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Trump plans to heavily tax Chinese imports

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Trump plans to heavily tax Chinese imports

The administration of Donald Trump plans to impose customs duties on Chinese imports equivalent to $ 60 billion, taxes that would include the sectors of technology and telecommunications, reported Wednesday US media.

The tariffs will target a hundred Chinese products, told AFP a source close to the discussions, noting that the amount was not yet finalized.

During a meeting last week, the US president reportedly told his cabinet and his advisers that he “wanted to hit China soon with tariffs and restrictions on investment in response to intellectual property theft” presumed, according to Politico who quotes three people close to the discussions.

US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer has proposed a package of Chinese import taxes equivalent to $ 30 billion but it would have been retorted by Donald Trump who would have considered insufficient, according to the same source.

The proposal retained would now be equivalent to 60 billion dollars, report several media Wednesday.

“We can not remain blind to rampant and unfair trade practices against our country!” said Donald Trump on Wednesday in a tweet.

On Wednesday, he was scheduled to meet in the afternoon during a trip to the Missouri (center) officials of the American aircraft manufacturer Boeing before attending a round table on tax cuts and tax reform.

The Trump administration announced March 8 taxes on imports of steel and aluminum, however provisionally exempting Canada and Mexico, its partners in the North American Free Trade Agreement (Alena) being renegotiated .

Donald Trump had expressed the same day of negotiations with China, saying the Chinese were “very cooperative“. While saying his “great respect for President Xi Jinping“, he said that the United States would reduce its trade deficit “in one way or another” with China, citing a reduction of 100 billion dollars.

The trade deficit with China for goods alone amounted in 2017 to some 375 billion dollars.

Imposing such taxes could result in retaliation from Beijing.

China has repeatedly emphasized that it will not sit idly by and adopt “necessary measures” to defend its exporters. Beijing has initiated an anti-dumping investigation on imports of US sorghum and does not rule out targeting soybeans from the United States.

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Stock market: the 10 most powerful investors in the world!

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Stock market: the 10 most powerful investors in the world!

Peter Lynch

Investor Peter Lynch attends the 2017 Profile in Courage Award ceremony, honoring former U.S. President Barack Obama at the John F. Kennedy Library in Boston, Massachusetts, U.S., May 7, 2017. REUTERS/Brian Snyder – RC15A1978B90

Which stock market investor did not listen to or read Peter Lynch’s valuable advice before entering the market? He has led the Fidelity Magellan Fund for more than 13 years with an average annual return of nearly 30%. Follower of common sense on the stock market and simple but effective concepts (“buy what you understand”), Lynch is one of the ���must-haves” in the markets.

Bill Gross

Bill Gross, Portfolio Manager, Janus Capital Group, laughs during the Milken Institute Global Conference in Beverly Hills, California, U.S., May 3, 2017. REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson – RC1FCCA133A0

Founder and manager of the largest bond fund in the world, PIMCO, Bill Gross became the star manager in 2014 of financial firm Janus Capital. A graduate of Duke University, he is known for his cautious stance and his decline in financial events.

Henry Kravis

CEO of Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co (KKR) Henry Kravis (C) departs after meeting India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a breakfast in the Manhattan borough of New York September 29, 2014. REUTERS/Carlo Allegri (UNITED STATES – Tags: POLITICS BUSINESS) – GM1EA9U01G201

Henry Kravis is one of two “Ks” of the famous KKR investment company created in 1976 in New York by Jerome Kohlberg, Henry Kravis and Georges Robert, all three from Bear Stearns. Aged 74, Henry Kravis has a personal fortune of $ 5.4 billion.

John Paulson

John Paulson, founder of New York-based hedge fund Paulson & Co., speaks at the Reuters Hedge Funds and Private Equity Summit in New York, September 7, 2005. – PBEAHUNXPAA

Aged 62, John Alfred Paulson is the founder and chairman of the alternative management fund Paulson & Co. Very early, more than two years before the collapse, he anticipates the sub-prime crisis of 2007-2008 and wins in the maneuver more $ 3.7 billion. His personal fortune is now valued at $ 6.5 billion according to Forbes.

George Soros

George Soros, born György Schwartz on August 12, 1930 in Budapest, then György Soros ([ɟøɾɟ], [ʃoɾoʃ]), is a billionaire American financier of Hungarian origin.

George Soros, was born in 1930 in Budapest. He became one of the most famous American billionaires in the world after having “dropped” the Pound in September 1992, generating a profit of $ 2 billion in the operation. His fortune is estimated at some $ 8 billion.

Edward Johnson

FILE PHOTO — Fidelity Investments Chairman and Chief Executive Edward C. “Ned” Johnson attends Boston College’s Chief Executives’ Club of Boston luncheon in Boston, Massachusetts May 6, 2008. To match Special Report USA-FIDELITY/FAMILY REUTERS/Brian Snyder/File Photo – TM3EC9S17QA01

Aged 88, Edward Johnson is probably less known to the general public but has a personal wealth of $ 8.5 billion. Our man has who to hold since he is the son of Edward C. Johnson II who is none other than the founder of the famous house Fidelity Investments inaugurated after the war, in 1949.

Ronald Perelman

Ronald Perelman speaks after he received his award during the Elton John AIDS Foundation’s 12th Annual “An Enduring Vision” benefit gala at Cipriani in New York, October 15, 2013. REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz (UNITED STATES – Tags: ENTERTAINMENT) – GM1E9AG1TZH01

75 years on the clock, Ronald Perelman has a personal fortune of $ 9.9 billion. Known for surfing the junk bond boom of the 1980s, Ronald Perelman also had time to be married successively to 5 women and had 8 children.

