Latest News
-
US and Canadian trade teams met again as the deadline for tariffs looms
On Friday, top trade negotiators of Canada and the U.S. met for a third consecutive day in Washington to try to reach a deal before new American tariffs that are expected to take effect on Saturday. The deal could be a sign of detente after 18 months of tensions that began when Donald Trump imposed tariffs against key Canadian imports, prompting Ottawa's retaliation with a series of countermeasures. Trump has said he would impose a 50% tariff on $20 billion of Canadian goods on Saturday at 12:01 am EDT (0401 GMT), if there is no agreement. Dominic LeBlanc - Canada's Minister of Trade with the U.S. - did not address reporters when he arrived for the meeting. LeBlanc and Greer met for over three hours on Thursday. They said that the two sides are "very close" in reaching a deal. Mark Carney may find it difficult to convince Canadians and the powerful premiers of the ten provinces to accept a deal. Leger's opinion poll on Wednesday showed that 56% Canadians wanted Carney to not make any further concessions. Sources claim that an agreement will reduce the top line tariff on Canadian built vehicles from 25% to 15% and cut tariffs on Canadian aluminum and steel to 25%. Ontario, which is a major producer of steel and aluminum, wants to scrap the tariffs. Carney has called on the major provinces to lift their bans on selling U.S. alcoholic beverages, which are a major irritation for Washington. Wab Kinew said that Trump is "very weak", and Canada should take advantage. "I believe we have the upper hand. They're on their heels right now. He told reporters that they were coming to us for a bargain. Canada is only a tenth of the size of the U.S. and exports 70% of its goods south of the border. This makes it "uniquely susceptible" to U.S. punitive trade measures. JD Vance, the U.S. vice president, mocked Carney on Wednesday, saying that he "comes into and puffs out his chest?and tells me, 'I am going to out-tough Donald Trump.'" In a recording obtained by The Canadian Press, Vance is heard saying: "It's funny because Carney presents it as some sort of victory for Canada, when they fundamentally, like... climb down on many issues." Vance spoke at a fundraising event in Southampton, New York. (Written by David Ljunggren, edited by Katharine J. Jackson, Philippa A. Fletcher and Sanjeev M. Miglani).
-
Global stock markets close out a difficult week as oil and bond yields remain high
The global stock market was headed for a largely lower week last Friday as the strain on the global bond markets did not show any signs of easing and the diplomatic deadlock over the Gulf pushed oil prices up to a one-month high. The yields on U.S. government bonds resumed their rise after the surprise intervention by the Treasury on Wednesday. This was barely a relief from selling that had been sparked primarily by fears of inflation and fiscal pressures. The increase came as?U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent suggested that the government could increase its repurchases and also floated the idea for fiscal consolidation. Analysts doubted he would be able to find the necessary spending cuts in order to reduce a budget gap of over 6% of GDP. Interest charges alone for this year totaled $1.2 trillion while U.S. government debt just passed $40 trillion. The dollar is now heading towards the three-month lows it hit on Thursday. It has fallen almost 1% against major currencies this week. "The initial Treasury buyback was remarkable, because it came as a total surprise. But the question is: 'Is this meaningful enough to make a lasting?impact'?" Christian Hantel is a portfolio manager for Vontobel. We could still see the market trying to test whether they are ready to increase the $4 billion that they announced previously. It could be an exciting couple of days. The 30-year bond yield in the U.S. increased by 3 basis points to 5.266%, while the 10-year bond yield was up 3.2 basis points at 4.73%. The 30-year bond yield increased by 3 basis points to 5.266%, while the yield on the 10-year bond rose by 3.2 basis point to 4.73%. Selling on Friday was heaviest in the 2-year Treasury, which was up 5 basis points for the ?day and 9 bps for the week at 4.236% following a stronger-than-expected U.S. purchasing managers' report. The markets assume that 5.3% in 30-year bond yields will be a painful threshold for Treasury. This is similar to what 160 yen has been for Japanese policymakers. Cost of Borrowing The global debt costs are rising as tech giants borrow heavily to fund AI capital expenditures, causing the discount on corporate profits to rise and stock valuations to be challenged. The Nikkei was also feeling the strain, as it?slipped by 0.3%. This brought the losses for the entire week to nearly 4%. It is the?biggest drop weekly since mid-July. Stock markets in Europe have made some early gains. STOXX 600 was still on track for its largest weekly drop since early July. It fell nearly 1%. MSCI's global stock index fell slightly. Wall Street has seen some relief from the recent earnings slump. Major indexes were up by