Exclusive: US locks in steep China tariff hikes, many to start Sept. 27

By David Lawder September 13, 2024

Sept 13 (Reuters) - The Biden administration on Friday locked in steep tariff hikes on Chinese imports, including a 100% duty on electric vehicles, to strengthen protections for strategic domestic industries from China's state-driven excess production capacity.

The U.S. Trade Representative's office told Reuters that many of the tariffs, including a 100% duty on Chinese EVs, 50% on solar cells and 25% on steel, aluminum, EV batteries and key minerals, would go into effect on Sept. 27.

The USTR determination, first reviewed by Reuters, showed a 50% duty on Chinese semiconductors, which now include two new categories - polysilicon used in solar panels and silicon wafers - are due to start in 2025.

Adjustments to the punitive "Section 301" tariffs on $18 billion worth of goods announced in May by President Joe Biden were minimal and disregarded auto industry pleas for lower tariffs on graphite and critical minerals needed for EV battery production because they are still too dependent on Chinese supplies.

USTR left unchanged the tariff increase to 25% from zero on lithium-ion batteries, minerals and components, with the increase for batteries for EVs taking effect Sept. 27 and those for all other devices, including laptops and cell phones, on Jan. 1, 2026.

'TOUGH, TARGETED'

Lael Brainard, the top White House economic adviser, told Reuters that the decision was made to ensure that the U.S. EV industry diversifies away from China's dominant supply chain.

She said such "tough, targeted" tariffs are needed to counteract China's state-driven subsidies and technology transfer policies that have led to over-investment and excess production capacity. But Washington is investing hundreds of billions of dollars worth of its own tax subsidies to develop domestic EV, solar and semiconductor sectors.

"The 100% tariff on electric vehicles here does reflect the very significant unfair cost advantage that Chinese electric vehicles in particular are using to dominate car markets at a breathtaking pace in other parts of the world," Brainard said. "That's not going to take place here under the vice president's and the president's leadership."

China has vowed retaliation against the "bullying" tariff hikes and argued that its EV industry's success is due to innovation, not government support.

The higher U.S. tariffs take effect as Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump are both courting voters in auto and steel producing states, trying to position themselves as tough on China ahead of the November presidential election. Trump has vowed to impose 60% tariffs on all Chinese imports.

The European Union and Canada also have announced new import tariffs on Chinese EVs, the latter matching the 100% U.S. duties.

PORT, MEDICAL RELIEF

The final tariff decision does provide some temporary relief for U.S. port operators who were facing a new 25% tariff on massive ship-to-shore cranes, an industry that China dominates with no U.S. producers.

The duty would add millions of dollars to the cost of each crane. USTR said it will allow exclusions from the tariffs for any Chinese port cranes that were ordered prior to the May 14 initial tariff announcements, as long as they are delivered by May 14, 2026.

USTR raised tariffs to 50% on medical face masks and surgical gloves, from an initially proposed 25%, but delayed their start to allow a shift to non-Chinese suppliers. The planned duty on Chinese syringes, which were in short supply during the COVID-19 pandemic, will immediately rise to 100% from a previously planned 50%, but USTR will allow a temporary exclusion for enteral syringes, used to feed infants, for a year.

The agency also said it will consider requests for tariff exclusions for five Chinese industrial machinery categories, including those for machinery for purifying or filtering liquids, industrial robots and printing machinery.

It will allow tariff exclusions for Chinese solar wafer and cell manufacturing equipment, but not for equipment used to make full solar modules⍐.

 

Boeing's US factory workers strike, halting 737 MAX production

SEATTLE, Sept 13 (Reuters) - Boeing's U.S. West Coast factory workers walked off the job early on Friday after overwhelmingly rejecting a contract deal, halting production of the planemaker's strongest-selling jet as it wrestles with severe output delays and heavy debt.

The workers' first strike since 2008 comes as the plane maker is under heavy scrutiny from U.S. regulators and customers after a door panel blew off a 737 MAX jet mid-air in January.

