Canada is preparing to impose tariffs on $105 billion worth of US products if the US imposes tariffs first, according to a report from Bloomberg. The move comes as part of an ongoing trade dispute between the two countries. Meanwhile, Italy and Lufthansa have sealed a deal for ITA Airways, a new Italian airline that will operate under the name Alitalia. In other news, the US has tightened controls on advanced chips to curb their flow to China, while China is experiencing its longest deflation streak since the 1960s. The Biden administration has extended protections for Hong Kongers in the US, and luxury groups are pinning their hopes on the US market as sales in China remain weak. Consumer inflation in the US rose in December, but underlying pressures eased.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/international/canada-readies-tariffs-us105-billion-us-products-if-trump-hits-firstUS President-elect Donald Trump's team plans to raise import tariffs by 2-5 percentage points every month to put pressure on US trading partners, according to Bloomberg sources. This approach aims to avoid rising inflation in the US while increasing pressure on countries such as China, which has a significant trade imbalance with the US. The plan is being developed by Treasury Secretary nominee Scott Besant, National Economic Council director Kevin Hassett, and future Council of Economic Advisers chief Stephen Miran. Trump had previously proposed imposing 60% tariffs on Chinese imports in his election manifesto and initiated a trade war with China during his presidency from 2017-2021, imposing tariffs on $370 billion worth of Chinese goods.
https://www.fakti.bg/en/biznes/941587-trump-team-wants-to-increase-import-tariffs-every-monthChinese officials are considering a potential option to sell TikTok's US operations to billionaire Elon Musk if the short-video app fails to fend off a ban in the US, according to Bloomberg News. The talks are preliminary and it is unclear how much ByteDance, TikTok's parent company, is aware of the discussions. Chinese officials prefer that TikTok remain under ByteDance's control but are open to alternative options, including a sale through a competitive process or an arrangement with the government. One scenario involves Musk's social media platform X taking control of TikTok US and running the business together. The talks come as the Supreme Court considers a law that would force a sale or ban of TikTok in the US by January 19 due to national security concerns about China.
https://channelnewsasia.com/business/tiktok-us-ban-china-bytedance-elon-musk-social-media-4856291