Trade, Tariffs, and Soybeans
Trump has consistently claimed that exporters, those countries who are “ripping us off,” are paying the tariffs. However, the actual data tell a different story.
On the plus side, German business sentiment and Eurozone purchasing managers' index readings expanded at unexpectedly rapid rates according to the FT.
On the negative side, the Asahi Shimbun says Japan's stimulus program has wastefully overestimated the demand for homebuilding program it's poured 350 billion yen (about $3.5 bn) into. Japan is facing an election in a few weeks, and the powerful building lobby certainly has something to do with that.