By Gwynne Dyer - The only place where some people still see Elon Musk as a political genius is China. “Brother Musk, you’ve got over a billion people on our side backing you,” wrote a fan on Weibo, China’s biggest social media site. “If Elon Musk were to found a political party,” wrote another, “his tech-driven mindset could inject fresh energy into politics.”
The Bank of England is prepared to make larger interest rate cuts if the job market shows signs of slowing down, Governor Andrew Bailey told The Times in an interview. “I really do believe the path is downward” on interest rates, Mr Bailey was quoted..
Inflation figures released last week in Brazil showed the country had pierced the target ceiling for the first time since the National Monetary Council changed early this year the way the accumulated increase is calculated. Without this twitch, the inflation target had already been breached eight times.
Paraguay's total exports in the first half of 2025 saw a 7.6% decline, totaling US$7.83 billion compared to US$8.47 billion in the same period last year, according to a report from the Central Bank of Paraguay (BCP) released Friday in Asunción, which thus showed a trade deficit of US697.9 million, a significant shift from the US$469 million surplus recorded in June 2024.
Brazil's Agriculture Minister Carlos Fávaro held a videoconference with EU Commissioner for Health and Animal Welfare, Olivér Várhelyi, this week to discuss lifting restrictions on the Brazilian chicken meat exports imposed after an outbreak of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) at a commercial farm in Montenegro, Río Grande do Sul, in May.
Brazil's Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (Mapa) has been entrusted with seeking new markets to replace placements that may be affected by US President Donald Trump's 50% tariffs, in a move to minimize the measure's impact, Minister Carlos Fávaro confirmed Thursday.
Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro expressed his respect and admiration for the United States Government after Wednesday's announcement that all Brazilian exports would be slapped with a 50% tariff. The retired Army captain insisted that he took the news with a sense of responsibility.
American Economist Paul Krugman, a New Keynesian expert who once received the Nobel Prize, has been heavily critical of President Donald Trump, saying that the Republican leader was “evil and megalomaniacal” after the 50% tariffs imposed on all Brazilian products and insisted the measure reverberated in his own country.
US President Donald Trump on Tuesday announced a 50% tariff on copper imports and stated he was considering a 200% tariff on pharmaceutical products if manufacturers do not move their operations to the United States. These announcements were made during a cabinet meeting, though no official executive order has yet been published on the White House website.
The 17th BRICS Summit in Rio de Janeiro issued Sunday a new declaration advocating for a two-state solution, one Palestinian and one Israeli, like on previous occasions.