2025-04-02 20:58
WASHINGTON, April 2 (Reuters) - U.S. Democratic senators on Wednesday urged Energy Secretary Chris Wright to follow the laws that require his department to fund clean energy projects included in laws passed before Donald Trump became president, including four hydrogen hubs. Wright's department is weighing funding cuts to four of seven of the hubs in a $7 billion program that is part of former President Joe Biden's effort to decarbonize the U.S. economy. The hubs are intended to jumpstart the production of "clean hydrogen" and infrastructure needed to get it to steelmakers, cement plants and other industrial users. Sign up here. The senators are concerned that the department is seeking to defund projects including the hubs, carbon capture, critical minerals, and battery storage that have already received grant and loan funding from the Inflation Reduction Act, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, and annual appropriations bills, signed by Biden. Washington has slashed funding for clean energy projects since Trump took office in January. His administration is prioritizing production of fossil fuels including oil, gas and coal, as part of its "energy dominance" agenda. "Our Constitution gives Congress the power of the purse and exclusive power to appropriate funds," Senators Martin Heinrich, Patty Murray and about 25 of their fellow Democrats said in a letter, a copy of which was seen by Reuters, sent to Wright, a Republican. "Once a law is properly enacted, the Constitution requires the President to 'take Care that the Laws be faithfully executed,'" it said. The senators said a president cannot substitute policy preferences for requirements in law, and cannot refuse to spend funds Congress requires an administration to spend. The DOE did not immediately respond to a request for comment. It has said previously that it is conducting a department-wide review of projects. https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/climate-energy/us-senators-urge-energy-secretary-follow-law-clean-energy-grants-loans-2025-04-02/
2025-04-02 20:55
April 2 (Reuters) - The dollar weakened against the euro and turned higher against the yen on Wednesday as U.S. President Donald Trump began a long awaited announcement of sweeping new tariffs that look certain to escalate a trade war with global partners, increase prices and upend a decades-old trade order. In late trade after Trump reiterated the United States would impose 25% tariffs on foreign-made autos, the euro extended a rise to $1.0895, up 0.92%, while the dollar turned 0.38% higher against the yen to 150.20 yen. Sign up here. (This story has been corrected to fix the headline and text to say that the dollar extended a gain against the yen, not turned higher) https://www.reuters.com/markets/currencies/dollar-turns-higher-against-yen-trump-announces-tariffs-2025-04-02/
2025-04-02 20:49
Democrats question Trump's influence on SEC via World Liberty Financial Trump family controls 75% of World Liberty's token revenues SEC's crypto task force led by pro-crypto Commissioner Peirce Democrats seek SEC records on Trump's crypto ties WASHINGTON, April 2 (Reuters) - A pair of top Democratic lawmakers asked the U.S. securities regulator on Wednesday to preserve records related to President Donald Trump’s crypto venture World Liberty Financial and posed questions about potential conflicts of interest. In a letter sent to acting Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Mark Uyeda, seen by Reuters, lawmakers requested information to “help us better understand the extent to which the Trump family’s financial interest in World Liberty Financial may be influencing your and the Commission’s activities.” Sign up here. Senator Elizabeth Warren, the ranking member of the U.S. Senate’s banking committee, and Representative Maxine Waters, the ranking member of the U.S. House of Representatives’ financial services committee, signed the letter, which cited a Reuters report this week about the crypto project. Republicans have a majority in both the U.S. House and Senate, which limits the ability of Democrats to call formal public hearings and conduct investigations. The congressional members’ letter to the SEC does not cite any legal authority that would compel the agency to abide by its requests. A White House spokesperson said in an emailed statement that "President Trump’s assets are in a trust managed by his children. There are no conflicts of interest." The House Financial Services Committee, led by Republicans, on Wednesday considered legislation that would regulate the broader adoption of crypto stablecoins. The Trump White House has identified promoting their use as a legislative priority. Reuters published a story on Monday documenting how, as World Liberty Financial raised more than half a billion dollars in recent months, Trump’s family took control of the crypto venture and grabbed the lion’s share of those funds, aided by governance terms that industry experts say favor insiders. Overall, the Trump family now has a claim on 75% of net revenues from token sales of World Liberty, and 60% from operations once the core “decentralized finance” business gets going. The arrangement means the Trump family is currently entitled to about $400 million in fees, Reuters reported. “It’s disappointing that Senator Warren is attempting to weaponize the power of the government to continue to harass and target the Trump family and our project," a World Liberty Financial spokesperson said in an emailed statement. "What’s implied in the letter is completely disgusting, false, and dangerous. She has been a vocal and consistent opponent of the crypto industry for years, but Luddites with political vendettas won’t stop us from building and deploying a world-class platform that can benefit millions.” President Trump's three sons, all of whom were named in the letter, did not respond to direct requests for comment. The same was true for World Liberty co-founders listed in the letter, including a pair of crypto entrepreneurs; Steve Witkoff, the Trump administration’s envoy to the Mideast; and one of Witkoff's sons. A spokesperson for the SEC said in a statement to Reuters that, "Acting Chairman Uyeda will respond to Members of Congress directly." 