Raymond Dalio

Raymond Dalio was born in the Jackson Heights neighborhood of New York City’s Queens borough. He is the son of a jazz musician, Marino Dallolio (1911-2002), who “played the clarinet and saxophone at Manhattan jazz clubs such as the Copacabana,” and Ann, a homemaker. He is of Italian descent. Dalio began investing at age 12. At this young age he bought shares of Northeast Airlines for $300 and tripled his investment after the airline merged with another company. Dalio received a bachelor’s degree in finance from Long Island University (CW Post) and an MBA from Harvard Business School.

At 68, Raymond Dalio is almost a young man in this ranking. He has a fortune of $ 17.7 billion. The founder of investment company Bridgewater is among those who took advantage of the 2007 crisis in anticipation of the fall of the financial markets …

Carl Icahn

Carl Celian Icahn (born February 16, 1936) is an American businessman, investor, and philanthropist. He is the founder and controlling shareholder of Icahn Enterprises, a diversified conglomerate holding company based in New York City, formerly known as American Real Estate Partners. He is also Chairman of Federal-Mogul, an American developer, manufacturer and supplier of powertrain components and vehicle safety products. In the 1980s Icahn developed a reputation as a “corporate raider” after profiting from the hostile takeover and asset stripping of the American airline TWA. According to Forbes magazine, Icahn had a net worth of $16.6 billion in 2017, making him the 26th-wealthiest person on the Forbes 400, and the 5th-wealthiest hedge fund manager. Icahn served as special economic adviser on financial regulation to US President Donald Trump briefly in 2017, leaving amid concerns of conflicts of interest.

He also specializes in junk bonds of the 80s, Carl Celian Icahn has a fortune valued at about $ 20 billion by Forbes. Aged 82, he is the Founder of Icahn Capital Management. Appointed late 2016 as special adviser to Donald Trump to assist in some economic reforms, he abandoned the ship in August 2017.

Warren Buffett

Warren Edward Buffett (born August 30, 1930) is an American business magnate, investor, and philanthropist who serves as the chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway. He is considered one of the most successful investors in the world and has a net worth of $87.5 billion as of February 17, 2018, making him the third wealthiest person in the United States and in the world.

By far the most famous investor on the planet, the Berkshire Hathaway group’s CEO, nicknamed “Omaha’s oracle”, soon to celebrate his 88th birthday, is at the head of a gigantic personal fortune of 91, $ 3 billion, making it one of the richest men on the planet!

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A "trade war" would be "dramatic" for global growth

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A "trade war" would be "dramatic" for global growth

Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Christine Lagarde said Wednesday that a “trade war”, after the threats of Donald Trump to heavily tax imports of steel and aluminum in the United States, would be “formidable” for global growth.

“If international trade were challenged by measures of this type, it would be a transmission channel of a decline in growth, a decline in trade and it would be formidable“, said Ms. Lagarde.

“In a trade war that would be fueled by a reciprocal increase in tariffs, no one wins“, said the boss of the IMF.

“We are very concerned that this trigger does not intervene, we advocate an agreement between the parties, negotiations, consultations“, she added.

“In a way“, says the IMF boss, US President Donald Trump “has some good reasons to protest the current situation.There are countries in the world that do not necessarily respect the WTO agreements , which have requirements especially in terms of technology transfer, we naturally think of China, but China is not the only country to have kind of practices“.

Donald Trump announced last week that he intends to impose tariffs of 25% on steel and 10% on aluminum. The European Commission must detail its strategy of response on Wednesday.

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How far will the fall sales of diesel vehicles ?

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How far will the fall sales of diesel vehicles ?

The question is not anodyne for automakers, because with the scandals and the willingness of many cities to ban diesel cars, this is an important issue for the future of the auto industry.

The question is not anodyne for automakers, because of the scandals and the willingness of many diesel cars, this is an important issue for the future of the auto industry.

The English sometimes say of a personality who knows the decay: “How low can it fall ?” Well, it’s a little bit the same for diesel engines: how far will the fall? Indeed, since the breakdown of the “dieselgate“, these diesel engines are no longer in the odor of sanctity. The question asked by the builders according to my fellow Swiss Time is what will still be the market share of diesel tomorrow in Europe? How far will this share fall? It will be 40%? Or at 30%? 10%? Even 0%? Nobody can answer that question. Even the experts, i.e. car manufacturers, are tearing themselves apart on this subject. Johan van Zyl, the boss of Toyota Europe does not hesitate to say that the diesel engine will simply disappear from the consumer market. Conversely, Matthias Muller, the boss of Volkswagen thinks exactly the opposite and remains convinced that diesel will experience a “renaissance“. More cautious, the boss of Peugeot is content to say that it is the customers who will decide. On the other hand, what is already certain is that the demand for diesel engines has been falling for 6 years, and the slide seems quite brutal according to Renault’s number two.

Without being an expert, it is safe to say that the maximum market share achieved by diesel engines, which was 56% in Europe in 2012, will never be reached again. In a year, about 500,000 sales of diesel cars have disappeared from the market. It is the equivalent of the volumes of a manufacturer like Dacia according to the Time. Of course, it is the gasoline engines that benefit from this swing, since the alternatives are often more expensive at the moment. Also taking into account that more and more cities want to ban diesel vehicles, auto builders are building scenarios. The first positive is a stabilization of the diesel market at 30%. If this is the case, the automotive industry will be able to adapt its production capacity without too much difficulty. On the other hand, if diesel becomes really the black sheep of all the cities and that its taxation becomes dissuasive, then the share of diesel market risks to be reduced to not much. It remains to know where is the threshold from which manufacturers should stop making this kind of engine.

