US House of Representatives Passes Trump’s Comprehensive Tax – Cut Bill, Sends it to Senate for Consideration
The Republican – controlled US House of Representatives passed a comprehensive tax and spending bill that will implement most of President Trump’s policy agenda and increase the US debt by trillions of dollars. The bill was passed by a one – vote margin and will fulfill many of Trump’s populist campaign promises, providing new tax breaks for tips and car loans, and increasing spending on military and border enforcement. The bill will now be sent to the Republican – controlled Senate for consideration. Several senators said they will seek substantial amendments to the bill during the debate that could last for weeks.
Fed’s Waller Still Thinks Rate Cuts May be Possible Later This Year – Fox Business Channel
Federal Reserve Governor Waller said that he still thinks there is a possibility of rate cuts later this year. Current market expectations indicate that investors are worried that the current Republican budget plan is not strong enough in dealing with the deficit. Waller said that the key to the outlook depends on the final result of the Trump administration’s tariff policy. If these tariffs are at the lower end of the range (compared to some of the more severe levels when President Trump first provoked the global trade war), then the outlook still seems solid.
US Labor Market Stabilizes in Mid – May, May Slow Down Due to Tariffs in the Future
As companies hoard labor, the number of initial jobless claims in the United States decreased last week, indicating that employment growth remained stable in May, but it has become more difficult for the unemployed to find new jobs. The weekly initial jobless claims report released by the Department of Labor shows that given the economic uncertainty brought about by Trump’s policies, employers are reluctant to increase the number of employees, and the number of unemployed has approached the level at the end of 2021. In the week ending May 17th, the number of initial claims for state unemployment benefits decreased by 2,000 to 227,000 after seasonal adjustment. The Reuters survey predicted 230,000.
ECB Meeting Minutes Show that Inflation is Basically Under Control, but Maintaining Stability in Turbulent Times is Still Crucial
The meeting minutes released by the European Central Bank show that when cutting interest rates in April, policymakers said that the inflation shock in the euro area had been basically controlled. Even though the global trade war may push up prices later, showing stability in turbulent times is still crucial. The meeting minutes stated: “Members expressed stronger confidence that inflation will return to the target level in the medium term and that the fight against the inflation shock is coming to an end. Therefore, the disinflationary forces are likely to dominate in the short term.” Some policymakers believe that the global trade war may eventually push up prices, but most policymakers believe that in the face of excessive volatility in financial markets, cutting interest rates in advance can bring much – needed stability.
China lodges solemn representations with EU over its sanctions list against Russia including Chinese enterprises
The European Union included Chinese enterprises in the list of new sanctions against Russia. The spokesperson of the Chinese Mission to the European Union said that China expressed strong dissatisfaction and firm opposition to the EU’s unjust sanctions against Chinese enterprises and has lodged solemn representations with the EU. The EU’s sanctions list includes six Chinese enterprises: three provide high – tech machine tools and three provide key components such as drones.
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