The US and China have dealt each other blows in an emerging trade war. European Union leaders have suggested they would respond to any US economic action “within an hour”, while Donald Trump plans to call China’s president later today. Listen to the latest Trump 100 podcast as you scroll.
Tuesday 4 February 2025 17:55, UK
Bill Gates has said Elon Musk “doesn’t appreciate” the work that the US Agency for International Development (USAID) does.
Yesterday, we brought you updates as Musk announced Trump has agreed to shut down USAID.
He said he had the “full support of the president” and added that the agency is “beyond repair”.
But Gates told our US partner network NBC News he doesn’t agree.
The White House is preparing an executive order to eliminate the Department of Education, two sources have told our US partner network NBC News.
Donald Trump cannot unilaterally abolish a federal agency without the approval of Congress.
The proposed order follows years of campaign promises from Trump to abolish the federal education department.
Trump has previously said the American society pours more than $1tn a year into public education systems and added that, instead of being at the top of the list, “we are literally right smack at the bottom”.
Read the full story here.
The US military will fly migrants to Guantanamo Bay today for the first time, officials have told Reuters, with nearly a dozen on board.
It comes after Donald Trump signed an executive order last week to open a migrant detention centre on the island of Cuba, potentially housing tens of thousands at the naval base.
Speaking before making the act official, Trump said thousands who cannot be deported to their home countries will be held at the complex.
Here’s all the latest developments you need to know if you’re just joining us:
Trade war
Away from the economy, there have also been several developments involving the Trump administration…
Throughout the day, we’ve been bringing you reaction from the European Union as Donald Trump threatened tariffs “pretty soon”.
Poland’s prime minister Donald Tusk said the EU would act together in the face of any tariffs and would be ready to respond within an hour.
“We must respond adequately,” he said.
“If the Washington administration decides that customs barriers are necessary – I don’t believe they believe so – then the European Union must respond similarly. There is no other solution.”
Tusk also suggested that Trump’s dialogue on tariffs could be political rhetoric rather than an actual threat.
“Nothing should be underestimated, you have to be ready for any scenario, but it seems to me that when it comes to tariffs, using this argument against the European Union may be more political rhetoric than a real threat,” he added.
Earlier this morning, China announced it is putting PVH Corp, the holding company for brands including Calvin Klein and Tommy Hilfiger, on its “unreliable entity” list (see our 6.21am post).
It was one of the measures taken by China in response to US tariffs which came into force this morning.
Beijing said the two companies took what it called “discriminatory measures against Chinese enterprises” and “damaged” the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese companies.
Reacting to the decision, PVH said it was “surprised and deeply disappointed” by China’s decision.
It said the company maintains “strict compliance with all relevant laws and regulations and operates in line with established industry standards and practices”.
We’ve recently told you we’re expecting to hear from Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu when the pair meet later this evening (see our 1.33pm post).
Now, a senior US administration official has told Reuters that Trump sees Gaza as a “demolition site” and thinks it is inhumane to force people to live in “uninhabitable” land.
The official added Trump believes it will take 10-15 years to rebuild Gaza.
The official added the pair will discuss the second phase of the Gaza ceasefire deal and reiterate a commitment to freeing hostages.
More from Peter Navarro, senior trade adviser to the Donald Trump, who has now said Mexican cartels are “expanding in Canada”.
Speaking at an event hosted by Politico Live, Navarro said this meant Canada had become a leading source of small, duty-free shipments of drugs under the exemption that will be revoked if that tariffs take effect.
He also explained that Mexico had been “very cooperative” on efforts to crack down the transportation of fentanyl into the US, and added Canada understands it needs to do more.
Navarro said Trump’s plans to implement tariffs on Canada and Mexico were focused on clamping down on drugs and were not aimed at starting a trade war.
Donald Trump will speak with Chinese President Xi Jinping on the phone today, a trade adviser to the president has said.
Peter Navarro was speaking at a Politico Live event, and said “let’s see what happens with the call today”.
It follows earlier comments from Trump’s press secretary Karoline Leavitt, who said the call between Trump and Xi Jinping will happen “very soon” (see our 3.03pm post).
The US Senate finance committee has voted 14-13 in favour of advancing Robert F Kennedy Jr’s nomination.
This was the first key hurdle for Kennedy Jr to become the top health official in the US – with the committee moving to recommend him for a vote on the Senate floor.
Kennedy needs 50 Senators on side in that vote to be confirmed as health secretary.
RFK Jr was one of Donald Trump’s most controversial cabinet picks, given his outspoken views on vaccines and epidemics.
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