Trump’s face – to – face pressure is ineffective, and some Republican members of the House of Representatives still have reservations about the tax bill.
U.S. President Trump pressured his Republican colleagues in Congress to unite and support a comprehensive tax – cut bill, but apparently he failed to convince a few Republicans who stuck to their opinions, and they still have the possibility to block this plan that covers most of Trump’s domestic agenda. The Republican leaders in the House of Representatives said that although the prospect of the bill is uncertain, they will still move forward and plan to hold a vote this week.
No waiting for Trump! The EU and the UK announce new sanctions against Russia.
The EU and the UK announced new sanctions against Russia without waiting for Washington to join. The day before, the phone call between U.S. President Trump and Russian President Putin did not lead to a cease – fire in the Ukraine war, and the United States did not take new sanctions against Russia. The UK and the EU said that the new sanctions will target Moscow’s “shadow fleet” tankers and financial companies that help Russia avoid the impact of other sanctions. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Zakharova said that Russia will never yield to “ultimatums.”
Wang Yi’s talks with the Pakistani Foreign Minister: China welcomes and supports Pakistan and India to properly handle differences through dialogue.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi held talks with Pakistani Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Dar. Wang Yi said that the two sides should work together to create an “upgraded version” of the China – Pakistan Economic Corridor and promote cooperation in such fields as industry, agriculture, energy and minerals, human resources development, and anti – terrorism and security; China welcomes and supports Pakistan and India to properly handle differences through dialogue, achieve a comprehensive and lasting cease – fire, and seek a fundamental solution.
The People’s Bank of China: Implement a moderately loose monetary policy to strengthen support for boosting consumption and stabilizing foreign trade.
Pan Gongsheng, Governor of the People’s Bank of China, chaired a symposium on financial support for the real economy. The meeting pointed out that it is necessary to implement a moderately loose monetary policy to meet the effective financing needs of the real economy and maintain a reasonable growth in the total amount of finance; strengthen support for key areas such as scientific and technological innovation, boosting consumption, private small and micro – enterprises, and stabilizing foreign trade, and make good use of existing and incremental policies. The website of the People’s Bank of China released a press release quoting the meeting as saying that it is necessary to improve the quality and effectiveness of financial support for the real economy, support economic structure adjustment, transformation and upgrading, and the transformation of new and old kinetic energy. Strengthen the implementation and transmission of monetary policy, maintain a fair order of market competition, and promote the organic unity of financial services for the real economy and the sustainable development of banks themselves.
Fed officials expect tariffs to drive up prices, while the White House plays down the risk.
Fed officials said Tuesday that the increase in U.S. tariffs will lead to higher prices, but it is still uncertain whether the resulting inflationary shock will be short – lived or more persistent. Raphael Bostic, President of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, said that many of the effects of tariffs have not actually been reflected in the data yet, and the measures that companies have taken to cope with the impact of tariffs are almost exhausted. He currently expects that the Fed will only cut interest rates by 25 basis points this year, and it will take a few more months for the effects of the Trump administration’s policies to become clear. Stephen Miran, Chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, refuted the view that the tariffs implemented by the government so far and those that may be increased in the coming weeks will lead to significant inflation when interviewed. Miran said that the tariff policy since the government took office “has not had a real, significant impact on inflation, and the recent Consumer Price Index (CPI) report is weaker than expected.”
