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Inflation picks up again in June as tariffs slowly work their way through U.S. economy

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Consumer prices rose in June as President Donald Trump’s tariffs began to slowly work their way through the U.S. economy.

The consumer price index, a broad-based measure of goods and services costs, increased 0.3% on the month, putting the 12-month inflation rate at 2.7%, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Tuesday. The numbers were right in line with the Dow Jones consensus, though the annual rate is the highest since February.

Excluding volatile food and energy prices, core inflation picked up 0.2% on the month, with the annual rate moving to 2.9%, with the annual rate in line with estimates. The monthly level was slightly below the outlook for a 0.3% gain.

A worker prices produce at a grocery store in San Francisco, California, US, on Friday, June 7, 2024.David Paul Morris / Bloomberg via Getty Images

Prior to June, inflation had been on a generally downward slope for the year, with headline CPI at a 3% annual rate back in January and progressing gradually slower in the subsequent months despite fears that Trump’s trade war would drive prices higher.

While the evidence in June was mixed on how much influence tariffs had over prices, there were signs that the duties are having an impact.

Vehicle prices fell on the month, with prices on new vehicles down 0.3% and used car and trucks tumbling 0.7%. However, tariff-sensitive apparel prices increased 0.4%. Household furnishings, which also are influenced by tariffs, increased 1% for the month.

Shelter prices increased just 0.2% for the month, but the BLS said the category was still the largest contributor to the overall CPI gain. The index rose 3.8% from a year ago. Within the category, a measurement of what homeowners feel they could receive if they rented their properties increased 0.3%. However, lodging away from home slipped 2.9%.

Elsewhere, food prices increased 0.3% for the month, putting the annual gain at 3%, while energy prices reversed a loss in May and rose 0.9%, though they are still down marginally from a year ago. Medical care services were up 0.6% while transportation services edged higher by 0.2%.

With the rise in prices, inflation-adjusted hourly earnings fell 0.1% in June, the BLS said in a separate release. Real earnings increased 1% on an annual basis.

Markets largely took the inflation report in stride. Stock market indexes were mixed while Treasury yields were mostly negative.

Amid the previously muted inflation ratings, Trump has been urging the Federal Reserve to lower interest rates, which it has not done since December. The president has insisted that tariffs are not aggravating inflation, and has contended that the Fed’s refusal to ease is raising the costs the U.S. has to pay on its burgeoning debt and deficit problem.

Central bankers, led by Chair Jerome Powell, have refused to budge. They insist that the U.S. economy is in a strong enough position now that the Fed can afford to wait to see the impact tariffs will have on inflation. Trump in turn has called on Powell to resign and is certain to name someone else to the job when the chair’s term expires in May 2026.

Markets expect the Fed to stay on hold when it meets at the end of July and then cut by a quarter percentage point in September.

This post appeared first on NBC NEWS

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Trump’s modest spending cuts package survives narrow Senate vote as some Republicans break ranks

7 Mins Read

What can you get for $9.4 billion?

3G Capital recently purchased footwear giant Skechers for $9.4 billion. 

$9.4 billion could cover your rent for a pretty nice apartment in New York City for more than 40,000 years. 

Yes, it will just be you and the cockroaches by then. 

Or, you could pay the cost of every major disaster in the past four decades – ranging from Chernobyl to Fukushima to Hurricane Sandy. 

But $9.4 billion isn’t a lot when cast against nearly $7 trillion in annual spending by the federal government. 

And it’s really not much money when you consider that the U.S. is about slip into the red to the tune of $37 trillion. 

Which brings us to the Congressional plan to cancel spending. That is, a measure from Republicans and the Trump Administration to rescind spending lawmakers already appropriated in March. The House and Senate are now clawing back money lawmakers shoved out the door for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and foreign aid programs under USAID. The original proposal cut $9.4 billion. But that figure dwindled to $9 billion – after the Senate restored money for ‘PEPFAR,’ a President George W. Bush era program to combat AIDS worldwide. 