One thing is already certain, the automotive industry is reviewing its driving strategy and reducing its diesel offer. This is necessary because the money saved must be used to finance the electric car and the autonomous car of tomorrow. Fiat’s boss reminded him again at the Geneva Motor Show – there is no choice to act otherwise.

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When Amazon stresses bankers

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When Amazon stresses bankers

The border between banks and a company like Amazon is likely to get more and more confused because Amazon is planning to launch banking services – that was enough to stress bankers.

The Wall Street Journal, the business Bible, revealed that Amazon, the world’s leading e-commerce company, was in talks with several major US banks. I reassure the bankers who reading to us, it is not to buy them, even if it has the means, but to see if it is possible to offer a current account, a kind of basic banking service for young people who do not want to go to the bank. Clearly, Amazon targets the under 40s, who in any case in the United States, are not attached to bank branches and are wary of credit cards – it is a population that avoids going through banks and prefers to use an application like Venmo that allows them to pay someone directly in two clicks.

Amazon seeks to seduce younger generations who have a hand-grafted phone

It was enough for the entire banking sector to alert: should we collaborate with Amazon or not? This is the question that the bank JP Morgan must ask, since it is she who has been contacted by Amazon. If she collaborates, what will prevent Amazon from starting in the bank and becoming its competitor? And if JP Morgan does not collaborate, it will still be a business that will escape to the benefit of another bank? In fact, what Amazon wants to do is better control its business. Just like Ikea, Decathlon and Zara do vertical integration, ie. they produce what they sell. By doing this, Zara or Ikea eliminate intermediaries and mechanically increase their margin. Amazon is inspired by this concept. After all, what does Amazon do all day, if not to make us buy anything and everything? As the number of our credit card is already introduced, banking transactions are done in two clicks. To further accelerate this process of frantic purchases, it is Amazon’s interest to reduce bank commissions on each payment. That’s why Amazon would like to set up a current account with a smoother commission fee for those who do not go through a traditional bank anymore.

Those who are afraid to see Amazon arrive and “disrupt” the bank are wrong – at least for the moment. Why ? But because the banking sector is highly regulated. Now, Amazon is an agile, fast-paced company that will not get entangled in super-complicated legislation and a tightly guarded banking sector. In short, banks are not likely to be “disrupted” as taxis have been by Uber because they are protected by their regulations. This is a bit of the irony of this story. If today the banking sector is protected against the arrival of an Amazon, an Apple or even a Facebook, it is thanks to the crisis of 2007-2008. As a result of this crisis, the national governments have all decided to strongly regulate the sector in a spirit of “never again” – there has even been talk of a “regulatory tsunami“. Of course, the bankers lamented that their profession was becoming more difficult because of all these regulations, but today they should rather thank the legislator. Without it, Amazon would eat them all raw, and if you doubt, think that with its market capitalization of 748 billion dollars, Amazon already weighs more than JP Morgan and Bank of America, the two largest US banks combined.

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Donald Trump does not serve American companies

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Donald Trump does not serve American companies

Donald Trump thus maintained his position to tax imports of steel and aluminum. While we complain about politicians who do not respect their word, here the Americans are spoiled, here is a president who does not return to his positions. But is it really good?

For Bill Bonner, an American economic commentator (founder of the “Agora Chronic” newsletter), the narrow-minded side of Trump is proof that in politics, one prefers win-lose deals rather than win-win deals.

First, because Europe, to name a few, will not let it go and has already announced that it will target its response. Targeting legendary industries or brands like Harley-Davidson, an iconic American brand whose sales are already suffering. If Europe raises its tariffs, Harley-Davidson may have serious difficulties. In the end, Trump’s customs taxes will do more harm than good to the national sectors he wants to defend.

Bill Bonner, with his usual good sense, reminds us that a trade war is mostly designed to reward elites at the expense of others. The elites are the sectors that benefit from the protection of the American state because they have relays in the political world. And this protection is to the detriment of other sectors and citizens. It is estimated that there are only 200,000 jobs in the steel and aluminum production sectors in the United States: they will be the winners of this trade war. And indeed, the stock market has not been mistaken: the stock market price of steelmakers has increased in recent days.

Donald Trump, like many politicians, knows only win-lose deals

On the other hand, industrial companies, aeronautical manufacturers and automobile manufacturers saw their prices drop. All this means what? But there are more people and companies that use steel and aluminum than people who produce it. And they are unfortunately the losers of this trade war. American car manufacturers, Bill Bonner tells us, use an average of 1,500 kg of steel in each car. This additional cost will force American car manufacturers to increase their selling prices… This is not ideal when you have the slogan “America First“.

In fact, Donald Trump, like many politicians, says Bill Bonner, does not know what a win-win deal is. He knows only the winner-loser, which is probably true in politics, because one party replaces the other, whereas in real life, the only valid agreements are win-win agreements. However, by initiating a trade war, it will destroy the productivity of all American industry to please a single sector. And business leaders, Bill Bonner tells us, are human beings like any other: if given the opportunity, they would rather be protected rather than face honest competition. “Except protection is one of the worst things you can do to a business: tell your kids not to break your head with their homework!” Says Bill Bonner.

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Steel taxes: Trump demands EU to abandon "horrific obstacles"

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Steel taxes: Trump demands EU to abandon "horrific obstacles"

Donald Trump demanded Saturday of the European Union a lowering of customs and regulatory barriers on US products, if it wants to be exempted from the heavy taxes it has imposed on imported steel and aluminum.

The US president has issued this warning on Twitter a few hours after an unsuccessful meeting on the subject in Brussels between his trade representative Robert Lighthizer and the European Commission.

