1. President Trump yesterday declared an end to the Gaza war after more than two years and vowed to extend his peacemaking to the wider Middle East, taking a victory lap in a region still facing deep divisions and numerous unresolved conflicts. “This isn’t only the end of a war, this is the end of an age of terror and death,” Trump said in an address to the Israeli parliament, the Knesset. “This is the historic dawn of a new Middle East.” (Source: wsj.com)
2. The New York Times:
From cars and computer chips to tanks and fighter jets, China’s new export restrictions represent a sweeping effort to control global commerce and have set off a renewed trade fight that pits Beijing against not only the United States but also Europe.
The new regulations, which take effect in stages on Nov. 8 and Dec. 1, apply to the entire world, sharply escalating China’s sway over critical manufacturing at a time of increased international fractures over trade. The restrictions led President Trump on Friday to threaten to impose new 100 percent tariffs on Chinese imports starting Nov. 1st.
The rules go far beyond China’s limits since April on the export of rare earth metals, which are mined and processed mainly in China, as well as magnets made from those metals. In a series of announcements on Thursday, China extended its restrictions to worldwide shipments of electric motors, computer chips and other devices that have become central to modern life and are now manufactured mainly in China.
The regulations prohibit exports from China to any country of materials or components for use in military equipment. Among the items banned are the small yet powerful electric motors in missiles and fighter jets and the materials for crucial range finders in tanks and artillery that are used to zero in on distant targets.
These rules have drawn particular concern in the West because of their potential to debilitate Europe’s efforts to supply arms to Ukraine and to rebuild Europe’s own militaries to counter Russian aggression. (Source: nytimes.com. Italics mine)
3. China sanctioned the US units of a South Korean shipping giant and threatened further retaliatory measures on the industry, the latest in a series of tit-for-tat moves as Beijing and Washington jockey for leverage before expected trade talks. The sanctions, targeting five US units of Hanwha Ocean Co., fueled a slump in global equities on Tuesday as traders dialed back hopes for an easing of tensions between the world’s largest economies. Hanwha Ocean’s stock sank as much as 8%, while shares of Chinese shipbuilders rallied. China’s moves escalate a long-standing dispute with the US over maritime dominance. (Source: bloomberg.com)
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