In other words, you may have a couple thousand years lopped off from your rent-controlled apartment in New York City. Of course that hinges on what Democratic mayoral nominee Zorhan Mamdani decides to do, should he win election this fall. 

Anyway, back to Congressional spending. Or ‘un-spending.’ 

The House passed the original version of the bill in June, 216-214. Flip one vote and the bill would have failed on a 215-215 tie. Then it was on to the Senate. Republicans had to summon Vice President Vance to Capitol Hill to break a logjam on two procedural votes to send the spending cancellation bill to the floor and actually launch debate. Republicans have a 53-47 advantage in the Senate. But former Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., along with Sens. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska and Susan Collins, R-Maine, voted nay – producing a 50-50 tie.

Fox is told some Senate Republicans are tiring of McConnell opposing the GOP – and President Trump – on various issues. That includes the nay votes to start debate on the spending cancellation bill as well as his vote against the confirmation of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth in January.

‘He used to be the Leader. He was always telling us we need to stick together,’ said one GOP senator who requested anonymity. ‘Now he’s off voting however he wants? How time flies.’

Note that McConnell led Senate Republicans as recently as early January.

But McConnell ultimately voted for the legislation when the Senate approved it 51-48 at 2:28 am ET Thursday morning. 

Murkowski and Collins were the only noes. The services of Vice President Vance weren’t needed due to McConnell’s aye vote and the absence of Sen. Tina Smith, D-Minn. She fell ill and was admitted to George Washington Hospital for exhaustion. 

As for the senior senator from Alaska, one GOP senator characterized it as ‘Murkowski fatigue.’

‘She always asking. She’s always wanting more,’ groused a Senate Republican.

Murkowski secured an agreement on rural hospitals in exchange for her vote in favor of the Big, Beautiful Bill earlier this month. However, Murkowski did not secure more specificity on the DOGE cuts or help with rural, public radio stations in Alaska on the spending cut plan.

‘My vote is guided by the imperative of coming from Alaskans. I have a vote that I am free to cast, with or without the support of the President. My obligation is to my constituents and to the Constitution,’ said Murkowski. ‘I don’t disagree that NPR over the years has tilted more partisan. That can be addressed. But you don’t need to gut the entire Corporation for Public Broadcasting.’ 

In a statement, Collins blasted the Trump administration for a lack of specificity about the precision of the rescissions request. Collins, who chairs the Senate Appropriations Committee in charge of the federal purse strings, also criticized the administration a few months ago for a paucity of detail in the President’s budget. 

‘The rescissions package has a big problem – nobody really knows what program reductions are in it.  That isn’t because we haven’t had time to review the bill,’ said Collins in a statement. ‘Instead, the problem is that OMB (the Office of Management and Budget) has never provided the details that would normally be part of this process.’

Collins wasn’t the only Republican senator who worried about how the administration presented the spending cut package to Congress. Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Roger Wicker, R-Miss.,  fretted about Congress ceding the power of the purse to the administration. But unlike Collins, Wicker supported the package.

‘If we do this again, please give us specific information about where the cuts will come. Let’s not make a habit of this,’ said Wicker. ‘If you come back to us again from the executive branch, give us the specific amounts in the specific programs that will be cut.’

DOGE recommended the cuts. In fact, most of the spending reductions targeted by DOGE don’t go into effect unless Congress acts. But even the $9.4 billion proved challenging to cut. 

‘We should be able to do that in our sleep. But there is looking like there’s enough opposition,’ said Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., on Fox Business.

So to court votes, GOP leaders salvaged $400 million for PEPFAR.

‘There was a lot of interest among our members in doing something on the PEPFAR issue,’ said Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D. ‘You’re still talking about a $9 billion rescissions package – even with that small modification.’

The aim to silence public broadcasting buoyed some Republicans.

‘North Dakota Public Radio – about 26% of their budget is federal funding. To me, that’s more of an indictment than it is a need,’ said Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-N.D. 

But back to the $9 billion. It’s a fraction of one-tenth of one percent of all federal funding. And DOGE recommended more than a trillion dollars in cuts.

‘What does this say for the party if it can’t even pass this bill, this piddling amount of money?’ yours truly asked Sen. John Kennedy, R-La.

