All posts tagged: Economy

Trump faces AI backlash from unions and data-center critics: Analysis

Trump faces AI backlash from unions and data-center critics: Analysis

Published by Sam Flores

Demonstrators march during a protest against artificial intelligence (AI) in San Francisco, California, US, on Saturday, July 11, 2026. Jason Henry | Bloomberg | Getty Images The emerging coalition of religious leaders, labor unions and local activists that worries about artificial intelligence and the broader economic upheaval it portends poses a political problem for anyone who gets on the wrong side of that issue. And President Donald Trump is the person most at risk. AI is positioned right in his blind political spot. The industry and its rapidly developing technology threaten to overwhelm Trump’s often-uncanny ability to sense changes in the political winds and could damage his party’s fortunes in the midterm election and the longer-term legacy he values.  Trump seems aware of the danger, yet can’t help himself from hurtling toward it. On Thursday, he touted commitments by data center developers and utilities not to raise electricity prices, nodding to fears across the country that a surge in data center construction will spike Americans’ energy bills. The pledge is a no-brainer for the likes …

American Express Q2 Profit Rises Driven by Higher Spending and Fewer Delinquencies

American Express Q2 Profit Rises Driven by Higher Spending and Fewer Delinquencies

Published by Sam Flores

Credit card giant American Express said its second-quarter profits rose 8% from a year earlier, helped by higher spending by its card members, fewer delinquencies and more customers signing up for its premium products like the Platinum Card and Gold Card. The New York-based company said Friday it earned $3.11 billion, or $4.53 a share, compared to $2.89 billion, or $4.08 a share, in the same period a year earlier. The results beat analysts’ forecasts, who were looking for AmEx to earn a profit of $4.40 a share, according to FactSet. AmEx continues to benefit from global economic growth that has disproportionately benefited the wealthy and high net worth individuals, as its customer bases skews heavily toward those demographics with the Platinum Card, Gold Card and other high-end credit cards. Its customers often put almost all of their spending on credit cards, and pay those cards off at the end of each month. The average AmEx customers spent $6,759 on their cards in the quarter, up from $6,393 in the same period a year earlier. …

Trump to slap ‘sweeping’ new tariffs on 60 trade partners

Trump to slap ‘sweeping’ new tariffs on 60 trade partners

Published by Sam Flores

US President Donald Trump speaks to reporters after landing in Air Force One on July 19, 2026 in Joint Base Andrews, Maryland. Andrew Harnik | Getty Images The Trump administration will impose new tariffs just after midnight ET Friday on dozens of countries over alleged forced-labor violations, according to a notice in the Federal Register. The duties, set between 10% and 12.5%, will effectively replace President Donald Trump’s temporary 10% global tariffs, which are set to expire at the same time as the new ones take effect. The forthcoming tariffs will apply to 60 trade partners and cover 99.4% of U.S. trade, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative said in a fact sheet Thursday afternoon. The office separately told CNBC that it could not provide an estimate of how much revenue the new tariffs will generate. The move “is the most sweeping international labor rights action the United States has ever taken — that any country has ever taken,” a senior Trump administration official told reporters in a call earlier Thursday. The official noted …

How Sudan war is putting cancer patients at risk | Health News

How Sudan war is putting cancer patients at risk | Health News

Published by Sam Flores

NewsFeed Cancer patients in Sudan are struggling to afford life-saving medicines after free supplies were stopped following the outbreak of war in 2023. Doctors say soaring costs and frequent power cuts are delaying treatment and putting lives at risk. Published On 23 Jul 202623 Jul 2026 Click here to share on social media share-nodes Share googleAdd Al Jazeera on Googleinfo Source link

Iran war energy shock hits U.S. economy, gas and diesel climb: Analysis

Iran war energy shock hits U.S. economy, gas and diesel climb: Analysis

Published by Sam Flores

A person refuels their semitruck at a Pilot Traveler Center in Lockhart, Texas, March 9, 2026. Brandon Bell | Getty Images The U.S. economy is more vulnerable than ever to the problems in energy markets caused by the Iran war. The economy has been remarkably resilient, but the buffers that protected Americans from earlier price spikes are wearing thin.  Bottom line: The war will erode Americans’ standard of living this summer even if the actual fighting stays more contained than during the first phase of the conflict.  From President Donald Trump’s perspective, having kicked off a return to direct conflict with Iran, there is now little he can do to shield Americans from the economic fallout. The White House says the president has been honest with the American people and that prices will fall soon. “As the U.S. military degrades the terrorist Iranian regime’s ability to attack commercial vessels and disrupt the free flow of energy through the Strait of Hormuz, oil and gas prices will plummet back to pre-conflict levels,” Taylor Rogers, a White …

Iran war’s bn price tag: Why does the Pentagon want bn more? | US-Israel war on Iran News

Iran war’s $37bn price tag: Why does the Pentagon want $67bn more? | US-Israel war on Iran News

