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France announced Thursday a record 40 million-euro fine against e-commerce giant Shein over “deceptive commercial practices” after a competition inquiry, saying it misled customers on price deals and on its environmental impact.  The French competition and anti-fraud office said the investigation found Shein used “deceptive commercial practices towards consumers regarding… price reductions”, with the fine handed down with the blessing of the Paris prosecutor’s office.The DGCCRF competition office said the nearly year-long probe found that the firm raised certain prices before lowering them. It added that the China-founded retailer had accepted the fine.”These practices of greatly discounted prices and permanent promotions give consumers the impression they’re getting a great deal,” said the DGCCRF.If found that 11 percent of advertised discounts it checked “were actually price increases”.In 57 percent of cases Shein’s advertised promotions actually offered “no price reduction” and in 19 percent of cases the price drop “less significant than announced”.Launched in France in 2015, Shein has seen phenomenal growth in recent years and took its share in the domestic clothing and footwear last year to three percent from two in 2021 — a significant slice in what is a notably fragmented market.The company, which has become a figurehead for the downside of “ultrafast fashion,” is decried in some quarters for causing environmental pollution as well as indulging in unfair competition and allowing poor working conditions.In a statement to AFP, Shein said it had put into action “without delay” necessary corrective action inside two months on learning of the DGCCRF probe against in March of last year.It added it took its legal and regulatory obligations in France “very seriously”and was committed to transparency. 

Stock markets and the dollar largely steadied Thursday before key US jobs data and as investors kept a close eye on President Donald Trump’s bid to push through a tax-cutting budget.London’s stock market and the pound recovered, having taken a knock Wednesday on rumours that British finance minister Rachel Reeves faced losing her job.Oil prices fell, with OPEC and the cartel’s crude-producing allies expected to announce Sunday a rise to output.”US stock markets made a fresh record high on Wednesday as we lead up to today’s (non-farm) payrolls report,” noted Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB trading group.”A weak jobs reading for June… could see the market step up rate-cut expectations for the US, which may weigh on the dollar,” she added.Thursday’s report comes one day after a smaller survey showed the US private sector unexpectedly shed jobs last month for the first time since March 2023, suggesting the labour market was slackening in the world’s biggest economy.Traders widely expect the Federal Reserve to cut US interest rates twice this year but there is growing speculation that it could make three, with one possibly at the July meeting.Bets on rates coming down — possibly this month but more likely in September or October — are supporting equities.There was a muted response, meanwhile, to a US-Vietnam trade deal.While the pact provided hope that other governments could reach agreements with Washington, dealers were cautious as it emerged that Vietnam must still pay levies of as much as 40 percent for certain exports.The news means Hanoi will avoid paying the 46 percent levies applied on the April 2 tariff blitz, though the cost of goods going into America will still surge.The stock exchanges in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi both dipped Thursday.With less than a week left until Trump’s July 9 deadline to avoid his “reciprocal” levies, only Britain has signed a deal with the US while China has agreed a framework that slashed sky-high tit-for-tat levies.Trump has said he will not push back his deadline to make more deals, though he and some of his officials have said a number were in the pipeline.Elsewhere, US Treasury yields rose amid fresh worries in the bond market over Trump’s “Big, Beautiful Bill” that aims to cut taxes and spending on programmes such as Medicaid.Independent analysis suggests the budget will add $3 trillion to the already-colossal US debt mountain, which observers warn could deal a fresh blow to the world’s top economy.Still, with some Republicans in the House of Representatives holding out over certain features of the bill, there is talk that lawmakers will not be able to get it to Trump’s desk by Friday’s deadline.On the corporate front, France on Thursday announced a record 40 million-euro fine against Chinese e-commerce giant Shein over “deceptive commercial practices”. – Key figures at around 1040 GMT -London – FTSE 100: UP 0.3 percent at 8,804.06 pointsParis – CAC 40: DOWN 0.1 percent at 7,731.61Frankfurt – DAX: UP 0.1 percent at 23,810.41Tokyo – Nikkei 225: UP 0.1 percent at 39,785.90 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.6 percent at 24,069.94 (close)Shanghai – Composite: UP 0.2 percent at 3,461.15 (close)New York – Dow: FLAT at 44,484.42 (close)Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.1799 from $1.1801 on WednesdayPound/dollar: UP at $1.3665 from $1.3634Dollar/yen: UP at 143.78 yen from 143.65 yenEuro/pound: DOWN at 86.35 pence from 86.52 penceWest Texas Intermediate: DOWN 0.3 percent at $67.25 per barrelBrent North Sea Crude: DOWN 0.3 percent at $68.89 per barrel

Vietnam’s trade deal with the United States averts the most punishing of Donald Trump’s “reciprocal” levies but has provoked new friction between Washington and Beijing.Vietnam has the third-biggest trade surplus with the United States of any country after China and Mexico, and was targeted with one of the highest rates in the US president’s “Liberation Day” tariff blitz on April 2.The deal announced Wednesday is the first full pact Trump has sealed with an Asian nation, and analysts say it may give a glimpse of the template Washington will use with other countries still scrambling for accords.The 46 percent rate due to take effect next week has been averted, with Vietnam set to face a minimum 20 percent tariff in return for opening its market to US products including cars.But a 40 percent tariff will hit goods passing through the country to circumvent steeper trade barriers — a practice called “transshipping”.Washington has accused Hanoi of relabelling Chinese goods to skirt its tariffs, but raw materials from the world’s number two economy are the lifeblood of Vietnam’s manufacturing industries.”From a global perspective, perhaps the most interesting point is that this deal again seems in large part to be about China,” said Capital Economics.It said the terms on transshipment “will be seen as a provocation in Beijing, particularly if similar conditions are included in any other deals agreed over coming days”.Beijing’s foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said on Thursday “negotiations and agreements should not target or harm the interests of third parties”.- ‘Wouldn’t celebrate just yet’ -Shares in clothing companies and sport equipment manufacturers — which have a large footprint in Vietnam — rose on news of the deal in New York.But they later declined sharply as details were released.”This is a much better outcome than a flat 46 percent tariff, but I wouldn’t celebrate just yet,” said Hanoi-based Dan Martin, from Asian business advisory firm Dezan Shira & Associates.”Everything now depends on how the US decides to interpret and enforce the idea of transshipment,” he added.”If the US takes a broader view and starts questioning products that use foreign parts, even when value is genuinely added in Vietnam, it could end up affecting a lot of companies that are playing by the rules.”A Vietnam foreign ministry spokesman told reporters on Thursday that negotiators were still “in detailed discussion to concretise agreements”.But there are scant details about the transshipment arrangements in the deal, which Trump announced on his Truth Social platform. “The announced deal gives Vietnam a level of certainty that most other US trading partners do not have,” said American Chamber of Commerce in Hanoi chief Adam Sitkoff.But, he said, “assessing the pros and cons of the deal is difficult without seeing further details about what the tariffs actually mean”. “The answers to these questions can be the difference between celebrating or crying.”- ‘The looming question’ -Bloomberg Economics forecast Vietnam could lose a quarter of its exports to the United States in the medium term, endangering more than two percent of its gross domestic product as a result of the agreement.”The Vietnamese government will now find itself under pressure to ensure that country-of-origin rules are enforced,” explained Jack Sheehan, head of regional tax at Asian legal and tax firm DFDL.But uncertainty over how transshipping will be “defined or enforced” is likely to have diplomatic repercussions, said Bloomberg Economics expert Rana Sajedi.”The looming question now is how China will respond,” she said. “Beijing has made clear that it would respond to deals that came at the expense of Chinese interests.””The decision to agree to a higher tariff on goods deemed to be ‘transshipped’ through Vietnam may fall in that category,” added Sajedi. “Any retaliatory steps could have an outsized impact on Vietnam’s economy.”  