‘I think we’re going to lose a lot of credibility. And we should,’ replied Kennedy.

But the House needed to sync up with the Senate since it changed the bill – stripping the cut for AIDS funding. House conservatives weren’t pleased that the Senate was jamming them again – just two weeks after major renovations to the House version of the Big, Beautiful Bill. But they accepted their fate.

‘It’s disappointing that we’re $37 trillion in debt. This to me was low-hanging fruit,’ said Rep. Eric Burlison, R-Mo. ‘At the end of the day, I’ll take a base hit, right? It’s better than nothing.’

White House Budget Director Russ Vought is expected to send other spending cancellation requests to Congress in the coming months. The aim is to target deeper spending reductions recommended by DOGE. 

But it doesn’t auger well for future rescissions bills if it’s this much of a battle to trim $9 trillion.

What can you get for that much money? For Republicans, it’s not much. 

Republicans were swinging for the fences with spending cuts.

But in the political box score, this is recorded as just a base hit.

This post appeared first on FOX NEWS

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UK rate cuts: August and November projected by ING amid easing job market

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A significant upward revision to May’s payroll figures, coupled with Wednesday’s hotter-than-expected inflation data, is easing the pressure on the Bank of England to implement rapid rate cuts. 

While cuts are still anticipated, they are now projected for August and November, ING Group said in its latest report.

Contrary to last month’s UK jobs data, which indicated the largest recorded fall in payrolled employee numbers since 2014 (excluding the pandemic’s peak) during May, this month’s data disproves that occurrence.

May’s decline, initially reported as 109,000, was revised to a more moderate drop of 25,000, aligning with the six-month trend.

June experienced a slightly larger fall of 41,000, which is expected to be revised upwards later.

This trend isn’t entirely unexpected, echoing what we observed in the March data, according to ING.

“And a sharp decline in worker numbers would be totally inconsistent with the official redundancy numbers we get each week from the government, which have shown no discernible increase over the past few months,” James Smith, developed markets economist, UK, at ING, said in the report.

Private sector

“That said, these payroll numbers, which are one of the few reliable ways of looking at the jobs market right now, have been falling for seven out of the past eight months,” Smith said. 

Since October, employment has decreased by nearly a percentage point according to this metric. 

Source: ING Research

Over half of these net job losses occurred in the hospitality or wholesale/retail sectors.

These sectors are characterised by being labor-intensive and lower-paid, making them more susceptible to the National Insurance increase implemented in April.

“The fact that these sectors are dominated by small businesses may explain why it’s not showing up in the redundancy data, given that firms aren’t required to file a notice to the government if they have fewer than 20 staff on site,” Smith added. 

While the job market is undeniably cooling, and even more so than in other major economies according to comparable vacancy data from Indeed, the latest figures indicate that it is not spiraling downwards, a trend typically observed during recessions.

Outlook on rate cuts

The trend suggests pressure on wage growth should continue to ease this year, ING said. 

Private sector pay growth has decreased, slowing from 6% at the beginning of the year to 4.9% annually.

Source: ING Research

A more reassuring figure for the Bank, the three-month annualised rate—a stronger indicator of recent momentum—stands at 3.7%.

This aligns with findings from the Bank of England’s “Decision Maker Panel” survey in recent months.

“For now though, the combination of less worrisome jobs data and hotter inflation figures yesterday suggests the bar for the Bank of England accelerating cuts is still high,” Smith said. 

We expect cuts in August and November, and two further cuts next year.

The post UK rate cuts: August and November projected by ING amid easing job market appeared first on Invezz

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Apple, MP Materials Ink US$500 Million Deal to Build US Rare Earth Magnet Supply Chain

4 Mins Read

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) and MP Materials (NYSE:MP) have signed a US$500 million supply agreement to manufacture rare earth magnets in the US from 100 percent recycled materials.

Under the deal, MP will deliver recycled magnets starting in 2027 to support “hundreds of millions” of Apple devices, including iPhones, iPads and MacBooks. Announced on Tuesday (July 15), the deal marks a major step forward in Apple’s plan to build more sustainable domestic supply chains for its core technologies.