Published by Sam Flores

United States Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has said that the months-long US-led war on Iran is estimated to have cost about $37.5bn so far, asking for twice that amount to continue fighting. Hegseth provided the estimate during an intense session in Congress on Tuesday while speaking to lawmakers of the Senate Appropriations Committee (SAC), where he attempted to justify additional funding requests for a conflict that Washington claimed to have won months ago. Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of list The new estimates are significantly higher than previous figures Trump administration officials provided between April and June. Democrat and Republican senators grilled Hegseth and General Dan Caine, chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, over the cost of the war and the US’s failure to show results. “Secretary Hegseth, despite your failure to win this war, you are back now before Congress asking for almost $70bn in additional funding,” Senator Gary Peters, a Democrat, said. “You are asking the American people for a blank cheque.” “We need straight answers,” Republican Senator John Kennedy added …

US agency proposes ending racial and gender workforce data collection | Labour Rights News

US agency proposes ending racial and gender workforce data collection | Labour Rights News

Published by Sam Flores

Republican-led EEOC proposal to end workforce diversity reporting heads to public commentary amid sharp criticism. Published On 21 Jul 202621 Jul 2026 The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the chief regulatory agency for enforcing US anti-discrimination laws, has proposed ending a decades-old requirement that US employers submit annual data on the racial and gender breakdown of their workforces. In a 2-1 vote, the Republican majority advanced the proposal, which will now move to a 30-day public comment period before final approval of the measure. The commission is set to hold a public hearing for the measure on August 11. Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of list The reports, known as EEO-1, collect aggregate data of demographics rather than specific identification of workers. They are designed to help the federal government understand employment patterns and trends as well as identify any patterns of systemic discrimination. For the last 60 years, the EEOC has required companies with at least 100 employees or federal contractors with at least 50 workers to submit this data. It is now …

Rachel Reeves left economy in ‘dire straits’ with unemployment high | Politics | News

Rachel Reeves left economy in ‘dire straits’ with unemployment high | Politics | News

Published by Sam Flores

Chancellor John Healey has inherited an economy in “dire straits” from predecessor Rachel Reeves, with unemployment stubbornly high, the Tories have warned. Britain’s overall rate of unemployment held steady at 4.9% in the three months to May, figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed. The number of workers on UK payrolls fell by a better-than-feared 4,000 between May and June to 30.3 million. Job vacancies have fallen back further, as under-pressure small businesses rein in hiring in the face of rising costs and higher wage bills. There were 7,000 fewer vacancies in the quarter to June, at 712,000, following a 19,000 drop in the previous three months. This was driven by smaller businesses, which saw vacancies fall 8,000, though this was partially offset by an increase among medium-sized firms, the ONS said. Andrew Griffith, the Shadow Business Secretary, said: “Today’s figures do not change the fact that the latest Labour Chancellor has inherited an economy in dire straits. “The Employment Rights Act is already increasing costs and complexity for employers, and risks choking …

U.S. condemns China after Philippine sailor injured at disputed shoal

U.S. condemns China after Philippine sailor injured at disputed shoal

Published by Sam Flores

A ship identified by the Philippine Coast Guard as a Chinese research vessel is seen towing a floating structure at Scarborough Shoal in the disputed South China Sea on June 15, 2026. Jam Sta Rosa | Afp | Getty Images The U.S. condemned what it termed China’s “dangerous and aggressive” actions against Philippine navy personnel in the contested South China Sea waters, after Manila said a Chinese coast guard officer repeatedly struck a Filipino sailor on the head with a wooden baton, injuring him and damaging a navy rubber boat. The confrontation in the Second Thomas Shoal on Monday came as U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is scheduled to visit Manila this week for meetings of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations foreign ministers. Tensions in the South China Sea are expected to feature prominently in the discussions, with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi also in attendance. Rubio met Wang on the sidelines of last year’s ASEAN gathering in Malaysia, and the two spoke by phone after President Donald Trump’s Beijing visit earlier this …

Trump imposes 50% US tariffs on some Canadian goods, citing discrimination | International Trade News

Trump imposes 50% US tariffs on some Canadian goods, citing discrimination | International Trade News

Published by Sam Flores

Tariffs apply to Canadian wine, hockey sticks, cement, and other products, sparking fears of escalating trade tensions. Published On 21 Jul 202621 Jul 2026 US President Donald Trump will impose new 50 percent tariffs on many Canadian goods, claiming “discriminatory treatment” by Ottawa against US alcohol, automobile and dairy products. The tariffs, ordered by Trump on Monday, will take effect in 30 days and cover a range of items, including wine, hockey sticks, and cement, according to a White House fact sheet. Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of list Trump, who saw many of his tariffs struck down by the Supreme Court earlier this year, is using an untested legal provision for the new duties: Section 338 of the Tariff Act of 1930. The latest duties will not apply to energy, potash, and goods already impacted by sector-specific tariffs, the White House said. Crucially, however, they will hit products covered under the US-Mexico-Canada free trade agreement (USMCA). Responding to the announcement, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said that the tariffs were a “direct violation” …