Usa Financial News

S Jaishankar on Wednesday said nations will continue to use tariffs as they compete for global standing, with the past decade witnessing a greater «weaponisation» of economic measures by governments worldwide. The minister's comments come amid a raging global debate on US President Donald Trump's pledge to levy reciprocal tariffs on many countries, including India, from April 2. «Tariffs, sanctions, I think, whether we would like it or not, they are a reality, countries use them. In fact, if one looks at the last decade, I would say we have seen a much greater weaponisation of pretty much any kind of capability or any kind of economic activity. It could be financial flows, energy supplies or technology,» said Jaishankar, speaking at the 'Commissars and Capitalists: Politics, Business, and New World Order' session at the Raisina Dialogue conference. He was responding to a question on whether trade barriers, tariffs and tech sanctions or restrictions have any place in India's foreign policy. «This is a reality of the world… You are fighting for your comprehensive national power, of which business makes a very important contribution,» he said. «I think today, the lines dividing different domains have eroded. If you see in international relations, I think it's a less restrained culture today than it was a decade ago,» he said, adding, «This is a reality of the world. You fight for your business, because you are fighting for your employment; you are fighting for your comprehensive national power, of which business makes a very important contribution.»

Canada’s economy may have ended 2024 on a high note, but that could all be undone as world trade is upended by Donald Trump’s tariff war, according to a new report by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

February’s consumer price index report took economists by surprise as the rate of inflation accelerated on a year-over-year basis to 2.6 per cent in February, outpacing analyst estimates for a 2.2 per cent increase.

Some Canadian companies are contemplating moving their operations to the United States as a long-term solution to get around Donald Trump‘s tariff threats and protect the viability of their businesses, according to a new survey by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP Canada.

Donald Trump has publicly proclaimed that the United States ‘doesn’t need anything’ Canada has, but Americans can’t seem to get enough of this “export.”

But his tariffs could have the opposite effect on the company's suppliers. Trump has imposed a few tariffs so far, but he says more are coming in just a few weeks. That threat has unnerved the aerospace industry, of which Boeing is one of the largest companies. Duties on aluminum and steel, two of the most important raw materials used in aircraft, are expected to raise manufacturing costs. But the industry is far more concerned by tariffs that take effect on goods from Canada and Mexico next month, which could disrupt the highly integrated North American supply chain. «These tariffs are particularly fraught for an industry like aerospace that has been duty-free for decades,» said Bruce Hirsh, a trade policy expert at Capitol Counsel, a lobbying firm in Washington, which has aerospace clients. «Parts are coming from everywhere.» Many companies have been able to avoid costly cross-border tariffs under a short-term reprieve for products covered by a North American trade agreement that Trump negotiated in his first term. But that deal expires in April.

Indian stocks. Foreign investors have briefly reversed outflows against a much longer trend of dumping overpriced Indian equities. India has been the outlier for quite some time in emerging Asian markets, where inflows are gaining strength.

US Federal Reserve is set to announce its decision on interest rates on Wednesday, March 19. The announcement will be made against the backdrop of US President Donald Trump’s tariff wars and cuts to government funding. A lot of speculation persists over whether the Federal Reserve will keep interest rates unchanged. Wall Street seemed upbeat before Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell’s press conference, with 60 per cent of broad S&P 500 firms trading higher on Wednesday morning. Over two-thirds of stocks in the Dow index were in the green, CNN reported.

Microsoft Corp., the biggest backer of Sam Altman’s OpenAI, and BlackRock Inc., which has an executive on the artificial intelligence startup’s board, are joining forces with one of its chief rivals. Abu Dhabi’s MGX, Microsoft and BlackRock said Elon Musk’s xAI is joining their effort to build $30 billion worth of data centers and other artificial intelligence infrastructure. The AI chipmaker Nvidia Corp., which was already named as a technical adviser to the group when it was announced last year, is also formally joining, according to a statement on Wednesday that didn’t detail member commitments.

Vladimir Putin scored a coup by discussing with Donald Trump in highly anticipated phone talks everything from improving bilateral ties to Iran and even hockey matches, but stopping well short of agreeing any peace path to end the war in Ukraine, analysts say. During the call on Tuesday, Putin refused a full ceasefire agreement proposed by Washington but focused instead on reviving Russian-American cooperation that has been frozen since Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. The very fact such talks took place was an achievement for the Kremlin, said Ekaterina Schulmann, a Russian political scientist based in Berlin. «The two superpowers are discussing the fate of the world and the future of humanity,» she told AFP, summing up Moscow's thinking. «It is a great achievement for Russia which reproduces a Soviet-era narrative without being the Soviet Union.»