“The European Union, wonderful countries that treat the US very badly in trade, complain about the rights over steel and aluminum“, Trump wrote.

“If they give up their horrible obstacles and tariffs on US products, we will abandon ours, otherwise we tax cars etc. Honest!” He added.

Later in the day, at a political rally in Pennsylvania, a major steel producer, Trump defended his decision and attacked the poor quality, according to him, of steel imported into his country.

“It’s not a good steel, you guys know what I mean, it’s shit“, he told the crowd that cheered him.

He also assured that his decision would contribute to economic development in the region.

“A lot of steel mills are now opening up after what I’ve done, steel is back and aluminum is back“, he added.

The Europeans signaled their disappointment to Robert Lighthizer on Saturday at a long-standing meeting with EU Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmström and Japan’s Economy Minister Hiroshige Seko. Japan, like the European Union, demands to be exempted from US taxes.

Mexico and Canada benefit from a waiver of these 25% taxes on steel and 10% on aluminum, and Donald Trump said that preferential treatment is also possible for Australia.

“The discussion was frank” but “we did not get immediate clarity on the procedure to be exempted and the discussions will continue next week“, said Malmström.

“We are a close ally and a trading partner of the United States and the European Union must be excluded from the measures announced by President Trump“, Malmström said again.

The talks also focused on cooperation between the three partners to combat dumping and the problems posed by overcapacity in the iron and steel industry. The Europeans have reported good results on this part of the meeting and hope that their efforts will be taken into account by Donald Trump.

The Europeans and the Japanese were not waiting for a decision on Saturday, but they wanted to put pressure on the Americans.

French President Emmanuel Macron warned his American counterpart late Friday against the consequences of his decision.

“Such measures targeting Allied countries, which respect the rules of world trade, would not be effective in fighting (against) unfair practices“, he said. “Europe will respond clearly and proportionately” to “any unfounded practice contrary to the rules of world trade“, he warned.

European countermeasures

The EU has prepared countermeasures if Donald Trump persists in punishing his steelmakers.

The most immediate, applicable in three months, would be to heavily tax, by way of retaliation, some iconic American products – which Brussels has established a list – such as jeans, motorcycles and peanut butter.

The EU is also planning to implement so-called “safeguard” measures to protect its industry from foreign imports of steel and aluminum.

Lastly, it plans to lodge a complaint with the World Trade Organization (WTO), if it considers that the measures taken by the United States, under the guise of protecting national security, serve only to benefit their businesses.

Europe exported in 2017 to the United States for 5.3 billion euros of steel and for 1.1 billion euros of aluminum. Europeans remain united for the moment, but the European Commission fears American initiatives to divide them.

“We will not be able to accept that the EU is divided by the US administration“, Commission Vice-President Jyrki Katainen warned, very explicit to the British, negotiating their departure from the EU . He recalled that “the United Kingdom is still a member of the European Union and that it imposes obligations on it“.

The allies and rivals of the United States have denounced since Thursday the net protectionist turn and an attack against free trade.

Germany, one of the biggest exporting countries in the world, directly pointed out by Donald Trump, was particularly virulent, denouncing an “affront” to Washington’s allies.

For the Chinese Ministry of Commerce, it is an “abuse“. And the head of diplomacy, Wang Yi, promised an “appropriate response” in the event of a trade war with Washington.

China, by far the world’s largest steel producer, is regularly accused of being the cause of overcapacity in the sector, because of its massive subsidies.

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Tesla: the exorbitant bonus of Elon Musk

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Tesla: the exorbitant bonus of Elon Musk

The mega bonus that Tesla boss Elon Musk is considering is sowing consternation among investors and advisers who consider the $ 2.6 billion premium extravagant and unjustified.

The expected billion bonus for Tesla’s boss, Elon Musk, consults investors and financial experts. It is expected that Musk will receive a package worth $ 2.6 billion if it achieves a series of goals in the coming years by producing electric cars.

Some of the shareholders want to oppose this bonus by voting against the proposal this month. They consider this remuneration exorbitant and unjustified. Defenders speak of the success of Tesla, which is closely linked to its leader and co-founder Musk.

The latter already holds about 20 percent of Tesla shares. Two investment advisory firms believe that Musk does not need to hold more to keep it motivated. Musk could become – by far – the highest paid corporate executive in a publicly traded company if he achieves all of the goals set.

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Donald Trump accepts a historic invitation with Kim Jong-un

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Donald Trump accepts a historic invitation with Kim Jong-un

The US president has accepted the invitation of the North Korean leader, sent Thursday by a delegation of South Korea to the White House. The exact date and place of the meeting are still to be determined, but the accepted window is “within two months”.

  Donald Trump does not like anything so much as sensational ads. At around 5 pm on Thursday, shortly after signing the tariffs against imports of steel and aluminum in the United States, he put his head through the blue sliding door that commands access to the press room. the White House. It was the first time he had been there for thirteen months.

– “Hey, it’s off-the-record“, said the president to the reporters present. There will be tonight around 7 o’clock a major announcement from South Korea.

– “It can not be off-the-record, you are the president“, replied a reporter.

“Okay“, said Trump, “get ready“.

A delegation from South Korea is here Thursday in Washington to “verbally” brief the White House leader and his advisers on inter-Korean talks held a few days earlier in Pyongyang. Seoul said its envoys would carry a “secret additional message” from Kim Jong-un to the US president. This message is: Kim “has expressed his readiness to meet with President Trump as soon as possible“, said South Korean National Security Adviser Chung Eui-yong to the White House.

