Trump extends lifeline for TikTok amid growing trade war with Beijing
During the week, the president said the administration was “very close to a deal with a very good group of people” and entertained the idea the TikTok sale could be used as a bargaining chip in tariff negotiations.
In 2020, Trump was an advocate for banning TikTok but changed his position while campaigning for a return to the presidency after succeeding in attracting attention on the app, particularly from younger voters considered less likely to show up to the polls.
But the sell-or-ban legislation passed by Congress last year stands. Trump’s executive order, in effect, directs his attorney-general not to enforce the law for another 75 days.
TikTok has more than 1 billion active users worldwide, and about 170 million registered users in the US. Its US revenue reached $US10 billion last year.
Firms reportedly interested in bidding for the app include Amazon, Perplexity AI and Zoop, a startup created by OnlyFans founder Tim Stokely. Trump initially said he would like the US government to have a 50 per cent stake in any joint venture.
US markets plunged again on Friday (Saturday AEDT) as the fallout from Trump’s so-called reciprocal tariffs continued to unfold and fears of global disruption grew.
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The White House celebrated a strong March employment report that saw 228,000 jobs added, exceeding market expectations, and announcements that several car-markers would maintain or add to US production following the tariffs.
But it was not enough to arrest yet another market out, with the major US indexes plunging another 5 per cent. The Nasdaq was poised to enter a bear market, down more than 20 per cent from its December high.
Chairman of the US Federal Reserve Jerome Powell said the tariffs Trump announced this week went further than predicted and would likely cause at least a temporary increase in inflation – although he warned the effects could be persistent.
“While uncertainty remains elevated, it is now becoming clear that tariff increases will be significantly larger than expected, and the same is likely to be true of the economic effects, which will include higher inflation and slower growth,” he told the Society for Advancing Business Editing and Writing in Arlington, Virginia.
“The size and duration of these effects remains uncertain … Our obligation is to keep longer-term inflation expectations well anchored and to make certain that a one-time increase in the price level does not become an ongoing inflation problem.”
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