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Worldnews

Trumps New Tariffs: Who Is Hit, Whats Next, How Is The World Responding?

Trump sent tariff letters to 14 countries including South Korea, Japan, Malaysia and Bangladesh. United States President Donald Trump on Monday extended a pause on his sweeping reciprocal tariffs to August 1, while also sending “tariff letters” to some countries, warning they would be subject to new tariff rates if they failed to reach a trade deal with the US by the new deadline. Here is what is going on with Trump’s reciprocal tariffs, and what his tariff letters say: On Monday, the White House released a fact sheet saying Trump signed an executive order extending the tariff pause. The pause was originally scheduled to end on Wednesday, July 9, for the “Liberation Day” tariffs he initially announced on April 2. However, Trump imposed a 90-day pause on the steep reciprocal tariffs on April 9. During this period, most of the US’s trading partners faced a flat 10 percent tariff. The White House listed 14 countries to which Trump sent tariff letters on Monday. These countries face these new tariff rates if they fail to reach a trade deal with the US by August 1. The renewed tariff rates for these countries announced on Monday are: For South Africa, South Korea, Thailand and Indonesia, these tariff rates are identical to what Trump had announced on April 2. Malaysia and Japan face a 25 percent tariff, up 1 percent from the 24 percent tariff announced on April 2. But most of the countries – Kazakhstan, Laos, Myanmar, Tunisia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bangladesh, Serbia and Cambodia – targeted by Trump on Monday now face lower tariffs than they did on April 2. Trump posted the tariff letters he sent to leaders of the 14 countries on his Truth Social platform on Monday. In these letters, he expressed concerns about the trade imbalance between the US and the countries the letters are addressed to. Trump said companies that move their production to the US would be exempt from tariffs. But he also held out a threat: If countries impose retaliatory tariffs, they could face still higher tariffs from the US. And he held out the prospect of a change in tariff rates. Trump ended all his letters with: “These Tariffs may be modified, upward or downward, depending on our relationship with your Country. You will never be disappointed with The United States of America.” On Sunday, Trump also threatened the BRICS bloc with additional tariffs after the bloc, during its 17th summit in Brazil, indirectly criticised the US’s trade war, as well as its recent military attack on Iran. “Any Country aligning themselves with the Anti-American policies of BRICS, will be charged an ADDITIONAL 10% Tariff,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. BRICS is named for its founding members, Brazil, Russia, India and China, and South Africa, which joined a year later. But it has grown to include other countries, such as Indonesia, Egypt, Iran, Ethiopia and the United Arab Emirates. During the 90-day pause, the US brokered deals with two of its trading partners: the United Kingdom and Vietnam. The first deal was secured on May 8, between the US and the UK, setting a 10 percent tariff on UK exports to the US. The deal states that the first 100,000 vehicles imported into the US from the UK each year will face a 10 percent tariff, down from the 27.5 percent imposed earlier.  Additional vehicles imported each year will face a 25 percent tariff. On July 2, Trump announced that he had secured a deal with Vietnam, which now faces a minimum 20 percent tariff in exchange for opening its market up to the US. Transshipments from third countries through Vietnam will face a 40 percent levy, while US products will not face any tariff in Vietnam. Specific details for this deal are unclear. On April 2, Trump had announced a 46 percent tariff on Vietnam. When the pause was first announced, Trump administration officials had hinted that Washington was seeking a greater number of trade deals. “We’re going to run 90 deals in 90 days. It’s possible,” White House trade adviser Peter Navarro told Fox Business Network back in April. Between then and now, Trump expressed pessimism about potential trade deals with some of the US partners. “We’ve dealt with Japan. I’m not sure if we’re gonna make a deal, I doubt it, with Japan,” Trump told reporters on July 1. “They and others are so spoiled from having ripped us off for 30, 40 years that it’s really hard for them to make a deal.” Trump administration officials have indicated that stop-gap deals with India and potentially the European Union could be imminent. Japan and South Korea have said on Tuesday that they would try to reach deals with Trump to reduce the effect of US tariffs on their economies. Japan’s chief trade negotiator and economy minister, Ryosei Akazawa, told a news conference on Tuesday that he is seeking concessions for Japan’s automobile industry but would not compromise on its agriculture sector. This is similar to the stance Japan has maintained when it comes to trade negotiations with the US. “There’s no point striking a deal with the US without an agreement on automobile tariffs,” Akazawa said. The agriculture sector has traditionally been a significant voting bloc for Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba‘s Liberal Democratic Party, and elections to Japan’s upper house in parliament are scheduled for July 20. Akazawa said he had spoken with US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and they had agreed to continue negotiations. “The two countries must garner trust through sincere dialogue, and reach common ground step by step. Through such a process, my job as negotiator is to agree on a full package as soon as possible,” Akazawa said. The US is Japan’s largest export market, accounting for 19.1 percent of total Japanese exports in 2023, according to the Observatory of Economic Complexity (OEC). Japanese automobile exports to the US alone contributed about 1 percent to Japan’s gross domestic product (GDP) in 2023. South Korea said it too would step up trade talks with the US. “We also plan to use it as an opportunity to improve domestic systems and regulations to resolve the trade deficit that is a major interest of the United States,” South Korea’s Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said in a statement on Tuesday. By contrast, South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa was more critical of the 30 percent tariff imposed by Trump on his country, deeming it “unilateral” in a statement published on the presidency’s X account on Tuesday. “South Africa maintains that the 30 percent reciprocal tariff is not an accurate representation of available trade data,” the statement said. “In our interpretation of the available trade data, the average tariff imported goods entering South Africa stands at 7.6 percent.” The statement added that 77 percent of US goods enter the South African market under a zero percent duty. “South Africa will continue with its diplomatic efforts towards a more balanced and mutually beneficial trade relationship with the United States. We welcome the commitment by the US government, that the 30 percent tariff is subject to modification at the back of the conclusion of our negotiations with the United States.” Tensions between the US and South Africa have surged in recent months. During a meeting with Ramaphosa in the White House in late May, Trump accused South Africa of “genocide” against white Afrikaners, a claim that was denied by Ramaphosa and that has been widely discredited. Earlier in May, a flight of white South Africans flew into the US as part of a relocation plan devised by the Trump administration. US stocks, based on the three major indices, fell on Monday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by 0.94 percent; S&P 500, which tracks the stock performance of 500 leading US companies, fell by 0.79 percent; and the Nasdaq Composite saw a 0.92 percent drop. The upcoming dates, significant to the trade war, to look out for are: Follow Al Jazeera English:...