The geopolitical situation in Asia and beyond turned upside down

No US official accompanies the three South Korean representatives on the US presidential parvis. Yet the second twist is American: “Donald Trump said he would meet Kim Jong-un in May to achieve permanent denuclearization” of the peninsula, Chung said. Shattering announcement: the upcoming meeting between two leaders who, until now, traded rather invectives , “old spoiled” to “little fat“, and threatened each other with nuclear annihilation, upsets the geopolitical situation in Asia and beyond.

It does not guarantee a peaceful resolution of the conflict, but the master of the “hermit kingdom” has “committed to denuclearization“, says Chung, and “North Korea will abstain from any nuclear test or missile strike. during the talks“. Pyongyang does not even demand the suspension of US-South Korean military maneuvers. Enough to convince Trump to try the bet.

Kim Jong-un has apparently closely studied the personality of his American interlocutor. He has bet on his contempt for procedures and bureaucracy, his penchant for unorthodox diplomacy and his belief that no one can resist his negotiating skills. If he is a president of the United States able to take the risk of a face-to-face with the head of a pariah state, it’s Trump.

The audacity of the gesture is already paid back. US officials present at the South Koreans’ presentation – from National Security Adviser HR McMaster to Pentagon leader James Mattis, Intelligence Director Dan Coates and State Department number two John Sullivan – are rather skeptical about the chances of achieving a “total, irreversible and verifiable denuclearization“. But Donald Trump is known to follow his instincts more often than his advisers.

Donald Trump had always left the door open for dialogue

“The president felt at the outset that the goal of denuclearization would require a new approach and not repeat the mistakes of the past“, said a White House advisor in the evening. He had always left the door open for dialogue. “Does he take an insidious risk with such a meeting ?” There have been talks at a lower level since 1992, it speaks for itself, said the senior official. Donald Trump was elected on his reputation to make deals and Kim is the only person able to make a decision in his authoritarian regime.

From there to expect a magic resolution of an insoluble dispute for four decades … “At this point, we do not even talk about negotiations, warns the advisor. The president has been clear: he is not ready to reward North Korea for talks“. Until acts follow the words, “the maximum pressures” campaign will continue, a combination of sanctions economic and diplomatic isolation which, according to Seoul, “led us to this turning point“.

The exact date and place of the meeting are still to be determined, “we are working on it“, says the White House, but the accepted window is “within two months“. The organization of the summit promises to be a delicate diplomatic exercise: there is no precedent for the appointment of an American president with the supreme leader of North Korea.

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Cynicism lessons of US banks

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Cynicism lessons of US banks

$ 345 billion is not bad money, this is the total of fines and other legal transactions that banks have had to pay since the outbreak of the subprime crisis in 2008.

In ten years, $ 345 billion is obviously huge as a return. The most malicious will say that it is only justice. To give you an idea, this amount is greater than the wealth produced in one year by a country like South Africa or an industrialized country like Denmark! It is almost as much as the totality of the Belgian public debt. And who has taken advantage of these fines imposed on the banks, will you tell me? Of course, the injured customers, but especially the regulator and the American treasure. Of the $ 345 billion, Europe has collected a very meager $ 22 billion.

And that’s where morality is wrong, because remember, if we still pay the price of the subprime crisis ten years later, it’s not because of Europe or even European banks, no, it’s because of the United States. It is in the US that the boundless creativity, and without faith and law, of American financiers has given birth to the worst crisis since the crisis of 1929. It is the bankruptcy of the American bank Lehman Brothers which served as domino effect to the spread of the crisis in Europe and Asia. So, let us be fair, not all European banks were saints, but the reality is there: the current crisis was initiated in the United States and by American actors. But in the end, what do we see? That the fines on the banks profit especially to the coffers of the American State.

In terms of pragmatism, Americans are unfortunately  ARE STILL stronger !

In addition, the Americans have been smarter – some will say more cynical. Rather than regulate the banking sector further, they have punctured it. As a result, US banks have paid the fines, but they do not have the same rules as European banks. In short, they are less supervised and regulated than in Europe. This allows them today to be significantly bigger than the banks of the old continent.

Worse yet, it is the US banks that impose today the tempo in the banking world. The moral of this case is that there is no morality, just pragmatism. And on this point, the Americans are unfortunately much stronger than us!

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The three lessons to be learned from mini-stock market crash

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The three lessons to be learned from mini-stock market crash

After weeks of stock market madness and 5,000 billion dollars that have evaporated in just five days, what are the lessons that can be learned from mini-stock market crash?

First lesson

Even positive information for the average person can be interpreted as negative by the stock market. In this case, what triggered the stock market storm last week is good news at the bottom. The rise in average hourly wages in the United States is higher than expected (+ 2.9%), which, in principle, is quite good for American workers and employees who have suffered for ten years from a lack of wage increase . But no, the stock market has taken this figure very badly. Why ? Because it means, in the eyes of investors, that this rise in wages will put upward pressure on inflation, that it will therefore increase faster than expected, and that consequently the US Central Bank will also increase interest rates faster and more strongly than expected.

However, a rise in rates is considered bad for equities. Rising rates mean that it’s the end of free money. In fact, to save us from the crisis, interest rates were artificially lowered, and this served as the main driver for the rise in the stock markets. Since all other investments offered a return close to zero, or even negative, the stock market was for ten years the almost unique solution to yield. This explains the continuous rise of the stock market in recent months. But this free money engine will stop faster than expected. And investors will have to learn to live again in a world with slightly higher rates.

It is when the sea recedes that we see those who swam without a swimsuit

Second lesson

Warren Buffet, the greatest investor of all time and one of the richest men in the world, has the custom of saying that “it is when the sea recedes that we see those who swam without swimsuit“. In short, when interest rates rise, companies with too much debt become very vulnerable. These are so-called “zombie” companies. And some of them may therefore see their financial burden grow and they will no longer be able to finance themselves on the market, because the credit is dry!