 A door panel blew off a 737 MAX jet mid-air in January

The mounting crises battered Boeing's stock and sparked a leadership upheaval. Boeing shares fell 4% in U.S. pre-market trading on Friday. The stock has fallen nearly 38% since the start of 2024.

New CEO Kelly Ortberg CEO Kelly Ortberg was brought in just weeks ago to restore faith in the planemaker and had proposed a deal including a pay rise of 25% over four years, far lower than the 40% workers had demanded.

Roughly 30,000 International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) members who produce Boeing's 737 MAX and other jets in the Seattle and Portland areas voted on their first full contract in 16 years, with 94.6% rejecting it and 96% favoring a strike in a two-part ballot.

"This is about respect, this is about addressing the past, and this is about fighting for our future," said Jon Holden, who headed the negotiations for Boeing's largest union, before announcing the vote result on Thursday evening.

"We strike at midnight," said the union leader who had agreed to the just-defeated deal, as members in the union hall cheered and chanted: "Strike! Strike! Strike!"

BOEING, UNION KEEN TO GET BACK TO THE TABLE

A long strike could badly hit Boeing's finances, which are already groaning due to a $60 billion debt pile.

"We remain committed to resetting our relationship with our employees and the union, and we are ready to get back to the table to reach a new agreement," the planemaker said in a statement on Thursday.

The proposed deal included a $3,000 signing bonus and a pledge to build Boeing's next commercial jet in the Seattle area, provided the program was launched within the four years of the contract.

"The key question now is on the duration of the strike given the gap between the proposed wage increase and union members request," Jefferies analyst Chloe Lemarie said in a note, adding that a long strike represents a key risk for 737 MAX production levels.

Although IAM leadership recommended last Sunday that its members accept the contract, many workers had responded angrily, arguing for the original demand and lamenting the loss of an annual bonus⍐.

 

A pedestrian walks near the British embassy in Moscow, Russia
September 13, 2024. REUTERS/Evgenia Novozhenina

Russia expels six UK diplomats as tensions rise over Ukraine missiles

Sept 13 (Reuters) - Russia's FSB security service said on Friday it had revoked the accreditation of six British diplomats in Moscow after accusing them of spying and sabotage work, signalling the Kremlin's anger at what it sees as London's vital role in helping Ukraine.

Britain's embassy in Moscow and the UK government did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment.

Russia announced the expulsions hours ahead of planned talks in Washington between British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and U.S. President Joe Biden on the next steps in supporting Ukraine, centring on whether to allow Western missiles to be used to hit targets in Russia.

President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that the West would be directly fighting with Russia if it allowed Ukraine to strike Russian territory with Western-made long-range missiles, a move he said would alter the nature and scope of the conflict.

The FSB, the main successor agency to the Soviet KGB, said it had documents showing that a British foreign office department in London responsible for Eastern Europe and Central Asia was coordinating what it called "the escalation of the political and military situation" and was tasked with ensuring Russia's strategic defeat in its war against Ukraine.

"The facts revealed give grounds to consider the activities of British diplomats sent to Moscow by the directorate as threatening the security of the Russian Federation," the FSB said in a statement.

"On the basis of documents provided by the Federal Security Service of Russia and as a response to the numerous unfriendly steps taken by London, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia, in co-operation with the agencies concerned, has terminated the accreditation of six members of the political department of the British Embassy in Moscow in whose actions signs of spying and sabotage were found," it said.

The six diplomats were named on Russian state TV, which also showed photographs of them. Surveillance footage of them was also released to Russian media, including covert video surveillance of a British diplomat meeting someone.

"The English did not take our hints about the need to stop this practice (of carrying out intelligence activities inside Russia), so we decided to expel these six to begin with," an FSB employee whose identity was hidden told the Rossiya-24 state TV channel.

The FSB said Russia would ask other British diplomats to go home early if they were found to be engaged in similar activity.

The Izvestia newspaper cited the FSB as saying that the British diplomats had recruited Russian teenagers, organised what it called provocations, and held talks in the British ambassador's Moscow residency with opposition figures.

It accused British diplomats of working with Russian activists to try to create divisions within Russian society around different ethnic groups and migrants and said many of the people involved in coordinating Britain's work on Ukraine based in London and Kyiv were working for the MI6 foreign intelligence service.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said the activities of the British embassy in Moscow had gone well beyond the Vienna diplomatic conventions.

