from EU: Report

President Donald Trump intends to impose steep import duties on steel and aluminium imports from Europe starting Friday, after weeks of talks failed to reach a compromise, The Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday.

Trade officials from Washington and Brussels had continued discussions to find a solution, such as import quotas, that would convince Trump to extend the exemption for the European Union from the 25 per cent tariff on steel and 10 per cent on aluminium.

But The Wall Street Journal cited people familiar with the matter saying a last minute deal appeared unlikely, and the tariff announcement could come as early as Thursday.

Trump imposed the tariffs in March to address global oversupply of the metals, but though it was largely aimed at China it hit US allies as well.

Washington exempted Canada and Mexico from the tariffs while negotiations continue to revamp the North American Free Trade Agreement, and South Korea agreed to quotas instead of tariffs.

Trump aims to impose tariffs on steel, aluminium imports from EU: Report

President Donald Trump intends to impose steep import duties on steel and aluminium imports from Europe starting Friday, after weeks of talks failed to reach a compromise, The Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday.

Trade officials from Washington and Brussels had continued discussions to find a solution, such as import quotas, that would convince Trump to extend the exemption for the European Union from the 25 per cent tariff on steel and 10 per cent on aluminium.

But The Wall Street Journal cited people familiar with the matter saying a last minute deal appeared unlikely, and the tariff announcement could come as early as Thursday.

Trump imposed the tariffs in March to address global oversupply of the metals, but though it was largely aimed at China it hit US allies as well.

Trump's trade war and the $470 billion hit to the global economy

A full-blown trade war could cost the global economy $470 billion, according to Bloomberg Economics.
The U. S. decision to slap tariffs on steel and aluminum may just be the beginning, with President Donald Trump warning of more levies and other economies promising to respond. Cecilia Malmstrom, the European Union’s trade chief, vowed on Monday to “stand up to bullies.”

In a scenario where the U. S. implements a 10 percent levy on imports and the rest of the world retaliates, analysis by Bloomberg Economics published Monday says the global economy would be 0.5 percent smaller by 2020 than it would have been without tariffs. According to economists Jamie Murray and Tom Orlik, that’s an extreme scenario, “but it’s no longer an impossible one.”

They see the move rippling through the world economy in a number of ways, starting with faster inflation that dents U. S. consumer demand, which in turn hurts other economies’ exports. Retaliation would see the inflation shock replicated in other nations, with goods substitution hitting

Trump trade war: China's most powerful weapon may cause worldwide turmoil

As tensions escalate between the US and China, one crop is emerging as the most powerful weapon in a potential trade war: the soybean.China is the biggest buyer of American soybeans, picking up about a third of the entire US crop, which it uses largely to feed 400 million or so pigs. President Xi Jinping’s administration is studying the impact of restricting soybean imports in retaliation for US tariffs on washing machines and solar panels, people familiar with the situation told Bloomberg last week.Any China soybean curbs would directly hit farmers in the Midwestern US states that President Donald Trump needs to win re-election in 2020. Yet they would also pose a big risk for Xi: His nation is the world’s largest pork producer and consumer, and higher costs for pig farmers could increase prices of meat for his nation’s 1.3 billion citizens.

CBI detects over 300 shell companies used to divert money worth Rs 2,900 cr

A complex web of 393 shell companies used for allegedly diverting funds unscrupulously to the tune of Rs 2,900 crore has been unearthed by the CBI during its probe into such cases over the last three years.

CBI sources said the shell companies were allegedly being used by the accused to divert loan funds meant for specified purposes, creating fake invoices, and "round-tripping" of funds to evade taxes and generate black money.

Round-tripping is sending money abroad to tax havens in the guise of payments for fake imports through shell companies and bringing back that money showing it as foreign investment.

The findings of the CBI are just a tip of the iceberg as these are only those cases where the agency has been able to find legally-tenable evidence of money trail, cheating and diversion of funds to cheat the banks, said the sources not willing to the named.

The murky activities have been exposed during the CBI probe into various loan fraud cases involving 28 public sector banks and one private bank, the sources said.

Besides this, the agency is probing about 200 cases involving funds of at least Rs 30,000 crore, the sources said.

The CBI is prosecuting these companies for corruption and scheduled offences associated with it.

In addition, it will also refer these cases to other investigating agencies for action under other laws like Companies Act, Prevention of Money Laundering Act, Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Act and the Income Tax Act etc, the sources added.

The agency has not only "exposed" these shell companies but also gathered enough material which would "plug" the possibility of them being used for any further operation, the sources claimed.
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