Taiwan speaker hails Japan, South Korea and Philippines for ‘crescent of defense’

By David Brunnstrom and Michael Martina WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The speaker of Taiwan’s parliament praised Japan, South Korea and the Philippines on Tuesday for helping to create a “crescent of defense” with Taiwan and the U.S. against China’s ambitions in the Indo-Pacific region. Speaking in Washington, You Si-kun told the Hudson Institute think tank that…

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Wall St ends lower, Treasury yields climb as debt ceiling talks in spotlight

By Stephen Culp NEW YORK (Reuters) – U.S. stocks closed lower on Tuesday and benchmark Treasury yields extended their rise as mixed economic data, weak corporate results and ongoing debt ceiling negotiations in Washington dampened investor risk appetite. While all three major U.S. stock indexes ended down, the tech-heavy Nasdaq’s losses were held in check…

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Biden vetoes legislation to block solar panel tariffs waivers

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -President Joe Biden said on Tuesday he has vetoed legislation passed by the U.S. Congress that would repeal exemptions on American tariffs on imported solar panels from four Southeast Asian nations. The waivers for duties on panels made in Malaysia, Cambodia, Vietnam and Thailand, granted by Biden in June 2022, are set to…

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US Commerce chief says green steel pact would combat excess Chinese output

By David Lawder WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said on Tuesday the Biden administration was “extremely focused” on reaching a “green steel” arrangement with the European Union and other partners that disadvantages carbon-intensive steel from China and elsewhere. Raimondo told an American Iron and Steel Institute conference in Washington that she was…

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Pakistan to try ex-PM Khan’s violent supporters under army laws

By Asif Shahzad ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – Pakistan’s civilian and military leaders on Tuesday said that rioters and their backers who attacked state assets and military installations to protest the arrest of former prime minister Imran Khan will be tried under army laws. The decision was taken at a meeting of the National Security Committee chaired…

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Philippine central bank to hold rates at 6.25% in May after nine straight increases – Reuters poll

By Devayani Sathyan BENGALURU (Reuters) – The Philippines central bank will likely leave its key interest rate unchanged at 6.25% on Thursday, and keep it there for the rest of 2023, marking an end to a year-long tightening cycle as inflation shows signs of cooling, a Reuters poll found. Although annual inflation slowed to 6.6%…

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U.S. charges Chinese national with providing weapons materials to Iran

NEW YORK (Reuters) – The United States has charged a Chinese national with violating U.S. sanctions by providing to Iran materials used to produce ballistic missiles, federal prosecutors in Manhattan said on Tuesday. Xiangjiang Qiao works at Sinotech Dalian Carbon and Graphite Manufacturing Corporation, a China-based company which the U.S. Treasury Department placed on a…

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