nearly 1% as of midday on Friday. However, they still fell by about 2% for the entire week. Next week, when Nvidia releases its quarterly report, the AI industry will be put to the test. Much depends on Nvidia's outlook for data center revenue and infrastructure demand. Walmart's Thursday slide of 9% was a clear example of what happens when expectations are not met. WAR AND DEBASEMENT Bessent made headlines by extending President Donald Trump's promise of economic war against Iran. He said that the U.S. will impose "the strongest sanctions in history" to the country. The threats dimmed further hopes for a deal to fully open the Strait of Hormuz. Brent crude reached a peak of $95 per barrel in a month, before profit taking set in. Brent futures rose around 0.5% to $94 per barrel. This is up over 5% for the week. U.S. crude climbed 0.4% to $84. The dollar has been losing ground in currency markets this week, as investors are concerned that the ever-growing U.S. government debt and policy uncertainty will cause the currency to lose its purchasing power, driving them towards scarce assets such as gold. Yellow metal rose 1.45% to $4,583 per ounce, its highest price in nearly three months. Dollar index fell almost 0.9% on the week to 98.74, after hitting a three-month low overnight. The euro was up by 1.0% for the week, at $1.1686, having touched a 14-week high. The last time it traded was around $1.1689. This is off the session highs. The dollar's biggest weekly drop since January was 1.7% against the Swiss franc. It is now 0.7995 Francs. Some investors have also been influenced by concerns over the rising U.S. national debt to look at alternatives, such as bitcoin. Bitcoin has typically benefitted from diversification away from U.S.-based assets. Bitcoin reached a two-month high on Friday, and last was up almost 6% to $76,446, which is a good start for a 20% rise in a week. This would be its biggest gain in over 2-1/2 years. Jonas Goltermann is the chief markets economist of Capital Economics. He said that "the dollar has come under renewed pressure due in part to a resurgent narrative about 'debasement.' While we still think that such concerns are overblown and that an overall stronger dollar is likely to be the result of the economic backdrop in the months to come, the continued surprise from U.S. Policymakers could well matter more over the short term. The dollar dropped around 0.2% to 158.79 Japanese yen.
-
Johannesburg pays its debts to the state utility and avoids being cut off from power
The electricity department announced on Friday that South Africa's largest city, Johannesburg, had settled an overdue debt of?5.25 billion Rand ($328 million) to the state-owned utility Eskom. The settlement was reached after a government-led process of mediation to resolve a long-running dispute over billing that threatened to cut off electricity supply to the economic center of 'Africa's largest economy. Johannesburg is expected to be one of the most hotly contested battlegrounds in the November 4 municipal elections. The African National Congress is the leader of the coalition that governs the city on a national scale. After seeing its vote share decline at successive elections, the ANC faces pressure to 'improve service delivery' and turn around struggling'municipalities. Business leaders have pledged 'to help improve the state' of Johannesburg's dilapidated infrastructure and ailing finances, saying that the city's condition risks undermining efforts to boost economic growth.
-
Goldman: Options demand could push gold above $4,900 forecast
Goldman Sachs said in a Friday note that the price of gold could surpass its $4,900 forecast for the year. This is due to a surge in demand for bullish options on gold. The bank said that a further increase in Western investor demand combined with strong central bank purchases could push bullion towards key strike levels where dealer hedging can mechanically accelerate the price movements. Goldman stated that "gold call?options demand has increased sharply amid renewed global macro-policy hedges, creating an automatic price amplifier on both the upside as well as?downside." Options have a double-edged effect. Dealers who sold call options could be forced to purchase bullion in order to hedge their exposure as gold climbs towards key strike levels. This would amplify the rally. Goldman warned that the opposite is also true: a drop in price could cause dealers to remove hedges and deepen any sale. Bank of America said that gold's rise to $4,600 per ounce was driven by a decline in expectations for a U.S. Federal Reserve interest rate hike this September, after the Fed's policy hold on July and weaker jobs and inflation data. Goldman stated that this has?revived speculative positions on COMEX, and boosted demand for exchange-traded funds. The note stated that "a renewed increase in Fed-hike expectation could also trigger dealer 'hedge unwindings and produce an even sharper correction than usual." Spot gold is on track for its third consecutive weekly gain. It rose nearly 5% this week, reaching a three-month-high and breaking through the 200-day moving avg.