'UNPRECEDENTED FINANCIAL TIES' The lawmakers’ letter requests that the SEC preserve and provide copies of any records or communications from the White House to the SEC regarding World Liberty, with a list of more than half a dozen Trump family members and their business partners. It asks what procedures might be in place to “prevent the Trump family’s unprecedented financial ties to the crypto industry from influencing or guiding the SEC’s decisions.” The Trump Organization announced in January the president's investments, assets and business interests would be held in a trust managed by his children and he would play no role in day-to-day operations or decision-making. The family's business also retained an attorney to serve as an ethics adviser to "avoid any perceived conflicts of interest." Among the nine items the Democrats are requesting from the SEC are items specific to World Liberty investor Justin Sun and records regarding the SEC’s recent decision to pause its case against the Hong Kong-based crypto entrepreneur and his affiliated companies. As well as its single-largest known investor, at a disclosed amount of $75 million, Sun has become an advisor to the project. Representatives for Sun did not reply to requests for comment. Trump has promised sweeping changes in the regulation of crypto to popularize its mainstream use in America. The Trump family has opened multiple beachheads in crypto, gaining hundreds of millions of dollars through related ventures. The SEC took a strict stance on cryptocurrency under Gary Gensler, the Democratic chair under President Joe Biden. Uyeda’s SEC has created a task force to work with the industry, led by Republican Commissioner Hester Peirce, known for her favorable stance towards the sector. It also downsized the crypto enforcement team by moving lawyers working in that group elsewhere, Reuters has reported. World Liberty announced on March 25 it planned to launch a U.S. dollar-pegged stablecoin, called USD1. During the meeting about stablecoin legislation on Wednesday, Waters said she would not support the bill unless President Trump was blocked from owning a stablecoin business through World Liberty. "With this stablecoin bill, this committee is setting an unacceptable and dangerous precedent, validating the president and his insiders' efforts to write rules of the road that will enrich themselves at the expense of everyone else," she said. https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/boards-policy-regulation/democrats-ask-sec-preserve-records-related-trumps-crypto-business-probing-2025-04-02/
2025-04-02 20:47
April 2 (Reuters) - President Donald Trump on Wednesday unveiled global reciprocal tariffs during an event at the White House. Following are highlights of Trump's remarks: Sign up here. * "In many cases, the friend is worse than the foe in terms of trade," Trump said. * "We subsidize a lot of countries and keep them going and keep them in business," Trump said about trade partners, specifically Mexico and Canada. "Why are we doing this? I mean, at what point do we say you got to work for yourselves." * "We are finally putting American first," Trump said. * "Trade deficits are no longer merely an economic problem. They are a national emergency," Trump said. * Trump held up a board showing the new rates charged on most countries. Rates ranged from 10% to 49% on the first board and up to 50% on later boards. * With a few exceptions, based on the charts Trump read out, the tariff rate being imposed by the U.S. on most countries was around half of what those countries charged. There were some exceptions in which the U.S. charged the exact rates that those countries charged, according to the chart. * "This is not full reciprocal, it is kind reciprocal," Trump said. * Following is the list of new tariff rates Trump displayed. https://www.reuters.com/world/us/trump-unveils-global-reciprocal-tariffs-2025-04-02/
2025-04-02 20:31
April 2 (Reuters) - The U.S. Department of Agriculture has frozen funds to some Maine educational programs over the state's refusal to ban transgender women from sports, said a press release from Secretary Brooke Rollins. The administration of President Donald Trump has taken aim at Maine after a dispute between Republican Trump and Democratic Governor Janet Mills over the inclusion of transgender athletes in sports. Sign up here. The Departments of Education and Health and Human Services have opened investigations into the state for allowing transgender athletes to compete. The government argues their inclusion is a violation of Title IX protections for women. "I am freezing Maine's federal funds for certain administrative and technical functions in schools. This is only the beginning, though you are free to end it at any time by protecting women and girls in compliance with federal law," Rollins said in a letter to Mills on Wednesday, seen by Reuters. The USDA is reviewing grants awarded to the Maine Department of Education by the Biden administration, Rollins said in a press release. The agency on March 11 suspended funding for research and programs at the University of Maine over the issue, but on March 19 said it had unfrozen the money. https://www.reuters.com/world/us/usda-freezes-some-funds-maine-over-support-transgender-athletes-secretary-says-2025-04-02/
2025-04-02 20:27
BRASILIA, April 2 (Reuters) - Brazil's central bank governor Gabriel Galipolo said on Wednesday that unblocking monetary policy transmission channels is a generational challenge in the country which will require a series of long reforms. "There's no silver bullet," he said at an event to celebrate the bank's 60th anniversary. Sign up here. Galipolo reiterated that Latin America's largest economy is showing greater dynamism than expected, despite the restrictive interest rate level, suggesting an obstruction in monetary policy transmission channels not seen in other countries. According to Galipolo, subsidies remain a factor in Brazil's economy, with implications for monetary policy. The central bank kicked off an aggressive tightening cycle in September, raising interest rates by 375 basis points to 14.25% in a bid to bring inflation back to its 3% target. Annual inflation through mid-March hit 5.26%. Last month, policymakers signaled another, albeit smaller, hike at the upcoming May policy meeting, emphasizing the need to cool the economy to curb inflation. https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/brazils-central-bank-chief-sees-need-reforms-unblock-monetary-policy-2025-04-02/
