09 June, 2025 : Chinese consumer prices fell for the fourth straight month in May, data showed Monday, as the worlds second biggest economy struggles with sluggish spending and global trade turmoil. Beijing has failed to boost sluggish domestic consumption since the end of the pandemic, threatening official growth targets and complicating its ability to shield its economy from US President Donald Trumps tariff blitz. Representatives from the two countries are expected to meet on Monday in London for more high-stakes trade talks being closely watched for signs of a lasting deal on reducing levies. Chinas consumer price index -- a key measure of inflation -- dropped 0.1 percent year on year in May, according to statistics published Monday by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). The reading was unchanged from April but slightly better than the 0.2 percent fall forecast in a Bloomberg survey of economists. While deflation suggests the cost of goods is falling, it poses a threat to the broader economy as consumers tend to postpone purchases under such conditions, hoping for further reductions. A lack of demand can then force companies to cut production, freeze hiring or lay off workers, while potentially also having to discount existing stocks -- dampening profitability even as costs remain the same. "China continues to face persistent deflationary pressure," Zhiwei Zhang, president and chief economist at Pinpoint Asset Management, wrote in a note, adding that Beijing "needs to rely on domestic demand to fight the deflation". Zhang said exports continued to perform well and support the economy, while warning that they will "probably slow as the frontloading fades out" -- a reference to overseas buyers increasing shipments ahead of potentially higher tariffs. Trade figures for last month due later on Monday will also shed light on how the countrys exporters are faring. Deepening a slump that has now lasted more than two years, factory gate prices also dropped in May, the NBS said Monday. The producer price index declined 3.3 percent, accelerating from a 2.7 percent drop in April, and faster than the 3.2 percent estimated in the Bloomberg survey. The China-US talks in London will mark the second round of formal negotiations between the worlds two largest economies since Trump launched his global trade blitz in April. The first round of talks was held in mid-May in Geneva and saw them pause sky-high tariffs but fail to reach a sweeping trade deal. The latest negotiations are expected to include Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick. They were announced after a phone call last week between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping, which the US president described as "very good".
09 June, 2025 : Chinese exports grew slower than expected in May, according to official data Monday, as shipments to the United States tumbled amid global trade turmoil triggered by Donald Trumps tariff blitz. The figures also showed imports suffered a forecast-beating drop, with weak domestic consumption in the worlds number two economy highlighted by data earlier in the day revealing another month of falling prices. The 4.8 percent year-on-year drop in overseas shipments last month was an improvement on April but bigger than the 6.0 percent forecast in a survey of economists by Bloomberg. The reading included a 12.7 percent plunge in exports to the United States compared with April, when Trump unveiled his eye-watering tariffs on China. Imports from the US tanked 17.9 percent after Beijing imposed tit-for-tat measures. Exports tumbled by a third year-on-year in May. In contrast, the data showed shipments to Vietnam increased from the previous month. Those to other Southeast Asian countries including Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore and Indonesia all declined slightly after soaring in April, the figures indicated. "The trade war between China and the US led to sharply lower exports to the US, but the damage was offset by stronger exports to other countries," Zhiwei Zhang, resident and Chief Economist at Pinpoint Asset Management, said in a note. "The trade outlook remains highly uncertain at this stage," he added, pointing to the impact of "frontloading", when overseas buyers increase shipments ahead of potentially higher tariffs. Mondays readings added to concerns about the Chinese economy, with a report from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showing the consumer price index -- a key measure of inflation -- dropped 0.1 percent year on year in May. The reading, which was slightly better than expected but marks the fourth straight month of falling prices, comes as Beijing struggles to boost the sluggish domestic consumption seen since the end of the pandemic. Leaders failure to kickstart demand threatens their official growth targets and complicates their ability to shield its economy from Trumps tariff blitz. While deflation suggests the cost of goods is falling, it poses a threat to the broader economy as consumers tend to postpone purchases under such conditions, hoping for further reductions. A lack of demand can then force companies to cut production, freeze hiring or lay off workers, while potentially also having to discount existing stocks -- dampening profitability even as costs remain the same. Deepening a slump that has now lasted more than two years, factory gate prices also dropped in May, the NBS said Monday. The producer price index decline of 3.3 percent -- accelerating from a 2.7 percent drop in April -- was faster than the 3.2 percent estimated in the Bloomberg survey. Representatives from China and the United States are expected to meet on Monday in London for another round of high-stakes trade talks markets hope will ease tensions between the economic superpowers. A key issue in the negotiations will be Beijings shipments of rare earths, crucial to a range of goods including electric vehicle batteries and which have been a bone of contention between the two for some time. Figures Monday showed Chinese exports of 17 minerals rose last month to 5,865 from 4,785 tons in April. The London talks will be the second set of formal negotiations between the two since Trump launched his global trade blitz on April 2. They were announced after a phone call last week between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping, which the US president described as "very good". The first round, held in mid-May in Geneva, saw the two pause sky-high tariffs but fail to reach a sweeping trade deal.