"More importantly, it is not just a question of formality and non-compliance with declared activities, but of subversive actions aimed at damaging our people," Zakharova said on Telegram⍐

India’s Manipur - "unified command" !

India’s Manipur

• Hundreds of Meitei students took to the streets on Monday to protest against the drone attacks, calling for a change in the leadership of the state's "unified command" that oversees security.

• As protests spilled over into Tuesday, the local BJP government imposed a curfew in the Imphal Valley and surrounding districts and suspended internet services in five valley districts.

• At least 225 people have died and some 60,000 have been displaced since fighting broke out last year between the Meitei and Kuki communities over the sharing of economic benefits and quotas in government jobs and education that are given to the tribal Kukis.

• Student leader Ch Victor Singh said that protesters gave Governor Lakshman Prasad Acharya 24 hours to respond to a list of demands, which includes the removal of the top police official in the state and the security adviser for their failure to control the violence, the Press Trust of India news agency reported.

ENB

India’s Manipur imposes curfew, 

cuts internet 

Authorities in India’s northeastern state of Manipur have imposed an indefinite curfew and blocked internet access following student protests against a new surge in the ethnic violence that has rocked the region for more than a year.

On Tuesday, a notice from the state’s Home Ministry ordered all internet and mobile data services to be shut off for five days to bring the latest unrest under control.

“Some anti-social elements might use social media extensively for transmission of images, hate speech and hate video messages inciting the passions of the public,” the notice said.

A curfew was imposed in three districts of Manipur while the state government 

said that internet and mobile data services would be suspended until Sunday in 

order to curb misinformation and hate speech that could trigger more violence.

Manipur, a restive state of 3.2 million people tucked in the mountains on India’s border with Myanmar, has experienced periodic violence for more than a year between the predominantly Hindu-majority Meitei and the mainly Christian Kukis over economic benefits and government jobs and education quotas.

Despite a heavy army presence, the deadly clashes have persisted.

At least nine people have been killed and several injured in the last 10 days as armed groups launched drone attacks and rockets from homemade devices.

Hundreds of Meitei in the state capital, Imphal, defied a curfew imposed earlier on Tuesday to demand that security forces take action against Kuki fighting groups, whom they blame for the latest spate of attacks.

Student-led protests on Monday turned violent after the crowd threw stones and plastic bottles at security forces, police said in a statement, adding that protesters in another district snatched arms from police and fired at them.

On Tuesday, police lobbed tear gas at hundreds of students who attempted to march towards the Manipur governor’s house and demanded the restoration of peace in the state.

Students say they are frustrated with the government’s failure to resolve the 16-month-long conflict.

About 250 people have been killed and tens of thousands displaced after mobs rampaged through villages and torched houses since last May.

Student leader Ch Victor Singh said that protesters gave Governor Lakshman Prasad Acharya 24 hours to respond to a list of demands, which includes the removal of the top police official in the state and the security adviser for their failure to control the violence, the Press Trust of India news agency reported.

“We urge the students to engage in peaceful marches or protests and follow the law,” said IK Muivah, a senior police officer in Imphal.

He said police were investigating the recent attacks.

[Aljazeera]

Internet suspended in parts of India's Manipur as students clash with police

By Tora Agarwala September 10, 2024 Reuters

GUWAHATI, India, Sept 10 (Reuters) - Internet and mobile data services were suspended for five days and an indefinite curfew imposed in some parts of India's northeastern state of Manipur on Tuesday after student protests over continuing ethnic strife turned violent.

After a brief lull, fighting broke out between the majority Meitei and minority Kuki communities on Sept. 1 and some attacks involved the use of drones to drop explosive devices, killing civilians. Police say they suspect that the drones were used by Kuki militants, a claim denied by Kuki groups.

Hundreds of Meitei students took to the streets on Monday to protest against the drone attacks, calling for a change in the leadership of the state's "unified command" that oversees security.

