VIP visit to Osaka Expo
German Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, second from right, visits the German Pavilion at the Osaka Expo on Friday, together with Cabinet Officer Minister of State Yuichiro Koga, second from left, and Osaka Governor Hirofumi Yoshimura, right. Steinmeier is on a three-day visit to Japan.
© Reuters
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Nikkei Asia
an hour ago
- Nikkei Asia
Wars and crypto bring Pakistan army chief to Trump's lunch table
President Donald Trump had Field Marshal Asim Munir, Pakistan's army chief, over for lunch at the White House on June 18 to thank him for not prolonging a serious clash with India in May -- among other things. (Source photos by Reuters) ADNAN AAMIR ISLAMABAD -- The lunch meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Pakistan's army chief, Field Marshal Asim Munir, at the White House on Wednesday proved something of a diplomatic breakthrough as Islamabad woos Trump with its recently announced national crypto reserve plan. Munir became the first serving army chief of Pakistan who was not at the head of a military government to have a meeting with a sitting U.S. president. It was also the first interaction between a top Pakistani official and a U.S. president since July 2019, when Prime Minister Imran Khan and Trump met in the White House. Biden did not meet his Pakistani counterpart during his four-year tenure.
Nikkei Asia
2 hours ago
- Nikkei Asia
US wants Asian allies to spend 5% of GDP on defense, Pentagon says
The USS George Washington is seen during a trilateral exercise between the U.S., Japan and South Korea in the East China Sea in November 2024. © Reuters KEN MORIYASU and RINTARO TOBITA WASHINGTON -- America's allies in Asia should follow Europe and spend 5% of gross domestic product on defense, a Pentagon spokesperson said Friday. This marks the first time in President Donald Trump's second term that the administration has laid out a regionwide target for the Asia-Pacific region.
Yomiuri Shimbun
2 hours ago
- Yomiuri Shimbun
Trump Says He May Change His Mind about Firing Fed Chair Powell
WASHINGTON, June 20 (Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday again floated the idea of firing Jerome Powell, the Federal Reserve chair he has long attacked over interest rates he wants lowered. 'I don't know why the Board doesn't override (Powell),' Trump wrote in a lengthy post on Truth Social criticizing Fed policy. 'Maybe, just maybe, I'll have to change my mind about firing him? But regardless, his Term ends shortly.' Trump added: 'I fully understand that my strong criticism of him makes it more difficult for him to do what he should be doing, lowering Rates, but I've tried it all different ways.' Fed chairs have long been seen as insulated from presidential dismissal for reasons other than malfeasance or misconduct, but Trump has threatened to test that legal premise with frequent threats to fire Powell. Trump nearly as frequently reverses course on those threats. 'I'm not going to fire him,' he said at the White House on June 12. The Fed held rates steady on Wednesday in the 4.25%-4.50% range and forecast slower growth as well as higher unemployment and inflation by year's end. Fed Governor Chris Waller, who has been floated as a possible Trump pick to be Powell's successor, said on Friday that with inflation coming down and the labor market showing signs of weakening, rate cuts should be considered as soon as July. But even Waller joined Wednesday's unanimous Fed decision to leave rates on hold, signaling no inclination by any of Powell's six fellow Board members, or of the five voting regional Fed bank presidents, to 'override' him. Fed decisions are typically reached through consensus, and more than a couple of dissents would be rare. Elected partly on voters' belief that he could contain high inflation, the Republican U.S. president has imposed tariff hikes in office. Powell, echoing an academic consensus, has said some of those tariff hikes will be paid for in higher consumer prices. Powell's term ends in May 2026, and Trump is expected to nominate a successor in the coming months. A Supreme Court ruling in May eased concerns that Trump could fire Powell as the justices called the Fed 'a uniquely structured, quasi-private entity.'