“American innovation drives everything we do at Apple, and we’re proud to deepen our investment in the US economy,” Apple CEO Tim Cook said in a press release. “Rare earth materials are essential for making advanced technology, and this partnership will help strengthen the supply of these vital materials here in the United States.”

The two companies spent nearly five years developing recycling technologies capable of meeting Apple’s stringent performance and environmental standards. Now, MP will build a commercial-scale recycling line at its Mountain Pass site to process magnet scrap and recovered components from decommissioned products.

To fulfill Apple’s requirements, MP will also expand its Fort Worth, Texas, facility — dubbed “Independence” — creating dozens of new roles in manufacturing, as well as research and development.

“We are proud to partner with Apple to launch MP’s recycling platform and scale up our magnetics business,” said MP CEO James Litinsky in a separate Tuesday press release. “This collaboration deepens our vertical integration, strengthens supply chain resilience, and reinforces America’s industrial capacity at a pivotal moment.”

MP’s share price soared 20 percent following the news, pushing its market cap to near US$10 billion.

Analysts view the deal as a validation of MP’s strategy to build a fully domestic rare earth magnet supply chain and as a boost to national efforts to reduce reliance on China, which controls roughly 70 percent of global rare earths supply.

MP currently operates the only active US rare earths mine at Mountain Pass. Rare earth magnets produced from its materials power devices ranging from consumer electronics and electric vehicles to wind turbines and defense systems.

MP teams up with defense department

Just days before the Apple deal, MP secured a US$400 million preferred equity investment from the US Department of Defense (DoD), making the Pentagon its largest shareholder.

The funds will support a second magnet manufacturing plant — called the 10X facility — which is slated for commissioning in 2028 and will increase MP’s annual magnet output to 10,000 metric tons.

The government has also committed to purchasing 100 percent of the magnets produced at the new plant for 10 years, guaranteeing a floor price of US$110 per kilogram for neodymium-praseodymium oxide.

If market prices fall below that level, the DoD will pay the difference. Once production begins, the government will also receive 30 percent of any profits above the guaranteed price.

With operations spanning mining, separation, metallization and magnet production, MP is currently the only US firm with end-to-end capabilities for rare earth magnet manufacturing. The company is also expecting a US$150 million Pentagon loan to enhance its heavy rare earths separation capabilities at Mountain Pass.

MP’s Independence facility in Texas, alongside the upcoming 10X plant, anchors its downstream production strategy. The recycled feedstock used for Apple’s magnets will be sourced from post-industrial waste and retired electronics — reducing environmental impact while reinforcing resource resilience.

Apple, for its part, is pressing ahead with its US$500 billion US manufacturing initiative.

Earlier this year, it announced plans for a new artificial intelligence server factory in Texas and signaled continued interest in reshoring key parts of its production ecosystem.

Securities Disclosure: I, Giann Liguid, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

This post appeared first on investingnews.com

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Jerome Powell asks inspector general to review Fed’s $2.5B renovation project

3 Mins Read

The Federal Reserve has brought in its inspector general to review a building expansion that has drawn fire from the White House, according to a source familiar with the issue.

Fed Chair Jerome Powell asked for the review, following blistering criticism of the project, initially pegged at $2.5 billion but hit by cost overruns that have brought accusations from President Donald Trump and other administration officials of “fundamental mismanagement.”

“The idea that the Fed could print money and then spend $2.5 billion on a building without real congressional oversight, it didn’t occur to the people that framed the Federal Reserve Act,” Kevin Hassett, director of the National Economic Council, said Monday on CNBC’s “Squawk Box.” “We’ve got a real problem of oversight and excess spending.”

The inspector general serves the Fed and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and is responsible for looking for fraud, waste and abuse. Powell’s request was reported first by Axios.

In a letter posted to social media last week, Russell Vought, head of the Office of Management and Budget, also slammed the project, which involves two of the Fed’s three Washington, D.C., buildings including its main headquarters known as the Eccles Building.