Protesters threw stones and plastic bottles in front of the main gate of the state governor's residence, police said in a statement. Police used tear gas and stun grenades to disperse the crowds and about 45 protesters suffered minor injuries, a police officer said.

As protests spilled over into Tuesday, the local government imposed a curfew in the Imphal Valley and surrounding districts and suspended internet services in five valley districts.

Government and private colleges in the state, which borders Myanmar, will also be shut on Wednesday and Thursday, according to an order issued by the government.

Authorities shut down the internet in Manipur last year, in one of India's longest enforced outages.

In the Thoubal district on Monday, police said a large mob "overpowered personnel on duty", snatched arms and fired at the police.

"We are using minimum force as a preventive measure to control the crowd," a police official said, and added that the situation had been brought under control.

At least 225 people have died and some 60,000 have been displaced since fighting broke out last year between the Meitei and Kuki communities over the sharing of economic benefits and quotas in government jobs and education that are given to the tribal Kukis.

Manipur's government is led by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Modi or the BJP have not commented on the latest violence in the state⍐.

October 5th National March For Palestine

 

In October, we will mark a year since the start of Israel’s genocidal assault on the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip. We need the largest possible mobilisation to demonstrate our solidarity, demand an end to the genocide, and to call on the British government to stop arming Israel. To enable this, we previously announced a national demonstration in London on 12 October. However, following representations, including from members of the Jewish Bloc – representing the thousands of Jewish people who have taken part in every single march over the past year, we have decided to change the date to 5 October to avoid a clash with Yom Kippur.

We are immensely proud of the breadth and diversity of our movement against genocide and for Palestinian rights. We are young and old, from a wide array of racial, ethnic, and religious backgrounds, women, LGBTQ+, and none of the above. We reject all attempts to smear our peaceful protests. We march because we stand against the racist logic that some lives are less precious than others and in defiance of the racist ideology that maintains that between the river and the sea, one people – Jewish Israelis – have rights, while another people – Palestinians – have no rights at all. We stand for the universal principles of freedom and justice.

Join us on 5 October when we march in London to call for an end to the genocide in Gaza and to 76 years of colonisation, ethnic cleansing, and apartheid.

Palestine Solidarity Campaign

Palestinian Forum in Britain

Friends of Al-Aqsa

Stop the War Coalition

Muslim Association of Britain

Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament

10 Sep 2024 • by Stop the War

தேர்தல் விஞ்ஞாபனங்களில் மறைக்கப்பட்ட கதை!

 

Palestinians attend funeral for American activist ‘shot dead by Israeli troops’

Palestinians attend funeral for American activist ‘shot dead by Israeli troops’

Aysenur Ezgi Eygi (Courtesy of the Eygi family/International Solidarity Movement via AP) (AP)

By Imad Issied, Associated Press 

September 09, 2024

The Palestinian Authority has held a funeral procession for a US-Turkish dual national activist who a witness says was shot and killed by Israeli forces while demonstrating against settlements in the occupied West Bank.

Dozens of mourners — including several leading PA officials — attended the procession.

Security forces carried the body of Aysenur Ezgi Eygi which was draped in a Palestinian flag while a traditional black-and-white scarf covered her face.

The 26-year-old’s body was then placed into the back of a Palestinian ambulance.

A Palestinian honor guard carries the body of Aysenur Ezgi Eygi (Nasser Nasser/AP) (Nasser Nasser/AP)

Turkish Foreign Ministry Spokesman Oncu Keceli said Turkey was working on repatriating Ms Eygi’s remains for burial in the Aegean coastal town of Didim as per her family’s wishes, but “because the land crossing from the Palestinian territories to Jordan was closed as of Sunday, the ministry was trying to have the body flown directly to Turkey”.

US officials did not respond to a request for comment.

Jonathan Pollak, an Israeli peace activist who participated in Friday’s protest, said Israeli forces shot her on Friday in the city of Nablus while posing no threat, adding that the killing happened during a period of calm after clashes between soldiers and Palestinian protesters.

Security forces carried the body of Aysenur Ezgi Eygi which was draped in a Palestinian flag.