-
US and Canadian trade teams will meet again as deadline for tariffs looms
The top trade negotiators of Canada and the U.S. are meeting for the third time in Washington to finalize the trade agreement before the new American tariffs that will be implemented on Saturday. The deal could be a sign of detente after 18 months of tensions that began when Donald Trump imposed tariffs against key Canadian imports, prompting Ottawa's retaliation with a series of counter-measures. If a deal cannot be reached, Trump has said he will impose new tariffs of 50% on Canadian goods worth $20 billion at 12:01 am EDT (0401 GMT) on Saturday. Dominic LeBlanc is Canada's Minister responsible for Trade with the U.S. LeBlanc and Greer met for over three hours on Thursday. They said that the two sides were "very near" a deal but also added that there was still more work to be done. Mark Carney, the Prime Minister of Canada and the influential premiers from the 10 provinces may find it difficult to sell a deal to Canadians. Leger's opinion poll on Wednesday showed that 56% Canadians wanted Carney to not make any further concessions. According to sources, an agreement will likely reduce the top-line tax on Canadian-built cars to 15% (from 25%) and to halve tariffs for Canadian steel and aluminium to 25%. Ontario, which is a major producer of steel and aluminum, wants the tariffs to be scrapped. Carney has called on the major provinces to lift their bans on selling U.S. alcohol. This is a major irritation for Washington. Wab Kinew said, on Thursday, that Trump was "very weakened" and Canada should benefit. "I believe we have the upper hand - they are back on their heels at this moment. He told reporters that they were coming to us with a deal. "I think we should fight," said the reporter. Canada is only a tenth the size of the United States, but it exports 70% of its goods south of the border. This makes Canada particularly vulnerable to U.S. punitive trade measures. JD Vance, the U.S. vice president, mocked Carney on Wednesday, saying that he "comes into and puffs out his chest and says, I'm going, 'like, to out-tough Donald Trump.'" Vance is heard in a recording by the Canadian Press saying, "It's funny because Carney presents it as some sort of victory for Canada, when they fundamentally, like... climb down on many issues". Vance spoke at a Southampton, New York fundraiser. (Writing and editing by Katharine Fletcher, Philippa Jackson, David Ljunggren)
-
Officials say that Israeli forces killed a Palestinian teenager after settlers entered a West Bank village.