Vought, during a CNBC interview Friday, likened the building to the Palace of Versailles in France and charged that Powell was guilty of “fiscal mismanagement” at the Fed.

For its part, the central bank has posted a detailed frequently asked questions page on its site, highlighting key details and explaining why some of the specifications were changed or “scaled back or eliminated” at least in part due to higher-than-expected construction costs.

“The project also remediates safety issues by removing hazardous materials such as asbestos and lead and will bring the buildings up to modern code,” the page explains. “While periodic work has been done to keep the buildings occupiable, neither building has seen a comprehensive renovation since they were constructed.”

The Fed is not a taxpayer-funded institution and is therefore not under the OMB’s supervision. It has worked with the National Capital Planning Commission in Washington on the project, but also noted on the FAQ page that it “does not regard any of those changes as warranting further review.”

In separate comments, former Fed Governor Kevin Warsh, speaking Sunday on Fox News, called the renovation costs “outrageous” and said it was more evidence the central bank “has lost its way.” Warsh is considered a strong contender to succeed Powell when the latter’s term as chair expires in May 2026.

This post appeared first on NBC NEWS

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LEE ZELDIN: Trump’s EPA clearing the regulatory path for America to dominate the global AI revolution

4 Mins Read

The global race to harness the power of artificial intelligence (AI) has begun. President Donald Trump got it right from the start when he issued an executive order in January to strengthen America’s AI – the next great technological forefront. 

From Day One as Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) administrator, it was clear that EPA would have a major hand in permitting reform to cut down barriers that have acted as a roadblock so we can bolster the growth of AI and make America the AI capital of the world. 

In fact, it’s an endeavor so important, it is a core pillar of my Powering the Great American Comeback initiative. 

Those looking to invest in and develop AI should be able to do so in the U.S., while we work to ensure data centers and related facilities can be powered and operated in a clean manner with American-made energy.

Let’s put this into perspective. The global AI manufacturing market is valued at about $7 billion, but it’s expected to explode to $48 billion by 2030. Already industries across every sector are integrating AI into their operations, and in order for this growth to continue, AI needs massive data centers, and data centers need electricity that is always on. Lots of it.

Power demand for data centers that support AI, which only use 3% to 4% of U.S. electricity, will eat up nearly 10% of U.S. electricity supply in 10 years according to the Energy Information Administration. To support this rapid growth, states need to be able to build more baseload power generation, and that’s where EPA comes in. 

EPA wants to increase certainty for owner-operators in the permitting process, making it clear what kind of permits are needed for new and modified projects.

Policies inherited from the Biden administration have been criticized by many as making EPA a brick wall that impedes the growth of the AI industry. 

In addition, much of current Clean Air Act (CAA) requirements for building data centers dates back to the 1990s, when technology was practically prehistoric compared to modern advancements. These rules require companies to install pollution control equipment when they build new facilities or make a change that increases emissions significantly.

The digital revolution has ushered in new needs and new industries which demand new permitting rules that help, not hamper development.

Under President Trump’s leadership, the permitting reform we are looking to undertake, if finalized, will help clear the way for data center and AI development across the U.S., while ensuring that human health and the environment are protected. 

If a power company wanted to restart a plant that had been out of service to meet increased grid demand, under the Biden EPA they had to go through the entire permitting process all over again. 

Under our upcoming proposed rules, if finalized, utilities would be allowed to restart plants much faster, especially in times of emergencies like storm recovery. Anyone who has lost power during or after a weather event knows how critical it is to get back on the grid. 

Through the CAA permitting process, EPA will seek to address the minimum requirements for public participation when it comes to minor emitters so the protest of a few does not unnecessarily thwart progress for all Americans. 

Our permitting reforms will also help expedite construction of essential power generation and industrial facilities. EPA will be a partner to state, local and Tribal air agencies instead of a hindrance.

At EPA, we are also working on redefining preconstruction, which would, if finalized, only require a company to obtain an air permit when the company actually breaks ground.

A company looking to build an industrial facility or a power plant, should be able to build what it can before obtaining an emissions permit. For example, companies could install cement pads or conduct other construction activities that aren’t related to regulated air emissions.