Japan will from January attempt to extract rare earth minerals from the ocean floor in the deepest trial of its kind, the director of a government innovation programme said Thursday.Earlier this week the country pledged to work with the United States, India and Australia to ensure a stable supply of critical minerals, as concern grows over China’s dominance in resources vital to new technologies.Rare earths — 17 metals difficult to extract from the Earth’s crust — are used in everything from electric vehicles to hard drives, wind turbines and missiles.China accounts for almost two-thirds of rare earth mining production and 92 percent of global refined output, according to the International Energy Agency.A Japanese deep-sea scientific drilling boat called the Chikyu will from January conduct a “test cruise” to retrieve ocean floor sediments that contain rare earth elements, said Shoichi Ishii, director of Japan’s Cross-ministerial Strategic Innovation Promotion Programme.”The test to retrieve the sediments from 5,500 metres (3.4 miles) water depth is the first in the world,” he told AFP.”Our goal… of this cruise is to test the function of all mining equipment,” so the amount of sediment extracted “doesn’t matter at all”, Ishii added.The Chikyu will drill in Japanese economic waters around the remote island of Minami Torishima in the Pacific — the easternmost point of Japan, also used as a military base.Japan’s Nikkei business daily reported that the mission aims to extract 35 tonnes of mud from the sea floor over around three weeks.Each tonne is expected to contain around two kilograms (4.4 pounds) of rare earth minerals, which are often used to make magnets that are essential in modern electronics.Deep-sea mining has become a geopolitical flashpoint, with anxiety growing over a push by US President Donald Trump to fast-track the practice in international waters.Beijing has since April required licences to export rare earths from China, a move seen as retaliation for US curbs on the import of Chinese goods.Environmental campaigners warn that deep-sea mining threatens marine ecosystems and will disrupt the sea floor.The International Seabed Authority, which has jurisdiction over the ocean floor outside national waters, is meeting later this month to discuss a global code to regulate mining in the ocean depths.

Stocks mostly rose Thursday and the dollar fell as investors eye US jobs data that could play a key role in the Federal Reserve’s interest rate policy, while investors gave a lukewarm reception to the US-Vietnam trade deal.Attention was also on Washington as Republicans struggled to push Donald Trump’s tax-slashing budget bill through the House of Representatives amid warnings it will inflate an already ballooning national debt.Investors are keenly awaiting the non-farm payrolls figures due later Thursday as they increase bets on Fed rate cuts.The report comes a day after news that the private sector unexpectedly shed jobs last month for the first time since March 2023, suggesting the labour market was slackening.Traders widely expect the bank to cut rates twice this year but there is growing speculation that it could make three, with one possibly at the July meeting.”Payrolls is the focus (Thursday), where consensus is for a 110,000 payrolls gain and a slight lift in the unemployment rate to 4.3 percent,” said National Australia Bank’s Taylor Nugent.”It would take more than that to dent (policy board) members’ comfort (that) the labour market is resilient enough to wait beyond July for more clarity on inflation and the outlook.”Bets on rates coming down — possibly this month but more likely in September or October — lifted most equities.Tokyo, Shanghai, Singapore, Seoul, Taipei, Manila, Mumbai, Bangkok and Jakarta edged up with London, Paris and Frankfurt.But Hong Kong and Wellington fell while Sydney was flat.There was a muted response to the US-Vietnam trade deal.While the pact provided hope that other governments could reach agreements with Washington, dealers were cautious as it emerged that Vietnam must still pay tolls of as much as 40 percent for certain exports.With less than a week left until the US president’s July 9 deadline to avoid his “reciprocal” levies, only Britain has signed a deal with the United States while China has agreed a framework that slashed sky-high tit-for-tat levies.The news means Hanoi will avoid paying the 46 percent tolls initially applied on the April 2 tariff blitz, though the cost of goods going into America will still surge.The stock exchanges in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi both dipped.Trump said this week he will not push back his deadline to make more deals, though he and some of his officials have said a number were in the pipeline.South Korean President Lee Jae Myung said Thursday his administration was doing its “utmost” to secure an agreement but warned “it’s certainly not easy, that much is clear”.”I can’t say with confidence that we’ll be able to wrap everything up” by the deadline. Still, firms that make goods in Vietnam to ship to the United States enjoyed gains, with Seoul-listed packaged food giant Daesang in the green along with the Hong Kong shares of Nike supplier Yue Yuen. Glover-maker Ansell also edged up in Sydney.US Treasury yields rose amid fresh worries in the bond market over Trump’s “Big, Beautiful Bill” that aims to cut taxes and spending on programmes such as Medicaid.Independent analysis suggests it will add $3 trillion to the already-colossal US debt mountain, which observers warn could deal a fresh blow to the world’s top economy.Still, with some Republicans in the House of Representatives holding out over certain features of the bill, there is talk that lawmakers will not be able to get it to Trump’s desk by the July 4 deadline he has set.- Key figures at around 0810 GMT -Tokyo – Nikkei 225: UP 0.1 percent at 39,785.90 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.6 percent at 24,069.94 (close)Shanghai – Composite: UP 0.2 percent at 3,461.15 (close)London – FTSE 100: UP 0.5 percent at 8,817.65Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1802 from $1.1801 on WednesdayPound/dollar: UP at $1.3655 from $1.3634Dollar/yen: UP at 143.90 yen from 143.65 yenEuro/pound: DOWN at 86.42 pence from 86.52 penceWest Texas Intermediate: DOWN 0.9 percent at $66.85 per barrelBrent North Sea Crude: DOWN 0.8 percent at $68.54 per barrelNew York – Dow: FLAT at 44,484.42 (close)

Vietnam’s trade deal with the United States averts the most punishing of Donald Trump’s “reciprocal” levies but analysts warned it could provoke a fresh standoff between Washington and Beijing.The Southeast Asian nation has the third-biggest trade surplus with the United States of any country after China and Mexico, and was targeted with one of the highest rates in the US president’s “Liberation Day” tariff blitz on April 2.The deal announced Wednesday is the first full pact Trump has sealed with an Asian nation, and analysts say it may give a glimpse of the template Washington will use with other countries still scrambling for accords.The 46 percent rate due to take effect next week has been averted, with Vietnam set to face a minimum 20 percent tariff in return for opening its market to US products including cars.But a 40 percent tariff will hit goods passing through the country to circumvent steeper trade barriers — a practice called “transshipping”.Washington has accused Hanoi of relabelling Chinese goods to skirt its tariffs, but raw materials from the world’s number two economy are the lifeblood of Vietnam’s manufacturing industries.”From a global perspective, perhaps the most interesting point is that this deal again seems in large part to be about China,” said Capital Economics.It said the terms on transshipment “will be seen as a provocation in Beijing, particularly if similar conditions are included in any other deals agreed over coming days”.- ‘The looming question’ -Shares in clothing companies and sport equipment manufacturers — which have a large footprint in Vietnam — rose on news of the deal in New York.But they later declined sharply as details were released.”This is a much better outcome than a flat 46 percent tariff, but I wouldn’t celebrate just yet,” said Hanoi-based Dan Martin of Asian business advisory firm Dezan Shira & Associates.”Everything now depends on how the US decides to interpret and enforce the idea of transshipment,” he added.”If the US takes a broader view and starts questioning products that use foreign parts, even when value is genuinely added in Vietnam, it could end up affecting a lot of companies that are playing by the rules.”Vietnam’s government said in a statement late on Wednesday that under the deal the country had promised “preferential market access for US goods, including large-engine cars”.But the statement gave scant detail about the transshipment arrangements in the deal, which Trump announced on his Truth Social platform. Bloomberg Economics forecast Vietnam could lose a quarter of its exports to the United States in the medium term, endangering more than two percent of its gross domestic product as a result of the agreement.Uncertainty over how transshipping will be “defined or enforced” is likely to have diplomatic repercussions, said Bloomberg Economics expert Rana Sajedi.”The looming question now is how China will respond,” she said. “Beijing has made clear that it would respond to deals that came at the expense of Chinese interests.””The decision to agree to a higher tariff on goods deemed to be ‘transshipped’ through Vietnam may fall in that category,” added Sajedi. “Any retaliatory steps could have an outsized impact on Vietnam’s economy.”  