Officials?said that an Israeli guarding a group?of?Jewish settlements who entered Palestinian village land on Friday fired at Palestinians who confronted the settlers, killing a 17-year old and wounding a man 70 years of age. The incident in the occupied West Bank town of Sa'ir was the latest of what Israeli military calls "unauthorized hikes" of settlers who invade the outer reaches of villages, which Palestinians see as an act intimidation. In a press release, the military stated that the Palestinian villagers "threw stones" at the settlers who were "present in the area without prior authorization". It was also reported that some of the settlers were injured. The military reported that "a security official opened fire on the area and there were Palestinian casualties" as a result. Palestinian officials confirmed that a 17-year old boy was killed after being shot in his chest. The 70-year old's condition was not immediately known. Sa'ir is a village located near Hebron, in the southern West Bank under civil control of the Palestinian Authority. Israelis are not allowed to enter this area. In the 'West Bank, which is home to three million Palestinians, and about 500,000 settlers there has been a rise of settler violence, and seizures of land and resources. International condemnation was expressed this week for a siege of homes by settlers in the village of Qusra. Most countries and U.N. agencies consider the settlements to be illegal in international law. Israel denies?this and cites biblical connections to the area. Palestinian officials reported that Israeli troops killed a Palestinian overnight in Jenin, north of Jerusalem, after raiding the man's home. According to the military, soldiers shot him when he attempted to stab at them. It added that no troops were injured. Reporting by Rami AYYUB and Ali SAWAFTA Editing by Gareth Jones
-
FTSE Russell upgrades Hoa Phat Vingroup and Vietcombank to Vietnam's Emerging Market
FTSE Russell, a global index provider, published a list on Friday of 'Vietnamese Securities eligible for inclusion in their global equities benchmark indexes. This is a major'step before the reclassification of a southeastern Asian nation - due to take place next month. The move is made ahead of Vietnam being upgraded to emerging market status in September by the index provider. FTSE Russell estimates that this could result in up to $6 billion in passive capital flowing into the country's stock markets. FTSE Russell has named?27 Vietnamese companies eligible for inclusion in its FTSE Global All Cap Index. Vietcombank and Vingroup, a state-controlled lender, and Vinhomes, its property developer unit, were classified as large-caps, whereas BIDV, Hoa Phat, and VPBank, were mid-caps;?all of the six were listed on the FTSE All-World Index. All 21 stocks, including FPT (a technology company), were small-caps. The?notice listed 90 Vietnamese microcap stocks for FTSE Total Cap. It ?did not disclose individual ?constituent weights, free-float-adjusted investability factors or estimates of reclassification-related investment flows. FTSE Russell announced in April that it would add the country in stages to its global equity indices, adding 10% in September, another 20% in March and 35% in June and September next year. Vietnam is on the list of countries that are being considered for inclusion in the category which includes China and India. When the upgrade is completed, Vietnam will account for approximately 0.034% of FTSE Global All Cap Index, 0.02% FTSE All World Index, 0.329% FTSE Emerging All Cap Index, and 0.192% FTSE Emerging Index. Official data shows that foreign investors have sold Vietnamese stocks this year. The net outflows of the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange totaled approximately $3.61 billion. This follows $5?billion net outflows for 2025. The benchmark VN-Index for Vietnam closed Friday at 1,768.95, up by 1.95%. According to LSEG, the index has fallen 2.82% this year. (Reporting and editing by Toby Chopra; Phuong Nguyen)
-
Global stock markets set to fall the most since mid-July, as bond yields and oil remain high
On?Friday global stocks were on track for their largest weekly drop since mid-July, as tensions in global bond markets continued to persist, and diplomatic deadlocks in the Gulf pushed oil prices up to a one-month-high, keeping inflation risks at the forefront. The yields on U.S. government bonds resumed their rise after Wednesday's?"surprise" intervention by the Treasury. This was a response to fears?about rising inflation and fiscal pressures. The increase came as U.S. Treasury secretary Scott Bessent suggested he could further boost the government's repurchases and floated ideas of fiscal consolidation. Analysts doubted he would be able to find the necessary spending cuts in order to reduce a budget gap of over 6% of GDP. Interest charges alone for this year are $1.2 trillion and the U.S. national debt has just crossed $40 trillion. The dollar is now heading towards the three-month lows it hit on Thursday. It has fallen almost 1% against major currencies this week. "The initial Treasury buyback was remarkable because it was a total surprise. But the question is: Is this meaningful enough to make a lasting impact?" Christian Hantel is a portfolio manager for Vontobel. We could still see the market trying to test whether they are ready to increase the $4 billion that they announced