Third lesson

Most investors have welcomed this purge of 5.000 billion dollars. Most commentators said it was a welcome and salutary correction. In short, by seeing the stock market rise without interruption, it was necessary to take a break, or even a small step back in prices. It remains to be seen if this correction is momentary, a kind of purge necessary before seeing the stock market catch its breath, or if it is the canary in the mine … In other words, a first purge before another more severe. And there, there are as many opinions as experts.

The only certainty that must be kept in mind is that the global economy is doing well and that the numbers are there to demonstrate it. The woes of the stock market are therefore, in principle, no harbinger of a recession or a new financial crisis, it is at least it taken!

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EU threatens to tax US products, Tusk responds to Trump

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EU threatens to tax US products, Tusk responds to Trump

The EU warned on Wednesday against the risk of a “trade war” with the United States and threatened to heavily tax some iconic US products if Donald Trump confirms his intention to impose tariffs on imports of steel and aluminum.

European Council President Donald Tusk warned on Wednesday that trade wars were “bad and easy to lose“, in response to the US president who said they are “good and easy to win“.

“It is now time for politicians on both sides of the Atlantic to act responsibly“, said Tusk, adding that the dispute would be on the agenda of the next EU summit in Brussels on March 22 and 23.

“There are no winners in a trade war”, said EU Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmström, who presented the EU’s 25% tariff strategy on steel and 10% % on aluminum announced by the White House.

“It would hurt transatlantic relations“, said the Swede, insisting that she wanted to avoid any “escalation” and that she still hoped the EU would be exempted. Peanut butter

Without making any concrete announcements, she detailed the measures prepared by Brussels if necessary, starting with a list of American products that could be taxed in order to compensate in value the damage done to the European industry.

The list still under discussion includes “steel, industrial and agricultural products“, including “certain types of bourbon” and “peanut butter, cranberries and orange juice“, said Malmström.

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker has already revealed that symbolic products such as Harley-Davidson and Levi’s, as well as bourbon, were in the viewfinder of Brussels.

The list of US products targeted by the EU US products include dozens of steel, industrial and agricultural products, including tobacco, bourbons and jeans. The Commission's document identifies the targeted products according to a very precise customs nomenclature. Steel products Dozens of steel products like some rolled steels, seamless tubes, etc. Agricultural and food products Some beans, rice, corn (processed or not), cranberries, orange juice, peanut butter, several types of bourbon and whiskey, cigars, cigarettes, rolling tobacco, pipe tobacco or to chew. Diverse products Various textile products such as T-shirts, pants (including jeans), shorts, cotton linen and leather shoes. Beauty or makeup products such as lipstick, hairspray or some skin products. Several types of vehicles, including motorcycles - as announced by the President of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker-- but also transport vehicles, motor boats or yachts, yachts or canoes. Some essential oils, batteries, batteries and playing cards.

The idea of ��​the EU is to maximize the political impact in the United States of these retaliatory measures by targeting products sometimes made in states favorable to Donald Trump, while minimizing its effects on European consumers.

These retaliatory measures, in line with World Trade Organization (WTO) rules, would rebalance the loss for the EU, estimated at 2.8 billion euros, and take about three months to be effective.

In fact, the list does not mention companies, but uses a more general customs nomenclature (example: “trousers, work, cotton, men“).

“They can do what they want but, if they do, we will put a big 25% tax on their cars and, believe me, they will not continue to do it for a very long time“, had anticipated Tuesday Donald Trump, questioned about possible European countermeasures.

Not well treated

The US president also took the opportunity to confirm his intentions, even accusing the EU of having “not treated the United States well” in commercial matters.

This protectionism displayed pushed his chief economic adviser, Gary Cohn, to slam the door of the White House.

Its trade secretary, Wilbur Ross, for its part said Wednesday that the decision to apply these taxes had been “carefully considered” but that the United States did not seek a trade war.

In addition to retaliatory measures, the EU can also implement so-called “safeguard” measures in a few weeks to protect its industry, Ms Malmström said.

This would be to temporarily restrict European imports of steel and aluminum to preserve the two relevant branches of foreign flows, as authorized by the WTO.

Finally, if necessary, Brussels will lodge a complaint with the other affected countries before the WTO.

“This is an important step, but it will be long“, conceded Malmström. Such a procedure usually takes two years.

The problem with steel is “the global overcapacity” caused by “massive public subsidies“, she insisted, without ever mentioning China, the world’s largest producer and accused of subsidizing its production.

Europeans export about 5 billion euros of steel and 1 billion euros of aluminum each year to the United States.

While complicating access to the US market for European steelmakers, Donald Trump’s taxes could divert foreign production to Europe, which would no longer find a market in the United States.

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Luxembourg, one of the kings of phantom finance

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Luxembourg, one of the kings of phantom finance

LUXEMBOURG – In 2016, the non-bank financial sector in Luxembourg amounted to 2,580 billion euros, according to a report. The Grand Duchy ranks 4th in the world.

2,580 billion euros. This is what parallel finance in Luxembourg represented in 2016, according to a report published Monday by the Financial Stability Board (FSB), a body mandated by the G20. Parallel finance, or ghost finance, refers to all activities and players contributing to non-bank financing of the economy (bond or real estate funds, hedge funds, asset management trusts, etc.).