09 June, 2025 : Around 7,74,756 rawhides from sacrificial animals have been salted and preserved in 11 districts of Chattogram division, mainly at madrasahs, orphanages, and Lillah boardings. Of these, 7,00,454 rawhides are from cows and buffaloes, and 74,302 from goats, according a press release issued by the Ministry of Commerce here. The government provided 30,000 metric tons of salt free of cost to these institutions across the country. Local administrations oversaw the preservation to help maintain the value of rawhides and support orphans during this Eid-ul-Azha. This amount of salt is expected to keep the hides usable for 2 to 3 months.
09 June, 2025 : Demonstrators torched cars and scuffled with security forces in Los Angeles on Sunday as police kept protestors away from the National Guard troops President Donald Trump sent to the streets of the second biggest US city. Unrest broke out for a third day, with protestors angry at action by immigration officials that have resulted in dozens of arrests of what authorities say are illegal migrants and gang members. The raids -- which began in broad daylight in a city with a large Latino population -- were always likely to spark reaction among the public in the liberal city. But opponents say Trump, who has made clamping down on illegal migration a key plank of his second term, was deliberately stoking tensions with his deployment of Californias National Guard, a stand-by military usually controlled by the states governor, Gavin Newsom. "We didnt have a problem until Trump got involved," Newsom wrote on X. "This is a serious breach of state sovereignty - inflaming tensions while pulling resources from where theyre actually needed. Rescind the order. Return control to California," he added. At least three self-driving Waymo cars were burning on Sunday afternoon, with two others vandalised as protestors roamed around a limited area in downtown Los Angeles. Traffic was halted on a key freeway for over an hour while scores of people thronged the roadway. They were moved off by California Highway Patrol officers, who used flash-bangs and smoke grenades. But after a limited early confrontation between federal agents from the Department of Homeland Security and a few dozen protestors at a detention center, the clashes all involved local law enforcement. By early afternoon LAPD officers established containment lines some distance from federal buildings, preventing contact between angry demonstrators and the scores of armed National Guardsmen from the 79th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, who had gathered in helmets and camouflage gear. - Troops everywhere - Trump, asked about the use of troops, was unrepentant, hinting instead at a more widespread deployment in other parts of the country. "You have violent people, and we are not going to let them get away with it," he told reporters. "I think youre going to see some very strong law and order." Responding to a question about invoking the Insurrection Act -- which would allow the military to be used as a domestic police force -- Trump said: "Were looking at troops everywhere. Were not going to let this happen to our country." US Northern Command, part of the Department of Defense responsible for national defense, said "approximately 500 Marines...are in a prepared to deploy status should they be necessary to augment and support" the ongoing federal operations. The National Guard is frequently used in natural disasters, and occasionally in instances of civil unrest, but almost always with the consent of local authorities. Trumps deployment of the force -- the first over the head of a state governor since 1965 -- was criticised by Democrats, including former vice president Kamala Harris who called it "a dangerous escalation meant to provoke chaos." - Intimidation - But Republicans lined up behind Trump to dismiss the pushback. "I have no concern about that at all," said House Speaker Mike Johnson, accusing Newsom of "an inability or unwillingness to do what is necessary". Demonstrators told AFP the purpose of the troops did not appear to be to keep order. "I think its an intimidation tactic," Thomas Henning said. "These protests have been peaceful. Theres no one trying to do any sort of damage right now and yet you have the National Guard with loaded magazines and large guns standing around trying to intimidate Americans from exercising our first amendment rights." Estrella Corral said demonstrators were angry that hard-working migrants who have done nothing wrong were being snatched by masked immigration agents. "This is our community, and we want to feel safe," she told AFP. "Trump deploying the National Guard is ridiculous. I think hes escalating, hes trying to make a show for his agenda." Marshall Goldberg, 78, told AFP that deploying Guardsmen made him feel "so offended." "We hate what theyve done with the undocumented workers, but this is moving it to another level of taking away the right to protest and the right to just peaceably assemble," he said. Raids by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency in other US cities have triggered small-scale protests in recent months, but the Los Angeles unrest is the biggest and most sustained against Trumps immigration policies so far. A CBS News poll taken before the Los Angeles protests showed a slight majority of Americans still approved of the immigration crackdown.