|  | | | | | | | | | | | | | Business | | | | | | Trump dismissed fears of a protracted trade war with China despite a warning from Beijing that labeling it a currency manipulator would have severe consequences for the global financial order. Trump, who announced last week he would slap a 10% tariff on a further $300 billion in Chinese imports starting on Sept. 1, tweeted that “massive amounts of money from China and other parts of the world” were pouring into the U.S. economy. U.S. farmers, a key political constituency for Trump, have been among the hardest hit in the trade war. Shipments of soybeans, the most valuable U.S. farm export, to top buyer China sank to a 16-year low in 2018. | | | | | | | | A disorderly no-deal Brexit would disrupt some food supplies for weeks or months if delays at ports leave fresh produce rotting in trucks, the industry’s trade body warned. Retailers such as Tesco have warned that leaving the European Union on October 31 without a trade deal would be hugely problematic for the industry as much of the fresh produce is imported and warehouses are stocked full ahead of Christmas. | | | | Sink or swim: Chinese port plans put Pacific back in play. The World War II site in Asau, which also hosts a 1960s-era concrete wharf in its well-protected natural harbor, is being considered for a new port to be developed by China, according to the Samoan government and the area’s highest ranking chief, Masoe Serota Tufaga. The proposed construction of a facility that could be turned into a military asset in hostile times has worried the United States and its regional allies, which have dominated international influence in the vast waters of the South Pacific since 1945.
| | | | | | | | | | | | | Earnings | | Japan’s SoftBank Group raked in a better-than-expected quarterly operating profit as it saw a leap in investing gains from its $100 billion Vision Fund. The group’s results have been increasingly volatile as founder and Chief Executive Masayoshi Son shifts focus from the predictable income of telecoms in favor of bets, through its mega fund, on fast-growing startups with shifting valuations. 2 min read | | | | Japan’s Toshiba reported a 10-fold jump in first-quarter operating profit as it stepped up cost cuts across divisions, but the profit missed analyst estimates. Toshiba, however, is still struggling to grow profits in businesses that it sees as the next growth drivers, such as batteries, power management devices and medical equipment. 2 Min Read | | | | Walt Disney reported a steeper earnings decline than Wall Street expected as the company poured money into its ambitious plunge into streaming media and began folding in assets purchased from Twenty-First Century Fox. 4 min read | | | | | | | | | | | | | Top Stories on Reuters TV | | | | | | | |