Since 2011, the FSB has been carrying out a monitoring exercise of non-bank financing circuits, for the first time including data on Luxembourg, which is the 4th most active country in the world in this area. Its share in global alternative finance was 7% in 2016. The podium is made up of the United States (31%), China (16%) and the Cayman Islands (10%). The sector continued to grow globally to reach some $ 45.2 trillion (€ 36.7 trillion) by the end of 2016, an increase of 7.6% year-on-year.

More and more crucial alternatives

“Market finance provides more and more crucial alternatives to bank credit for financing the economy“, said FSB chairman Mark Carney, governor of the Bank of England, quoted in the statement. “It is essential that the resilience of this sector be maintained as it evolves“, he added, noting that this monitoring exercise helps identify potential risks and better assess responses.

In a July report to the G20 decision-makers for the Hamburg summit, the FSB explained that the shadow banking aspects that contributed to the 2007/2008 financial crisis had largely subsided and were no longer risks to the stability of the financial system. However, the report noted the growing importance of investment funds, as the FSB felt they needed to be better supervised to ensure that they could absorb shocks in the event of severe market shocks.

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The revenge of dumbphone

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The revenge of dumbphone

The word smartphone is part of the current language. Everyone knows what a smart phone is and for good reason everyone has one in their pocket.

On the other hand, nobody talks about “idiotic” phones, the “dumbphone” as the Americans say.

The “idiotic” phones are selling more than 450 million copies a year. This is what we have just learned from the latest mobile phone show in Barcelona. Technically, the dumbphone are very simple phones of use and which essentially allow to telephone or to receive calls with some other basic functions, but nothing else. Of course, when it comes to smartphones, touch screens, and other things like laptops, these idiots look like they’re coming from another age. Well, that’s exactly why they like it.

Who will you say to? First, in Africa or in Asian countries like India or Vietnam, we sell more silly phones than smartphones, according to Les Echos. The reasons are easy to understand: these phones are cheaper and their autonomy is often more important. And then, we tend to forget in Europe, but in these countries, the Internet coverage does not allow to enjoy all the capabilities of a smartphone. That’s why the sale of these idiot phones is growing and we sold more than 450 million last year.

Would not idiots be smarter than they look?

But beware, we should not believe that silly phones are reserved for emerging countries. The buyers of the Nokia brand are deeply convinced that this kind of simple phone has a future in Europe, and even in the United States. “Its simplicity, its affordable price and the durability of its battery make it an ideal device for seniors, travelers or those who are looking for an additional phone for their outings“.

And then, in these turbulent times, there is a population that is looking for a digital detox cure. Indeed, these idiots phones are not connected to the Internet, “They allow to be reachable, but without the temptation to watch his emails or to be on social networks permanently“. The final question is simple: would not idiot phones be smarter than they look?

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Cars: German giants are no longer invincible

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Cars: German giants are no longer invincible

In the luxury car market, the German manufacturers make the race largely in the lead but their prestige may soon be insufficient in the face of more and more competitors who rely on the electric to win.

Volkswagen (with Audi and Porsche), Daimler (with Mercedes) and BMW account for nearly 80% of the global premium market. No one imagines that they can suddenly lose this position of strength, patiently built over the decades.

But the electrification of vehicles, accelerated by the decline of diesel, as well as the growing demand for smart cars, create new conditions that threaten a trio so far presumed invincible. At a time when the image of Made in Germany is scratched by the scandal of engines engineered Volkswagen.

“German manufacturers have an undisputed position for thermal cars, but Tesla has managed to become number one electric cars”, said Willi Diez, expert of the Institute for the Economy of the Automobile (Ifa), based in Germany.

“It is a challenge to catch up so that we not only have an image of excellence in the old world, but also in the new“, he adds.

“We are very confident going to Geneva“, which opens the 88th edition of the international motor show to the general public on Thursday, says Bernhard Mattes, president of the German Automotive Association (VDA). German builders, who record record profits for several years, will invest 40 billion euros over three years in electrification and 16 to 18 billion in connected and autonomous vehicles.

Prestige and tradition

The three German giants benefit in particular from a “strong position in the Chinese market“, the world’s largest market, still growing, said Mr. Diez. For him, prestige and tradition are the main strength of the Germanic brands.

“You can not reduce the premium to the product“, says Diez, comparing German manufacturers to French luxury brands such as Hermes, Chanel or Vuitton. “Many builders produce very high quality cars, but you can not build a brand so quickly“.

Neither Toyota, with Lexus, nor Nissan, with Infiniti, are real rivals. “They have been trying for a long time, but they lack the roots and the technology, unlike Jaguar, Land Rover and Volvo“, told analyst Ferdinand Dudenhöffer, director of Center Automotive Research.

Mr. Diez also notes the weakness of French manufacturers, “associated with smaller cars“.

For Land Rover and Jaguar “the story, the myth, the image are coming back“, says Diez. It recognizes them a “great potential“, as well as Volvo, whose SUV XC40 was named Monday European Car of the Year, a historic first for the Swedish brand.

Tesla as Apple

Tesla has proved in ten years that we could build a brand from scratch and cut croupiers to established manufacturers, in a tariff zone close to 100,000 euros.

In the US market, the young American company sold as many cars as Porsche last year. Worldwide, it has sold 100,000 vehicles in 2017.

Its new compact model, Model 3, marketed under 40,000 euros, has recorded hundreds of thousands of orders. But Tesla struggles to ensure the ramping up of production, fueling doubts about its ability to deliver.

If Elon Musk’s company succeeds in the mass production of this model, then “it is a very serious competitor“, notes Mr. Dudenhöffer.

“The legitimacy of Tesla on the premium is based on technology“, says the expert, “it’s a new product that fascinates, as an Apple product“.

“Tesla is on the right track because they understand that a premium brand is more than a car“, says Diez.