National Investigation Agency (NIA) is probing foreign links to terror acts, human trafficking and terror financing emanating from foreign soil, Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai informed the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday. Referring to the NIA (Amendment) Act, 2019, he said the agency has been empowered to investigate terrorist acts on Indian missions abroad as part of the dispensation’s commitment to zero-tolerance towards terrorism. In reply to supplementary questions during Question Hour in the Upper House, Rai said during the investigation of cases in the last year, NIA has found that the accused were based outside India’s borders.

The latest filings with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) revealed that insiders have disposed of more than $100 million worth of Tesla shares since early February, reported ABC News. The selloffs have raised questions about whether the actions are an indicator of bad news to come for the company or merely a normal course of business, according to the report.

Barron Trump's birthday coincides with New York University's spring break, which has led many to wonder how the towering youngster will spend his day.

The conversation lasted approximately an hour, and Trump indicated that further details would be provided soon. “Just completed a very good telephone call with President Zelenskyy of Ukraine,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform. “Much of the discussion was based on the call made yesterday with President Putin in order to align both Russia and Ukraine in terms of their requests and needs. We are very much on track.” Trump also confirmed that Secretary of State Marco Rubio and National Security Adviser Michael Waltz would release a statement outlining the points discussed. On Tuesday, Trump spoke with Putin about a possible partial ceasefire. Putin agreed not to target energy infrastructure but refused to back a full 30-day ceasefire.

income-driven repayment plans used by millions of student loan borrowers. The American Federation of Teachers in a lawsuit filed in federal court in Washington late Monday took aim at the Education Department's decision last month to halt borrowers' ability to enroll in the affordable repayment plans. The department made the change after a federal appeals court ruled that Democratic President Joe Biden's administration lacked authority to pursue a student debt relief program designed to lower monthly payments for millions of borrowers and speed up loan forgiveness for some. The court's decision, issued after Biden left office, had set back his administration's efforts to address what his White House described as a broken student debt system that can financially burden Americans seeking higher education. The Biden-era Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) Plan provided more generous terms than past income-based repayment plans, with monthly payments dropping for some borrowers to as low as $0. It also provided debt forgiveness for some smaller loans in as few as 10 years.

Justice Department lawyers said in a court filing that Washington-based U.S. District Judge James Boasberg was improperly intruding on presidential discretion to handle sensitive diplomatic and national security matters. Boasberg has issued an order temporarily banning the administration from removing migrants from the United States under the 18th century law that Trump invoked in proceeding with the deportations. Trump invoked the law, the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, to declare that the Venezuelan prison gang Tren de Aragua was conducting irregular warfare against the United States, subjecting its alleged members to deportation without a final order from an immigration judge, as generally required. «The pending questions are grave encroachments on core aspects of absolute and unreviewable Executive Branch authority,» the Justice Department lawyers wrote. The filing on Wednesday came a day after U.S. Chief Justice John Roberts rebuked Trump for calling for the judge's impeachment.

step down as Tesla's CEO. Investors are concerned that his multiple commitments, particularly his government role, are harming the company.

Tagore Baal Niketan rejoiced alongside millions as Indian-origin astronaut Sunita Williams returned to Earth after 286 days in space. The school is also renowned for nurturing Kalpana Chawla, the first Indian-origin woman in space. The first Indian to achieve this feat was Rakesh Sharma, who journeyed aboard the Russian spacecraft Soyuz T-11 in 1984. Born in Karnal in 1962, Kalpana Chawla tragically lost her life on February 1, 2003, when the Columbia spacecraft disintegrated over Texas and Louisiana, killing all seven astronauts on board. Chawla completed her schooling at Tagore Baal Niketan and earned a Bachelor of Science in Aeronautical Engineering from Punjab Engineering College, Chandigarh, in 1982. She moved to the United States later that year. The school, with a history spanning over six decades, has honored her legacy by dedicating an auditorium in her memory. Its principal, Dr Rajan Lamba said, «Everyone was happy and relieved at the safe return of Sunita William and fellow astronauts… Due to ongoing school Board exams, we could not hold celebrations in the school, but everyone was happy including students, teachers.» He reminisced about the Columbia Space Shuttle, recalling vivid memories and a series of letters exchanged between the school's founder and Chawla before her mission.