previously. It could be a very interesting few days. The 30-year bond yield in the U.S. was around 5.25%, and the 10-year was slightly higher at 4.70%. Markets believe that 5.30% for 30-year bond rates is a threshold of pain for Treasury. This is similar to what 160 yen has become for Japanese policymakers. As tech giants borrow heavily to fund AI capital expenditure, the cost of debt is rising globally. This also increases the discount on corporate profits and challenges stock valuations. Nikkei was a victim of the strain, as it dropped 0.3%. This brings the losses for this week to almost 4%. It is on course for the largest weekly decline since mid-July. South Korea and Taiwan were both up, but down for the week. Stock markets in Europe have made some early gains. STOXX 600 was on track for its largest weekly drop since early July. It is down around 1%. MSCI's global stock index is poised to experience its largest weekly fall since mid-July. Wall Street has seen a positive response to a strong earnings season. S&P futures are up 0.53% and Nasdaq Futures are up 0.8%. Next week, when Nvidia releases its quarterly report, the AI industry will be put to the test. Much depends on Nvidia's outlook for data center revenue and infrastructure demand. Walmart's Thursday slide of 9% was a clear example of what happens when expectations are not met. WAR AND DEBASEMENT Bessent made headlines by extending President Donald Trump's promise of economic war against Iran. He said the U.S. will impose "the strongest sanctions in history" to the country. Brent crude reached a peak of $95 per barrel in a month, before profit-taking took hold. Brent futures rose around 0.5% to $94 per barrel. This is up over 5% on the week. U.S. crude oil increased 0.4% to $85. The dollar has been losing ground in the currency markets this week, amid concerns that the ever-growing U.S. government debt and policy uncertainty will reduce the purchasing power of its currency, driving investors towards scarce assets such as gold. The yellow metal reached its highest level since almost three months, with a 1.45% increase at $4,583 per ounce. Dollar index fell 0.9% on the week to 98.74, after hitting a three-month low overnight. The euro was up by 1.0% for the week, at $1.1686, having touched a 14-week high. The last time it traded was around $1.1689. This is off the session highs. The dollar's biggest weekly drop since January was 1.7% against the Swiss franc. It is now 0.7995 Francs. Some investors have also been influenced by concerns over the rising U.S. national debt to look at alternatives, such as bitcoin. Bitcoin has historically benefited from diversification away from U.S.-based assets. Bitcoin reached a two-month high last Friday, and was up almost 6% to $76,446, on course for a weekly gain of 20%. This would be its biggest gain in over 2-1/2 years. The dollar is under renewed pressure due in part to a resurgent "debasement" narrative, said Jonas Goltermann. Chief markets economist at Capital Economics. "We continue to believe that such concerns are?overblown and that the overall economic backdrop will point towards a'stronger dollar in the coming months. However, we think continued surprises from U.S. Policymakers could well be more important?in the near term." The dollar last fell around 0.2% to 158.79 Japanese yen. A survey of the manufacturing industry showed that new orders were up in July, as import costs rose. Both strengthened the case for an interest rate increase in September by the Bank of Japan. The markets are priced in for a quarter point rise to 1.25 percent and would like to see a more aggressive and faster tightening of policy.
Who is Trump's target?
Donald Trump, the U.S. president, has continued to criticize and take action against corporate executives, institutions and corporations, even months after assuming office. His actions, from new export deals to freezing university grants, have changed the status quo in the United States between government, law and academia.
Trump has publicly criticised a number of influential individuals and entities.
The CEO of GUNVOR will step down
Torbjorn Tornqvist, CEO of global commodity trading company Gunvor, will be
step down
Sell his entire shareholding through a management buyout. This comes after the U.S. labeled the company the "Kremlin’s puppet" because of its previous Russian connections.
On Monday, the firm announced that Americas director Gary Pedersen will take over the role. Pedersen was hired just last year by the company.
Last month, the U.S. Treasury sank Gunvor's
biggest ever deal
The acquisition of international assets owned by the Russian oil giant Lukoil, sanctioned by the United States.
Pedersen’s promotion coincides Gunvor’s efforts to improve its relations with the U.S.
Hold active discussions
In recent weeks, investors have invested in U.S. oil-and-gas producing assets.
GOLDMAN SACHS
Goldman's Economic Research arm published a report in August that stated U.S. Consumers had absorbed 22 percent of tariff costs up to June. Their share could increase to 67%, if recent levies continue the same pattern.
Trump stated shortly after that "David Solomon, and Goldman Sachs, refuse to give credit when credit is due." In a post made on Truth Social.
Trump claimed that "mostly, companies and governments, some of which are foreign, pick up the tab". Solomon's former hobby of DJing was also criticized by Trump.