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Worldnews

Iran Rejects Trumps Claims It Asked For Relaunch Of Nuclear Talks

US President Donald Trump and his Middle East envoy both claimed the talks could happen next week, following the Iranian president’s comments on being open to dialogue. Iran says it has not requested talks with the United States over its nuclear programme, as claimed by US President Donald Trump. “No request for a meeting has been made on our side to the American side,” Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said on Tuesday in comments carried by the country’s Tasnim news agency. The clarification came a day after Trump, during a dinner in the White House with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, said Iran was actively seeking negotiations on a new nuclear deal following the 12-day war with Israel last month, which the US also joined. “We have scheduled Iran talks. They want to talk,” Trump told reporters. “They want to work something out. They are very different now than they were two weeks ago.” Trump’s Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff – also present during the dinner – had even said the meeting could take place in the next week or so. Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi wrote in an opinion piece published in the Financial Times newspaper on Tuesday that Tehran remains interested in diplomacy but “we have good reason to have doubts about further dialogue”. On June 13, Israel launched an unprecedented bombing campaign on Iran that targeted military and nuclear sites as well as residential areas, killing senior military commanders and nuclear scientists. Iranian authorities say the Israeli strikes killed at least 1,060 people. Israel says retaliatory drone and missile fire by Iran killed at least 28 people. The US joined the war, bombing Iranian nuclear sites at Fordow, Isfahan and Natanz, just days before a planned meeting between Tehran and Washington, DC on reviving the nuclear talks. Trump then went on to announce a ceasefire between Israel and Iran. The negotiations, aimed at limiting Iran’s nuclear programme in exchange for sanctions relief, would replace the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) – a deal signed with the US, China, Russia, France, Germany, the United Kingdom and the European Union – which Trump ditched during his first term in office. Floating the prospect of more talks on Monday, Trump also dangled the prospect of lifting punitive US sanctions on Iran, imposed after the US withdrawal from JCPOA, with further restrictions piled on this year. This month, the US issued a new wave of sanctions against Iranian oil exports, the first penalties against Tehran’s energy sector since the US-backed ceasefire ended the war between Israel and Iran. “I would love to be able to, at the right time, take those sanctions off,” said Trump. Towards the end of last month, Trump said he was working on “the possible removal of sanctions”, but dropped his efforts after Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei claimed “victory” in the Iran-Israel war. Tehran’s denial regarding talks with the US came after Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian told US journalist Tucker Carlson that Iran had “no problem” resuming talks so long as trust could be rebuilt between the two sides. The interview, aired on Monday, provoked a backlash in Iran, with the critics accusing Pezeshkian of being “too soft” in the wake of last month’s attacks on the country. “Have you forgotten that these same Americans, together with the Zionists, used the negotiations to buy time and prepare for the attack?” said an editorial in the hardline Kayhan newspaper. The conservative Javan daily also took aim at Pezeshkian, saying his remarks appeared “a little too soft”. In contrast, the reformist Ham Mihan newspaper praised Pezeshkian’s “positive approach”. Follow Al Jazeera English:...