Stocks struggled in Asia on Thursday as investors gave a lukewarm reception to the US-Vietnam trade deal, while the dollar eased ahead of key US jobs data that could impact Federal Reserve interest rates plans.Attention was also on Washington as Republicans struggled to push Donald Trump’s tax-slashing budget bill through the House of Representatives amid warnings it will inflate an already ballooning national debt.While the Vietnam agreement provided hope that other governments can reach agreements with Washington, dealers were cautious as it emerged that the country must still pay tolls of as much as 40 percent for certain exports.With less than a week left until the US president’s July 9 deadline to hammer out pacts to avoid his “reciprocal” levies, just three countries have done so — stoking worries his “Liberation Day” measures will kick in and spark fresh market turmoil.In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump wrote: “It is my Great Honor to announce that I have just made a Trade Deal with the Socialist Republic of Vietnam after speaking with To Lam, the Highly Respected General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam.”He said that under the “Great Deal of Cooperation”, imports of Vietnamese goods will face a 20 percent US tariff, while goods that pass through Vietnam to circumvent steeper trade barriers — so-called “transshipping” — will see a 40 percent tariff.The news means Hanoi will avoid paying the 46 percent tolls initially applied on the April 2 tariff blitz, though the cost of goods going into America will still surge.Hanoi traders were unimpressed, with the Vietnamese capital’s stock market down in early trade.A third record close in four days for Wall Street’s S&P 500 and Nasdaq also did little to lift buying sentiment elsewhere in Asia, with Hong Kong, Shanghai, Tokyo, Sydney and Wellington all falling.Singapore, Seoul, Taipei, Manila and Jakarta edged up.Trump said this week he will not push back his deadline to make more deals though he and some of his officials have said a number were in the pipeline.South Korean President Lee Jae Myung said Thursday his administration was doing its “utmost” to secure an agreement. However, he warned that “it’s certainly not easy, that much is clear. And to be honest, I can’t say with confidence that we’ll be able to wrap everything up” by the deadline. The dollar continued to struggle as traders boosted rate cut bets after data showed the private sector unexpectedly shed jobs last month for the first time since March 2023, suggesting the labour market was slackening.The reading came a day before the much-anticipated non-farm payrolls report that is used by the Fed to guide policy.Traders widely expect the bank to cut rates twice this year but there is growing speculation that it could make three, with one possibly at the July meeting.”Payrolls is the focus (Thursday), where consensus is for a 110,000 payrolls gain and a slight lift in the unemployment rate to 4.3 percent,” said National Australia Bank’s Taylor Nugent.”It would take more than that to dent (policy board) members’ comfort (that) the labour market is resilient enough to wait beyond July for more clarity on inflation and the outlook.”Meanwhile, US Treasury yields rose amid fresh worries in the bond market over Trump’s “Big, Beautiful Bill” that cuts taxes as well as spending on programmes such as Medicaid.Independent analysis suggests it will add $3 trillion to the already-colossal US debt mountain, which observers warn could deal a fresh blow to the world’s top economy.- Key figures at around 0230 GMT -Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.1 percent at 39,732.63 (break)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 1.1 percent at 23,948.73Shanghai – Composite: DOWN 0.1 percent at 3,450.80Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1808 from $1.1801 on WednesdayPound/dollar: UP at $1.3650 from $1.3634Dollar/yen: DOWN at 143.58 yen from 143.65 yenEuro/pound: DOWN at 86.50 pence from 86.52 penceWest Texas Intermediate: DOWN 0.9 percent at $66.85 per barrelBrent North Sea Crude: DOWN 0.9 percent at $68.48 per barrelNew York – Dow: FLAT at 44,484.42 (close)London – FTSE 100: DOWN 0.1 percent at 8,774.69 (close)

Major US stock indices closed at fresh records Wednesday following a US-Vietnam trade deal, while oil prices jumped after Iran suspended cooperation with the UN nuclear watchdog.Both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq finished at records for the third time in four days after Trump reached an accord with Vietnam. “Little by little, we are coming to agreements,” said Sam Stovall of CFRA Research. This “should be regarded as positive.”The Vietnam announcement bolsters hopes about additional US trade accords and helped offset a report that showed private-sector US employers shed 33,000 jobs in June. The strong performance in US stocks also came in spite of a rise in US Treasury yields that suggests unease in the bond market as Congress weighs Trump’s massive tax and spending package that has been projected to swell US debt.Optimism over the bill’s extension of deep tax cuts has been offset by concerns it will add around $3 trillion to the US national debt.”It’s driven a wedge between stocks and bonds,” said Jack Ablin of Cresset Capital Management. “Equity markets are applauding the tax cuts… bond markets are concerned about the long-term effects.”In Europe, London’s FTSE 100 ended the day down 0.1 percent and the pound lost around one percent against the dollar on speculation over the future of British finance minister Rachel Reeves.Reeves appeared visibly upset in parliament a day after Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s Labour government U-turned over key welfare reforms, wiping