Trump asked Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tang to resign in early August because of China ties. In April, it was reported that Tan had invested $200 million into hundreds of Chinese chip and advanced manufacturing firms, including some linked to the Chinese military.
"The CEO at INTEL has a great deal of CONFLICT and must resign immediately." Trump stated in a Truth Social post that there is no solution to the problem.
Tan replied to Trump by saying that he shared Trump's commitment to advance U.S. economic and national security, and that the Intel Board was "fully supportive" of the transformation work our company is doing.
After a meeting with Tan, Trump praised him and the U.S. Government decided to buy a stake in this chipmaker.
MICROSOFT
Trump said in September that the tech company should fire Lisa Monaco, its global affairs director who has served in previous Democratic administrations.
Trump stated on Truth Social that "She is a threat to U.S. National Security" due to the large contracts Microsoft has with the United States Government. "In my opinion, Microsoft should terminate Lisa Monaco's employment immediately."
Trump stated that Monaco's position at Microsoft would allow her to access highly sensitive information. "This kind of access cannot stand," said Trump.
Monaco, who joined Microsoft in July, worked as a security adviser in the former president Barack Obama’s administration. He also served as deputy attorney general under former president Joe Biden.
Elon Musk, the billionaire CEO of Tesla's electric car company, spent hundreds of million dollars to support Trump's reelection. Investors who bid up Tesla's stock anticipated that this move would benefit Musk's empire.
Musk and Trump fell out, however, in June, after Musk criticised Trump's tax-cutting and spending bill, claiming that it would increase the federal debt.
Musk responded to Trump's comments on Truth Social by threatening to cut off federal contracts and subsidies to Musk's businesses. Trump also said that the billionaire had "gone CRAZY", after the bill was amended to remove the mandate for electric vehicles.
JAGUAR LAND RIDER
Trump criticised Jaguar's rebranding campaign in August. He called the campaign "woke", "stupid" and linked it to the departure from the CEO of the company.
Trump's remarks came at the same time that Tata Motors announced the retirement from the British automaker of Adrian Mardell who had spent over three decades with the company.
Jaguar unveiled last year a new visual identity and logo as part of its brand refresh to reposition itself as an electrical automaker. This move sparked a backlash online and was criticized by brand loyalists.
Trump has threatened tariffs on Apple and Tim Cook for selling iPhones in the U.S. outside of the country.
After a meeting with Cook in Doha, Qatar in May, Trump said that he confronted him about Apple's plans to manufacture the majority of iPhones sold in America in factories in India by 2026.
In a post on social media, Trump said he had told Cook "long time ago" "I expect that their iPhones will be sold in America, and not in India or anywhere else".
Early in August, Trump announced that Apple would invest another $100 billion dollars in the U.S. This will bring its total commitment domestically to $600 billion within the next four-year period. Cook gave Trump an American souvenir made with 24-karat-gold base.
AMAZON.COM
Trump complained to Jeff Bezos, former CEO of Amazon.com in April about a report that stated the company would display the prices to show the impact tariffs have on the ecommerce retailer Amazon.com.
Amazon, however, said that it only briefly considered charging import fees for certain goods following Trump's announcement of tariffs in April, but abandoned the plan after the White House accused Amazon of a hostile political act.
Trump told reporters later that Bezos "very quickly" solved the problem and was "very nice".
BANK OF AMERICA & JPMORGAN CHASE
In August, Trump claimed that JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon and BofA CEO Brian Moynihan discriminated against him. He had earlier said that they didn't provide banking services for conservatives.
In a video speech at the World Economic Forum, Trump stated, "What you are doing is wrong." In a question and answer session with CEOs and corporate leaders assembled on stage, Trump did not provide any evidence of wrongdoing.
Dimon, the CEO of JPMorgan Chase was also mentioned. "You, Jamie and everyone, I hope you are going to open your bank up to conservatives." Both lenders have repeatedly denied allegations of "debanking."
WALMART
Trump stated in May that Walmart, China and other retailers should "eat tariffs" to avoid burdening American consumers. This was after Doug McMillon had said the retailer couldn't absorb all tariff-related cost due to narrow retail margins.