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Healthwatch

Celiac Disease: Exploring Four Myths

An expert shines light on common misconceptions about this genetic autoimmune disease triggered by gluten.

Myth # 1: Celiac disease is usually diagnosed at a young age

Myth #2: Celiac disease only affects the gut

Myth # 3: Celiac disease versus gluten intolerance

Celiac disease is diagnosed with blood tests that look for specific antibodies. If antibodies are present, a definitive diagnosis requires an intestinal biopsy to look for signs of damage that characterize the condition.

Non-celiac gluten sensitivity does not trigger antibodies or cause intestinal damage. Yet some people with this problem say they also experience brain fog, trouble concentrating, muscle aches and pain, and fatigue after eating gluten-containing foods.

One possibility is sugarlike molecules known as FODMAPs, which are found in many foods — including wheat. Short for fermentable oligosaccharides, disaccharides, monosaccharides, and polyols, gas and bloating can occur when gut bacteria feed on FODMAPs.

Another possibility is an allergy to wheat, which can cause symptoms such as swelling, itching, or irritation of the mouth and throat after eating wheat. Other symptoms include a skin rash, stuffy nose, and headache, as well as cramps, nausea, and vomiting. Some people may develop a life-threating allergic reaction known as anaphylaxis.

Myth #4: A gluten-free diet always relieves the symptoms and signs of celiac disease

Enzymes that break down gluten, which people could take alongside gluten-containing foods. "It's a similar concept to the lactase pills taken by people who are lactose intolerant to help them digest dairy products," says Dr. Kelly.

Dampening the immune response to gluten by inhibiting an enzyme called tissue transglutaminase that makes gluten more potent as an antigen.

Reprogramming the immune response to prevent the body from reacting to gluten.

profile/5170OIG3.jpeg.webp

Healthwatch

Celiac Disease: Exploring Four Myths

An expert shines light on common misconceptions about this genetic autoimmune disease triggered by gluten.

Myth # 1: Celiac disease is usually diagnosed at a young age

Myth #2: Celiac disease only affects the gut

Myth # 3: Celiac disease versus gluten intolerance

Celiac disease is diagnosed with blood tests that look for specific antibodies. If antibodies are present, a definitive diagnosis requires an intestinal biopsy to look for signs of damage that characterize the condition.

Non-celiac gluten sensitivity does not trigger antibodies or cause intestinal damage. Yet some people with this problem say they also experience brain fog, trouble concentrating, muscle aches and pain, and fatigue after eating gluten-containing foods.

One possibility is sugarlike molecules known as FODMAPs, which are found in many foods — including wheat. Short for fermentable oligosaccharides, disaccharides, monosaccharides, and polyols, gas and bloating can occur when gut bacteria feed on FODMAPs.

Another possibility is an allergy to wheat, which can cause symptoms such as swelling, itching, or irritation of the mouth and throat after eating wheat. Other symptoms include a skin rash, stuffy nose, and headache, as well as cramps, nausea, and vomiting. Some people may develop a life-threating allergic reaction known as anaphylaxis.

Myth #4: A gluten-free diet always relieves the symptoms and signs of celiac disease

Enzymes that break down gluten, which people could take alongside gluten-containing foods. "It's a similar concept to the lactase pills taken by people who are lactose intolerant to help them digest dairy products," says Dr. Kelly.

Dampening the immune response to gluten by inhibiting an enzyme called tissue transglutaminase that makes gluten more potent as an antigen.

Reprogramming the immune response to prevent the body from reacting to gluten.