(Bloomberg) — The Biden administration and 13 partner nations in Asia and the Pacific are close to finishing agreements that include renewable energy and anti-corruption measures, while falling short of a deal on thornier trade issues.
“We’re close” to an agreement on two so-called pillars of the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework that encompass those issues, Jose Fernandez, US under secretary of state for economic growth, energy and the environment, said in an interview on Wednesday. “We’ve made lots of progress.”
The talks on the IPEF trade deal are happening as President Joe Biden hosts American partners at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in San Francisco, the first time the gathering has happened in the US since 2011. The framework represents Biden’s effort to counter the growing influence of China, whose President Xi Jinping he met with on Wednesday.
It marks the most significant American economic engagement in the region since President Donald Trump pulled the US out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership in 2017, although it doesn’t reduce tariffs like a traditional free-trade agreement.
Read more: How US and China Jockey for Economic Sway Across Asia: QuickTake
There are two other pillars of the deal. The one on supply chains was completed earlier this year, but the trade pillar has become bogged down, with some US politicians demanding strong environmental and labor protections be included. Bloomberg News reported earlier this week that the 14 nations won’t be able to announce the completion of the trade pillar at this meeting.
Australia Trade Minister Don Farrell was similarly optimistic as Fernandez regarding the clean energy and anti-corruption pillars.
“Good progress has been made,” Farrell said in an interview in San Francisco. “I’m hopeful that over the next couple of days we can finalize them and some announcements can be made.”
TORONTO – Strength in the base metal and technology sectors helped Canada’s main stock index gain almost 100 points on Friday, while U.S. stock markets also climbed higher.
The S&P/TSX composite index closed up 93.51 points at 23,568.65.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 297.01 points at 41,393.78. The S&P 500 index was up 30.26 points at 5,626.02, while the Nasdaq composite was up 114.30 points at 17,683.98.
The Canadian dollar traded for 73.61 cents US compared with 73.58 cents US on Thursday.
The October crude oil contract was down 32 cents at US$68.65 per barrel and the October natural gas contract was down five cents at US$2.31 per mmBTU.
The December gold contract was up US$30.10 at US$2,610.70 an ounce and the December copper contract was up four cents US$4.24 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
OTTAWA – Statistics Canada says wholesale sales, excluding petroleum, petroleum products, and other hydrocarbons and excluding oilseed and grain, rose 0.4 per cent to $82.7 billion in July.
The increase came as sales in the miscellaneous subsector gained three per cent to reach $10.5 billion in July, helped by strength in the agriculture supplies industry group, which rose 9.2 per cent.
The food, beverage and tobacco subsector added 1.7 per cent to total $15 billion in July.
The personal and household goods subsector fell 2.5 per cent to $12.1 billion.
In volume terms, overall wholesale sales rose 0.5 per cent in July.
Statistics Canada started including oilseed and grain as well as the petroleum and petroleum products subsector as part of wholesale trade last year, but is excluding the data from monthly analysis until there is enough historical data.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
TORONTO – Canada’s main stock index was up more than 150 points in late-morning trading, helped by strength in the base metal and energy sectors, while U.S. stock markets were mixed.
The S&P/TSX composite index was up 172.18 points at 23,383.35.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 34.99 points at 40,826.72. The S&P 500 index was up 10.56 points at 5,564.69, while the Nasdaq composite was up 74.84 points at 17,470.37.
The Canadian dollar traded for 73.55 cents US compared with 73.59 cents US on Wednesday.
The October crude oil contract was up $2.00 at US$69.31 per barrel and the October natural gas contract was up five cents at US$2.32 per mmBTU.
The December gold contract was up US$40.00 at US$2,582.40 an ounce and the December copper contract was up six cents at US$4.20 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