Walmart should STOP blaming tariffs for the price increases across the chain. Walmart made BILLIONS of DOLLARS in the last year. This was far more than anticipated, Trump wrote on social media.
Trump didn't call McMillon out personally but he did publicly criticize Walmart for attributing the price increases in May to the tariffs his administration imposed.
CRACKER BAREL
A retail chain was blindsided by an unexpected reaction when it changed its logo to remove the image of a man in overalls known as "Uncle Herschel", leaning on a barrel.
Cracker Barrel announced in late August that it would stick with its decades old logo. Plans for a brand new one were scrapped after social media backlash from the U.S. president Donald Trump, among others.
"Congratulations Cracker Barrel on restoring your original logo. "All of your fans are very appreciative," Trump said after the company reversed its decision on Truth Social.
COMCAST
Trump criticised Comcast's cable news network MSNBC over its coverage of his government. Trump told reporters that MSNBC was changing its name to MS NOW because the network's owners were ashamed.
Trump called Comcast "weak, ineffective and headed by Brian Roberts" last week.
SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION
In anticipation of the U.S. 250th Anniversary, the White House announced that it would lead an internal review for some Smithsonian Museums and Exhibitions. Declaration of Independence.
In an executive directive issued in March, Trump stated that the institution was under the influence of "divisive and race-centered ideologies" over the past few years.
HARVARD UNIVERSITY
Trump has targeted the oldest and wealthiest university in the United States, canceling federal grants worth $2.5 billion and mounting efforts to stop research funding for Harvard. This is part of an overall campaign to change U.S. Universities, which Trump claims are dominated by antisemitic, "radical-left" ideologies.
We are going to take away Harvard's tax exempt status. "It's what they deserved!" In May, Trump posted a message on his social media platform.
Trump announced on September 30, that after months of negotiation over school policies, his administration is close to an agreement with Harvard University. The deal would include a payment of $500 million by the Ivy League university.
COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY
The Trump administration announced in March that it would cancel $400 million of federal funding to Columbia University for how it handled the protests last year.
This is just the beginning of many arrests to come. "We know that there are many more students at Columbia University and other Universities in the Country who have engaged pro-terrorists, antisemitic and anti-American activities, and the Trump Administration won't tolerate it," Trump wrote in a post on social media.
These comments were made after the arrest Mahmoud Khalil, a Palestinian graduate who was a major participant in the protests.
In July, the University announced that it would pay more than $200 million in settlement to the U.S. Government as part of a deal with Trump's Administration.
LAW FIRMS
Trump issued an executive order in March that restricted access to federal facilities and suspended security clearances of its employees due to their ties with Hillary Clinton and DEI policy.
Trump said that it was an "absolute honor" to sign the order. Trump had also issued a similar order in March against the New York law firm Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison, which he subsequently retracted after reaching a settlement.
In February, the law firm Covington & Burling was confronted with Trump's Presidential Memorandum, which suspended all security clearances of Peter Koski, and Covington employees, who had assisted former Special Counsel Jack Smith in prosecuting Trump.
Covington has said that it will continue to represent Jack Smith in spite of these measures.
Trump said, "We will continue to hold those who are responsible for weaponizing government and who supported this accountable."
THE NEW YORK TIMES PENGUIN RANDOM HOUSE
Trump has filed a $15 Billion lawsuit
defamation lawsuit
In September, he filed a lawsuit against the New York Times as well as book publisher Penguin Random House. He accuses these major media companies of unfairly treating him.
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
Trump sued
The Wall Street Journal, its owners and employees
Rupert Murdoch was sued in July by the New York Times for $10 billion over a report that revealed that his name appeared on a 2003 greeting to Jeffrey Epstein, which included a sexually explicit drawing and references to secrets that they shared. (Reporting by Deborah Sophia, Juveria Tabassum, Niket Nishant, Shivansh Tiwary, Savyata Mishra, Kritika Lamba, Arsheeya Bajwa, Zaheer Kachwala, Puyaan Singh, Pooja Menon and Dharna Bafna in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D'Silva, Sriraj Kalluvila and Arun Koyyur)
(source: Reuters)