out a multibillion-pound boost to public finances and triggering speculation that she could lose her job.”The prospect of political turmoil is causing bond yields to rise. The market is pricing in the possibility of a replacement chancellor with a more left-leaning agenda, which is spooking the bond market and waking up the bond vigilantes from their slumber,” said Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB.Brooks added that axing Reeves would be “a strange choice” from a market perspective.Oil prices jumped about three percent as analysts cited a revived chance of fighting between Iran and Israel.On June 25, a day after a ceasefire took hold between the two countries, Iranian lawmakers voted overwhelmingly to suspend cooperation with the Vienna-based IAEA. State media confirmed on Wednesday the legislation had now taken effect.Washington, which has been pressing Tehran to resume the negotiations that were interrupted by Israel’s military action on June 13, said the Iranian decision was “unacceptable.””We’ll use the word unacceptable, that Iran chose to suspend cooperation with the IAEA at a time when it has a window of opportunity to reverse course and choose a path of peace and prosperity,” State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce said.- Key figures at around 2040 GMT -New York – Dow: FLAT at 44,484.42 (close)New York – S&P 500: UP 0.5 percent at 6,227.42 (close)New York – Nasdaq: UP 0.9 percent at 20,393.13 (close)London – FTSE 100: DOWN 0.1 percent at 8,774.69 (close)Paris – CAC 40: UP 1.0 percent at 7,738.42 (close)Frankfurt – DAX: UP 0.5 percent at 23,790.11 (close)Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.6 percent at 39,762.48 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: UP 0.6 percent at 24,221.41 (close)Shanghai – Composite: DOWN 0.1 percent at 3,454.79 (close)Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.1801 from $1.1806 on TuesdayPound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3634 from $1.3746Dollar/yen: UP at 143.65 yen from 143.42 yenEuro/pound: UP at 86.52 pence from 85.88 penceBrent North Sea Crude: UP 3.0 percent at $69.11 per barrelWest Texas Intermediate: UP 3.1 percent at $67.45 per barrelburs-jmb/acb

President Donald Trump announced Wednesday that he had struck a trade deal with Vietnam under which the country would face a minimum 20 percent tariff and open its market to US products.The deal comes less than a week before Trump’s self-imposed July 9 deadline for steeper tariffs on US trade partners to take effect if agreements are not reached.Shares in clothing companies and sport equipment manufacturers — which have a large footprint in Vietnam — rose on the news, but later declined sharply after the president released details including the continued tariffs, which were higher than expected.If confirmed, the terms of the agreement will significantly increase the price of shoes and clothing that Vietnam exports to the United States, but Hanoi escapes the threat of the more severe 46 percent tariff threatened by Trump in April.”It is my Great Honor to announce that I have just made a Trade Deal with the Socialist Republic of Vietnam after speaking with To Lam, the Highly Respected General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.He said that under the “Great Deal of Cooperation,” imports of Vietnamese goods will face a 20 percent US tariff, while goods that pass through Vietnam to circumvent steeper trade barriers — so-called “transshipping” — will see a 40 percent tariff.- ‘Total Access’ -Trump’s trade advisor Peter Navarro has called Vietnam a “colony of China,” saying that one third of Vietnamese products are in fact relabelled Chinese goods.Trump said that “in return, Vietnam will do something that they have never done before, give the United States of America TOTAL ACCESS to their Markets for Trade,” he said.”In other words, they will ‘OPEN THEIR MARKET TO THE UNITED STATES,’ meaning that we will be able to sell our product into Vietnam at ZERO Tariff.”The president said he believed US-made SUVs, “which do so well in the United States, will be a wonderful addition to the various product lines within Vietnam.”In a government statement, Vietnam confirmed that negotiating teams had come to an agreement to address the reciprocal tariff issue, but did not detail any tariff terms.Trump “affirmed that the US will significantly reduce reciprocal taxes for many Vietnamese export goods and will continue to cooperate with Vietnam in resolving difficulties affecting bilateral trade relations, especially in areas prioritized by both sides,” the statement said.Trump’s announcement comes a week before the threatened US reimposition of steep tariffs on dozens of economies, including the European Union and Japan, many of which are still scrambling to reach deals that would protect them from the measures.Those higher tariffs are part of a package Trump initially imposed in April, citing a lack of “reciprocity” in trading relationships, before announcing a temporary lowering to 10 percent.Without a deal, Vietnam’s “reciprocal tariff” would have risen from the baseline 10 percent to 46 percent.Since April, Washington had so far only announced a pact with Britain and a deal to temporarily lower retaliatory duties with China.Both involve the United States maintaining some of Trump’s tariffs on the trading partners.The terms of the UK deal are more narrowly focused than those announced by Trump with Vietnam, with London and Washington agreeing to cut US tariffs on cars from 27.5 percent to 10 percent, with a limit of 100,000 vehicles a year.It also fully eliminated the 10 percent tariff on goods such as engines and aircraft parts. In return, Britain agreed to further open its market to US ethanol and beef.