Mr Pollak said he then saw two Israeli soldiers mount the roof of a nearby home, train a gun in the group’s direction and fired, with one of the bullets striking Ms Eygi in the head.

The Israeli military said it was looking into reports that troops had killed a foreign national while firing at an “instigator of violent activity” in the area of the protest.

The West Bank has seen a surge of violence since the Israel-Hamas war began in October, with increasing Israeli raids, attacks by Palestinian militants on Israelis, and attacks by Israeli settlers on Palestinians⍐.

Chinese, US officials hold ‘pragmatic’ talks on trade issues

 

Chinese, US officials hold ‘pragmatic’ talks on trade issues

Wang Cong and Chen Qingrui  GT Sep 08, 2024

Chinese and US officials on Saturday held "professional, rational and pragmatic" talks about policy issues of mutual concern and specific issues raised by the business communities of the two countries, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) said, adding to increasing exchanges between officials of the two countries aimed at stabilizing bilateral ties.

The growing interactions between Chinese and US officials send a positive signal that the world's two biggest economies remain committed to maintaining communication, despite growing tension. However, to remove major hurdles for bilateral cooperation, Washington must stop its crackdown campaign against China's development, Chinese experts said on Sunday. 

According to a statement from the MOFCOM, China International Trade Representative and Vice Minister of Commerce Wang Shouwen and US Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade Marisa Lago co-chaired the second vice-ministerial meeting of the China-US commercial and trade working group on Saturday in North China's Tianjin Municipality.

"A modern China with a massive population means opportunity for the US, not a threat," Wang said.

Crucially, the Chinese side raised concerns about the US' so-called Section 301 tariffs against Chinese products, Section 301 probes into shipbuilding and other Chinese industries, overstretching of the concept of national security, sanctions on Chinese companies, restrictions on two-way investments and other trade remedy measures against China, and unfair treatment toward Chinese firms operating in the US. 

"The Chinese side opposes the use of claims such as 'overcapacity' as pretext to impose restrictive measures on trade and investment," the MOFCOM said. The two sides agreed to offer necessary support for trade and investment promotional activities, maintain communication on cross-border data flow and other areas.  

The meeting on Saturday comes as the US government reportedly plans to announce final decision for additional tariffs on a slew of Chinese products, including electric vehicles (EVs). However, amid growing opposition from US domestic businesses and industries, the US has delayed the announcement twice.

Positive signal

Despite tension between the world's two biggest economies, holding more talks on various levels is a positive signal and critical for the two sides to better understand each other's positions and avoid miscalculation, Chinese experts said. 

"Certainly, this shows the two sides can put some issues on the table and hold talks about them, which in itself is a constructive move," He Weiwen, a senior fellow from the Center for China and Globalization, told the Global Times on Sunday, noting the agreement on supporting trade and investment promotional activities offer a positive signal for businesses. 

Saturday's meeting also comes amid communication between Chinese and US officials at various levels. 

"The frequent interactions indicate positive attitude from both sides. Although such talks cannot immediately resolve all differences, they are constructive in managing and reducing tension, because the two sides can better understand each other's intensions so as to avoid misunderstanding and miscalculation," He Weiwen said. 

To address issues and remove hurdles for bilateral ties, the US must treat China's development fairly and objectively, stop politicizing trade and economic issues, stop imposing additional tariffs and other crackdown measures against Chinese businesses and products, experts said. 

"While some in the US business community are opposed to the US' policies, generally speaking, the US government's intention to suppress China is already very clear," Liu Weidong, a research fellow at the Institute of American Studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times on Sunday, pointing to the US' ever-growing list of crackdown measures against China. 

Despite lingering tension, particularly in the area of national security, there is a real need for stability and cooperation in the economic area from both sides, Liu said. "The meeting mainly showed that there is still room for cooperation between China and the US in the economic field."  

The US' approach of suppressing China while pursuing talks with China at the same time is unlikely to change in the foreseeable future, experts said. 

"We need to have a comprehensive view of the China-US relationship, in which both positive and negative elements exist. Given such duality, we need to maintain a pragmatic attitude. Dialogue is essential, but actions are also necessary," He Weiwen said⍐.