In Geneva, however, it is not the Germans but the British manufacturer Jaguar who presents an “anti-Tesla weapon“, with the I-PACE, his first electric car.

Volkswagen is content with a concept, “ID VIZZION“.

Audi will present an electric SUV later this year, while Mercedes will unveil its “before the end of the decade“.

“The Germans will be in the race for electric mobility in 2019, 2020“, said Mr Dudenhöffer. But the competition does not wait for them.

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SpaceX has made its 50th launch of Falcon 9

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SpaceX has made its 50th launch of Falcon 9

The SpaceX rocket, which carries the Spanish Hispasat telecommunications satellite destined to serve Europe and North-West Africa, took off as planned from Cape Canaveral in Florida.

The satellite was placed in geostationary orbit (which will orbit at 36,000 km altitude) after 33 minutes of flight, announced SpaceX. Weighing “six tons and almost the size of a city bus, it will be the largest geostationary satellite we have ever launched“, had previously tweeted Elon Musk, the charismatic boss of SpaceX.

The Falcon 9 rocket flew for the first time in 2010 and has since become a reliable resource for transporting cargoes of food and scientific experiments to the International Space Station, putting into orbit civilian satellites as well as high-tech objects for account of the US government. But it is especially distinguished by the ability of its first floor to return to land gently on land or on a platform at sea, before being reused for a new shot. SpaceX wants to break launch costs while accelerating firing rates.

The Falcon 9 is only a step before Mars

On Tuesday, however, SpaceX explained that it had not attempted this move because of adverse weather conditions. According to Ars Technica magazine, SpaceX has successfully launched Falcon 9 18 times in 2017. This is twice the best score of competitor Atlas V in 2014 and 2015 and the maximum number of space shuttle launches in 1985 , the most prolific year for this program of NASA. The company’s managers intend to launch more than twenty Falcon 9s this year.

But this rocket is only one stage in what Elon Musk sees as his great work: the colonization of the planet Mars. SpaceX launched in February Falcon Heavy, a launcher consisting of three Falcon 9 lined up on which was perched a second floor. To be sure that the launch does not go unnoticed, the wealthy entrepreneur put into orbit his own electric roadster Tesla (his car brand) “led” by a mannequin engulfed in the space suit created by SpaceX for its future human missions.

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Trans-Pacific treaty: "First time Japan takes leadership"

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Trans-Pacific treaty: "First time Japan takes leadership"

At first sounded by the American withdrawal, Japan was finally very active to bring the new transpacific treaty to fruition, a new voluntarism for the archipelago that seeks to develop business alliances in the region, in the face of the activism of its rival. Chinese.

Traditionally rather in a “defensive” position on trade negotiations, “this is the first time that Japan takes a leadership role“, welcomed mid-February to the press, Kazuyoshi Umemoto, chief negotiator for Japan the new Trans-Pacific Pact (CPTPP), to be signed Thursday in Chile.

Yet, a year earlier, the Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe assured that “the TPP without the United States would not make sense“.

The withdrawal of the world’s largest economic power has greatly reduced the scope of the treaty, but “even without the United States, profits have not disappeared” for Japan, notes Kensuke Yanagida, researcher at the Japanese Institute of Business international.

The archipelago expects a 1.5% increase in its GDP thanks to this treaty, which will increase the outlets of Japanese companies in the signatory countries, while China and South Korea, the other two powers. regional economies, are excluded from the agreement.

Improving the competitiveness of Japanese companies, especially in the fields where they dominated historically (computer science, electronic equipment, etc.), is one of the challenges of the world’s third largest economy.

Be ahead of Beijing

After the finalization in December of trade negotiations with the European Union, this is the second free trade pact formalized in recent months by the government of Shinzo Abe.

According to experts, it allows Japan to advance its pawns in the Asia-Pacific region, while China multiplies initiatives to expand its influence.

“This agreement is changing the regional landscape because there are now two – not just one – regional players that are stepping up their action in economic diplomacy“, said Mireya Solis of the Washington-based Brookings Institution.

Dropping the treaty would have given China carte blanche to make its own regional mega-agreement project, the Regional Integrated Economic Partnership (RCEP), a reference.

Censed to group the 10 countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) and their partners in the region (China, Japan, Australia, India, South Korea, New Zealand), it excludes the United States. United.

Like the CPTPP, the RCEP wants to liberalize trade, but has much less ambition on regulatory standards, particularly environmental and social standards.

For Japan, the challenge was to “develop rules for trade and investment in Asia, and prevent China from doing it,” said Tobias Harris, vice president of Teneo Intelligence advice.

Bring Washington back

Tokyo also intends to counter Beijing on its project “New Silk Roads” (BRI, according to its acronym), a vast program launched in 2013 to finance land and sea infrastructure for more than $ 1 trillion to the rest of Asia, Europe and Africa.

Japan pledged in 2015 to invest $ 110 billion over five years in Asia to develop infrastructure. And the archipelago has partnered with India to promote trade between Asia and Africa, a partnership “which is still lacking substance“, however notes Tobias Harris.

“In the long run, it is important for Japan to cope with China’s strategy and its BRI initiative“, insists Kensuke Yanagida.

For this reason, Japan does not despair of seeing Washington, its historical ally, return one day to the CPPP, thus restoring its initial strength to the treaty.

“We do not know if the United States will come back or not in the agreement, but we hope that one day, they will be part of it“, said the Japanese chief negotiator last month, as the two countries also discuss a bilateral economic agreement.

The new treaty was designed to allow a return of the United States, according to experts, even if it will require the approval of all signatories. It is “an olive branch” stretched to the Americans, summarizes Kensuke Yanagida.