Other countries are racing to be number one. America’s AI leadership depends on our ability to build the infrastructure that powers innovation.

This post appeared first on FOX NEWS

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UK’s FCA fines Barclays £42 million for ‘significant’ financial crime lapses

3 Mins Read

UK financial regulators have imposed a hefty £42 million ($56 million) fine on Barclays Plc for significant failures in identifying and managing financial crime risks related to two of its clients.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) detailed the lapses in a statement on Wednesday, highlighting how the banking giant facilitated the movement of funds linked to criminal activity.

The majority of the fine is directly linked to Barclays’ inadequate management of money laundering risks associated with a client named Stunt & Co.

According to the FCA’s statement, over the course of a year, Stunt & Co. received a substantial £46.8 million from Fowler Oldfield, a company that was later found to be at the heart of one of the United Kingdom’s largest-ever money-laundering trials.

The regulator’s findings were damning. The FCA stated that “Barclays failed to properly consider the money laundering risks associated with the firm even after receiving information from law enforcement about suspected money laundering through Fowler Oldfield, and after learning that the police had raided both firms.”

The watchdog concluded that “by providing ongoing banking services to Stunt & Co, Barclays facilitated the movement of funds linked to financial crime,” a severe breach of its regulatory obligations.

Lapses in due diligence: the WealthTek account

In a separate instance, Barclays was found to have failed in its due diligence when opening a money account for another client, WealthTek.

The FCA noted that Barclays failed to properly gather sufficient information about WealthTek before onboarding the company. Crucially, WealthTek was not permitted by the FCA to hold client money at the time Barclays provided it with the account.

The regulator pointed out that a basic but critical step was missed. “One simple check it could have done was to look at the Financial Services Register before opening the account,” the FCA said.

Without the right information about WealthTek and how the account would be used, there was an increased risk of misappropriation of client money or money laundering.

Barclays’ response

In an effort to mitigate the harm caused, Barclays has agreed to make a voluntary payment of £6.3 million to the clients of WealthTek who have experienced a shortfall in the money they have been able to reclaim from the now-defunct firm.

This proactive step, according to the FCA’s statement, helped Barclays secure a reduction in the ultimate fine it faced from the regulator.

In response to the fine, a spokesperson for Barclays stated that the bank “remains deeply committed to the fight against financial crime and fraud,” adding that the issues were all centered around historical money laundering activity.

The representative affirmed that the lender “fully cooperated with both investigations and has further strengthened its financial crime and other control capabilities.”

The post UK’s FCA fines Barclays £42 million for ‘significant’ financial crime lapses appeared first on Invezz

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Seabed Mining Heats Up as Lockheed Martin Courts Interest in Pacific Licenses

5 Mins Read

Defense manufacturer Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) is in early talks with undersea mining companies to open access to two dormant seabed exploration licenses it has held since the 1980s

The move signals a renewed US push to tap the ocean floor for critical minerals.

The licenses, which cover swaths of the eastern Pacific seabed in international waters, were awarded to Lockheed by US regulators decades ago during a previous wave of interest in deep-sea mining.

Though the projects never progressed to extraction, they are now gaining fresh attention as nations and corporations seek alternative sources of key minerals used in electric vehicles, defense technologies, and clean energy systems.

“We are in early stages of conversations with several companies about giving them access to our licences and allowing them to process those materials,” Frank St. John, Lockheed’s chief operating officer, told the Financial Times.

While St. John declined to quantify the potential value of the deposits, he added that interested parties have “done the homework and determined there is value there.”

Lockheed’s seabed licenses could represent a strategic foothold in a mineral-rich region, containing polymetallic nodules that can hold commercially viable concentrations of key metals.

The timing also coincides with recent executive action from the White House.

USPresident Donald Trump, who returned to office in January, signed an executive order in April asserting US rights to issue mining licenses in international waters and encouraging the stockpiling of seabed metals as strategic resources.