Wall Street on Wednesday largely shrugged off data showing an unexpected drop in US private sector jobs and US President Donald Trump ruling out a fresh tariffs delay.Meanwhile, the pound fell around one percent against the dollar amid speculation about the future of British finance minister Rachel Reeves.The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite were both higher in late morning trading despite data showing the US private sector unexpectedly losing 33,000 jobs in June, a potential sign of labour market weakness due to the prospect of high tariffs on key US trading partners snapping into place next week.It was the first such decline in recent years, in data that will be scrutinised ahead of government data on the US jobs market due to be released on Thursday.A week before the 90-day pause on the imposition of stiff new US tariffs ends, few governments have struck deals to avert the levies, though White House officials say several are in the pipeline.And while the administration had set July 9 as the deadline to finalise pacts, investors largely expect that to be pushed back or countries given extra time.However, the president said Tuesday he was “not thinking about the pause” and again warned he would end negotiations or hike some duties.”While markets suspect another last-minute climbdown, any renewed trade tension still poses a headwind for the dollar,” said Fawad Razaqzada, market analyst with City Index and FOREX.com.Investors were also tracking Trump’s signature budget bill, which faces an uncertain final vote in the US House of Representatives.Optimism over an extension to deep tax cuts has been offset by concerns it add around $3 trillion to the US national debt.In Europe, London’s FTSE-100 ended the day down 0.1 percent and the pound lost around one percent against the dollar on speculation over the future of British finance minister Rachel Reeves.Reeves appeared visibly upset in parliament a day after Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s Labour government U-turned over key welfare reforms, wiping out a multibillion-pound boost to public finances and triggering speculation that she could lose her job.”The prospect of political turmoil is causing bond yields to rise. The market is pricing in the possibility of a replacement chancellor with a more left-leaning agenda, which is spooking the bond market and waking up the bond vigilantes from their slumber,” said Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB.Brooks added that axing Reeves would be “a strange choice” from a market perspective.Oil prices rose around one percent as crude-producer Iran suspended cooperation with the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog, days after a ceasefire in a war that saw Israeli and US strikes on nuclear sites in the Islamic republic.On the corporate front Wednesday, shares in Tesla rose 4.4 percent despite reporting another hefty drop, of 13.5 percent, in auto sales, extending a difficult period amid intensifying electric vehicle competition and backlash over CEO Elon Musk’s political activities.- Key figures at around 1530 GMT -New York – Dow: FLAT at 44,508.53 pointsNew York – S&P 500: UP 0.2 percent at 6,210.65New York – Nasdaq: UP 0.7 percent at 20,340.77London – FTSE 100: DOWN 0.1 percent at 8,774.69 (close)Paris – CAC 40: UP 1.0 percent at 7,738.42 (close)Frankfurt – DAX: UP 0.5 percent at 23,790.11 (close)Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.6 percent at 39,762.48 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: UP 0.6 percent at 24,221.41 (close)Shanghai – Composite: DOWN 0.1 percent at 3,454.79 (close)Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.1783 from $1.1806 on TuesdayPound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3614 from $1.3740Dollar/yen: UP at 143.85 yen from 143.41 yenEuro/pound: UP at 86.53 pence from 85.87 penceBrent North Sea Crude: UP 1.0 percent at $67.77 per barrelWest Texas Intermediate: UP 0.8 percent at $65.98 per barrelburs-rl/cw