Trump tariffs a loony move for global film industry, says veteran director

Original article by Helen Trinca
The Australian – Page: 6 : 8-May-25

Veteran Australian film director and producer Bruce Beresford has expressed concern about the potential impact of the Trump administration’s proposed for a tariff of 100 per cent on foreign-made films. He argues that Hollywood studios might simply not make a film if they do not have access to the subsidies provided by the federal government to attract international films to Australia. Beresford adds that some Australian films would struggle to obtain financing, as many of them are made with US investment.

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The stocks that have ripped during Trump’s trade war

Original article by Alex Gluyas
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 25 : 8-May-25

Australia’s benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index has gained 11.4 per cent since it entered correction territory in the days after the Trump administration unveiled its tarrifs regime on 2 April. Uranium producer Boss Energy is amongst the stocks that have posted strong gains since the ‘Liberation Day’ tariffs announcement; it has risen by more than 47 per cent since the start of April, although the stock is still 30 per cent lower than a year ago. Other strong performers include Eagers Automotive (up 24.8 per cent since the start of April), NextDC (21.2 per cent), Pro Medicus (20.6 per cent) and Lynas Rare Earths (20.5 per cent).

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STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, UNITED STATES. EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT, BOSS ENERGY LIMITED – ASX BOE, EAGERS AUTOMOTIVE LIMITED – ASX APE, NEXTDC LIMITED – ASX NXT, PRO MEDICUS LIMITED – ASX PME, LYNAS RARE EARTHS LIMITED – ASX LYC

Trump tariff threat kick in the guts for local film industry

Original article by Mackenzie Scott, Paul Garvey
The Australian – Page: 2 : 7-May-25

Queensland’s Arts Minister John-Paul Langbroek has urged the federal government to protect the state’s economic investment in local film production. The state’s film industry generated a return of $525m in 2023-24 and created 4,000 direct jobs, including at the Gold Coast production studio. Gold Coast mayor Tom Tate says US President Donald Trump’s proposed 100 per cent tariff on all movies ‘produced in foreign lands’ is a "kick in the guts" for the region’s film industry. However, a White House spokesman has indicated that a final decision has not been made regarding tariffs on foreign-made films.

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ARTS QUEENSLAND, UNITED STATES. EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT

Just four economists expect the RBA to stay pat on rates

Original article by Cecile Lefort
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 23 : 16-Apr-25

Financial markets have fully priced in a 25 basis point interest rate cut at the Reserve Bank of Australia’s monetary policy meeting in May, and a 34 per cent chance of a 50 basis point cut. The general consensus of economists is also that the cash rate will be eased in May; most economists had previously expected rates to remain unchanged in May, prior to the global financial market turmoil in response to the Trump administration’s tariffs war.

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RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, UNITED STATES. EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT

Crash-test dummies without a budget buffer

Original article by Geoff Chambers, Matthew Cranston
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 8-Apr-25

Treasurer Jim Chalmers has released new modelling on the likely impact of the Trump administration’s tariffs regime on the Australian economy. It suggests that the baseline tariff of 10 per cent and the 25 per cent tariff on steel, aluminium and automotive products would be largely neutral for inflation in Australia. Treasury’s ‘best-case’ scenario is that the nation’s real GDP will decline by 0.1 per cent in 2025 and inflation will rise by 0.2 per cent. Meanwhile, the pre-election fiscal outlook shows that the budget deficit is forecast to total $179.5bn over the next four years, while federal government debt is projected to rise to $1.2tn. The nation’s deteriorating fiscal position comes amid fears of a global recession and a $190m fall in the ASX’s market capitalisation since the tariffs were announced last week.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, UNITED STATES. EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT

Trump escalates trade war with new tariff threat for China

Original article by Michael Koziol
The Age – Page: Online : 8-Apr-25

President Donald Trump has threatened to impose an additional levy of 50 per cent on Chinese imports if the Communist nation does not back down on its move to match the USA’s reciprocal tariff of 34 per cent. Trump also indicated that US officials will immediately commence negotiations with other nations that are open to a compromise regarding tariffs. Meanwhile, both of Australia’s major political parties have ruled out relaxing the nation’s biosecurity laws in order to secure tariff relief. US beef can be imported if is from cattle that was born raised and slaughtered in the US, although beef from cattle that was raised in Canada or Mexico remains prohibited.

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UNITED STATES. EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT

Australia first: PM ready for trade row

Original article by Ben Packham, Joe Kelly
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 2-Apr-25

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has responded to the Trump administration’s new list of trade grievances with Australia, ahead of the formal announcement of the reciprocal tariffs regime. The report on foreign trade barriers was released by US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, and includes Australia’s import bans on uncooked US meat and poultry products, the News Media Bargaining Code and the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme. Albanese stated that these issues are "not up for negotiation", stating that the federal government will "defend Australia’s interests". Opposition leader Peter Dutton supported his stance, saying that he will stand up for the nation’s interests every day if the Coalition wins the election on 3 May.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, UNITED STATES. EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA

Albanese government unwilling to buy its way out of Trump tariffs

Original article by Tom Crowley, Alison Xiao
abc.net.au – Page: Online : 1-Apr-25

Trade Minister Don Farrell says the federal government is prepared for ”any outcome" when the Trump administration announces details of its reciprocal tariffs regime. Farrell adds that the government will always stand up for Australia and will never ‘trade away’ the things that make it "the best country in the world". Australia’s trade negotiators will not offer any concessions to secure a deal on tariffs, and will continue to push the case for an exemption on grounds such as the fact that US has a long-standing trade surplus with Australia. President Donald Trump has rejected suggestions that the tariffs will target 10-15 countries that have the largest trade deficits with the US, stating that the tariffs will apply to all countries.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND TRADE, UNITED STATES. EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT

Tariff war impact ‘modest’: Treasury

Original article by Matthew Cranston
The Australian – Page: 2 : 26-Mar-25

The budget papers show that Australia is now expected to record economic growth of just 1.5 per cent in 2025, compared with forecasts of two per cent growth in the 2024 budget and 1.75 per cent growth in the mid-year economic and fiscal outlook in December. Treasurer Jim Chalmers has conceded that the Trump administration’s tariffs policy will have a slight impact on Australia’s economic growth. The Treasury’s modelling suggests that the combined direct and indirect impact of the tariffs on the Australian economy by 2030 is likely to be modest.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY

Trump suggests auto, pharma tariffs might not come on April 2

Original article by
The Australian – Page: Online : 25-Mar-25

US President Donald Trump is scheduled to announce reciprocal tariffs on the nation’s trading partners on 2 April. Trump has previously stated that sector-specific tariffs will take effect at about the same time. They were expected to include the automotive and pharmaceutical sectors; however, Trump has told a cabinet meeting that automotive tariffs will be announced "very shortly", while pharmaceutical tariffs will be revealed "at some point". Shares in Tesla rallied by nearly 12 per cent in response to indications that the tariff on automobiles may not take effect in early April. A White House official has confirmed that sector-specific tariffs "may or may not happen" on 2 April, although reciprocal tariffs will be imposed from this date. Meanwhile, Trump has revealed that a "secondary tariff" of 25 per cent on countries that buy oil from Venezuela will also take effect on 2 April; he has accused the country of sending "tens of thousands" of criminals to the US.

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