The order bypasses ongoing negotiations at the International Seabed Authority (ISA), the UN agency tasked with regulating deep-sea mining, and instead relies on the 1980 US Deep Seabed Hard Mineral Resources Act as the legal foundation.

It emphasizes the need to “establish the US as a global leader in seabed mineral exploration and development both within and beyond national jurisdiction.” While the US has not ratified the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea — the treaty from which the ISA derives its authority — it has signed a 1994 agreement recognizing the treaty’s seabed provisions and operates its own permitting system through the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Lockheed said it welcomes the renewed policy attention. “We believe the US has the opportunity to develop a gold standard for commercial recovery of nodules in an environmentally responsible manner.”

Court upholds TMC disclosures on deep-dea mining risks

Lockheed is not alone in navigating the legal uncertainties surrounding seabed mining.

The Metals Company (TMC) (NASDAQ:TMC), a deep-sea mining startup, recently survived a shareholder lawsuit alleging it had misled investors about the environmental impacts and financial backing of its operations.

US District Judge Eric Komitee dismissed the claims, ruling that the company’s comparisons to conventional mining methods were not misleading, even if deep-sea mining still carries environmental risks.

“It is eminently possible that (1) deep-sea mining causes meaningful environmental harm, and yet (2) such harm is significantly less than the harm caused by existing methods,” the judge wrote.

TMC had disclosed in filings that deep-sea mining could result in damage and that the regulatory path remained uncertain. Its legal win may encourage others — like Lockheed — to proceed more openly with their seabed plans, albeit cautiously.

Deep-sea mining industry cautiously awakens

The growing pursuit of potentially extracting resources from the world’s oceans comes at a critical juncture for the seabed-mining industry. For decades, a de facto moratorium on mining in international waters has been in place due to regulatory uncertainty and environmental concerns.

The ISA has issued more than 30 exploratory permits, but has yet to finalize commercial extraction rules. That delay has prompted frustration from some parties, while drawing calls from others for a pause or outright ban.

Currently, the ISA is holding key assemblies in Jamaica to hash out the long-awaited mining code to regulate commercial activity on the ocean floor with provisions for environmental safeguards, royalties, and tax obligations.

But a growing number of countries — 37 at last count — have pushed for a precautionary pause, citing risks to deep-sea ecosystems that remain largely uncharted. Scientists warn that mining these habitats could cause irreversible damage.

In 2023, Lockheed appeared to step back from the sector by selling two UK-sponsored exploration licenses in the Pacific, a move interpreted by analysts as signaling reduced confidence in deep-sea mining.

However, its retained US licenses suggest it never fully exited the space.

The Trump administration’s executive order marks the most assertive US step yet to undermine the ISA’s multilateral approach, raising fears among diplomats that the agency may lose legitimacy.

China, which has also invested heavily in seabed mining, responded sharply to the move.

“The US authorization violates international law and harms the overall interests of the international community,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said earlier this year.

Securities Disclosure: I, Giann Liguid, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

This post appeared first on investingnews.com

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Some Walmart garment orders from Bangladesh on hold due to U.S. tariff threat

3 Mins Read

LONDON/NEW YORK, July 11 (Reuters) – Suppliers to Walmart WMT.N have delayed or put on hold some orders from garment manufacturers in Bangladesh, according to three factory owners and correspondence from a supplier seen by Reuters, as U.S. President Donald Trump’s threat of a 35% tariff on the textile hub disrupts business.

Bangladesh is the third-largest exporter of apparel to the United States, and it relies on the garment sector for 80% of its export earnings and 10% of its GDP. The factory owners all said they expected orders to fall if the August 1 tariffs go into effect, as they are unable to absorb that 35% rate.

Iqbal Hossain, managing director of garment manufacturer Patriot Eco Apparel Ltd, told Reuters an order for nearly 1 million swim shorts for Walmart was put on hold on Thursday due to the tariff threat.

“As we discussed please hold all below Spring season orders we are discussing here due to heavy Tariff % imposed for USA imports,” Faruk Saikat, assistant merchandising manager at Classic Fashion, wrote in an email to Hossain and others seen by Reuters. Classic Fashion is a supplier and buying agent that places orders for retailers.

“As per our management instruction we are holding Bangladesh production for time being and IN case Tariff issues settled then we will continue as we planned here.”

The hold was not decided by Walmart, Saikat told Reuters, but by Classic Fashion itself.

Walmart did not respond to a request for comment.

Bangladesh is currently in talks with the United States in Washington to try to negotiate a lower tariff. Trump in recent days has revived threats of higher levies on numerous nations.

“If the 35% tariff remains for Bangladesh, that will be very tough to sustain, honestly speaking, and there will not be as many orders as we have now,” said Mohiuddin Rubel, managing director at jeans manufacturer Denim Expert Ltd in Dhaka.

Rubel, whose company produces jeans for H&M HMb.ST and other retailers, said he expects clients will ask him to absorb part of the tariff, but added this would not be possible financially. Manufacturers have already absorbed part of the blanket 10% tariff imposed by the U.S. on April 2.

“Only probably the big, big companies can a little bit sustain (tariffs) but not the small and medium companies,” he said.

Retailers have front-loaded orders since Trump returned to the White House, anticipating higher tariffs. Jeans maker Levi’s LEVI.N, which imports from Bangladesh, said on Thursday it has 60% of the inventory it needs for the rest of 2025.

U.S. clothing imports from Bangladesh totaled $3.38 billion in the first five months of 2025, up 21% from the year-earlier period, according to U.S. International Trade Commission data.

Another Dhaka-based garment factory owner said an importer with whom he was negotiating a spring 2026 order of trousers for Walmart asked him on Thursday to wait a week before the order would be confirmed due to the tariff risk.

Hossain said he may look for more orders from European clients to make up for lost orders if the U.S. 35% tariff gets implemented, even if he has to cut prices to stimulate demand.

(Reuters reporting by Helen Reid in London and Siddharth Cavale in New York; Editing by David Gaffen and Matthew Lewis)

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In Politics

Huckabee demands Israel ‘aggressively investigate’ murder of Palestinian-American killed in ‘terrorist act’

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The U.S. ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, on Tuesday called on Israeli authorities to ‘aggressively investigate’ the killing of Sayfollah Musallet, a 20-year-old Palestinian-American who was reportedly beaten to death by a gang of extremist settlers in the West Bank village of Sinjil on Friday.

‘We have asked Israel to aggressively investigate the murder of Saif Mussallet, an American citizen who was visiting family in Sinjil when he was beaten to death in the West Bank,’ Huckabee wrote on X. ‘There must be accountability for this criminal and terrorist act. Saif was only 20 years old.’

According to the family, Musallet was visiting the West Bank from Tampa, Florida, to reconnect with relatives and visit family-owned farmland. 

‘This is an unimaginable nightmare and injustice that no family should ever have to face,’ the family said in a statement. ‘We demand the U.S. State Department lead an immediate investigation and hold the Israeli settlers who killed Saif accountable for their crimes.’

Israeli military officials said the confrontation began when Palestinians threw rocks at settlers, lightly injuring two. IDF forces were deployed to the area and used non-lethal crowd control methods, the army said.

So far, no Israeli suspects have been arrested in connection with the killings. Two Israeli minors detained on Friday night for suspected involvement in public disturbances were later released to house arrest. A reserve soldier questioned by the military police over the shooting during the incident was also released.

The Palestinian Health Ministry said Musallet was fatally beaten during an attack by settlers in the area. Another man, 23-year-old Mohammed al-Shalabi, was shot in the chest and also killed during the same incident. 

Sources in the Israeli police told Haaretz newspaper that the lack of an autopsy and the fact that the bodies were not transferred to Israeli authorities may complicate the investigation.

A military court also released Abdullah Hamida, a Palestinian resident arrested during the settler raid, criticizing police conduct. During the hearing, the police representative admitted he was unaware that any Palestinians had been killed, and incorrectly claimed the only wounded were settlers.

The State Department acknowledged awareness of the incident but declined further comment, Reuters reports, citing ‘respect for the privacy of the family and loved ones.’

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