22:53 (IST) Jul 31

India’s purchases of Russian oil are helping to sustain Moscow’s war efforts in Ukraine and it is “most certainly a point of irritation” in New Delhi’s relationship with Washington, US secretary of state Marco Rubio said on Thursday.

“Look, global trade – India is an ally. It’s a strategic partner. Like anything in foreign policy, you’re not going to align 100 per cent of the time on everything,” Rubio said in an interview with Fox Radio.

Rubio was responding to a question on President Donald Trump’s announcement of the 25 per cent tariff on India and an additional penalty for buying Russian military equipment and energy, and how disappointed Washington is with Delhi because of this.

Rubio acknowledged India has “huge energy needs and that includes the ability to buy oil and coal and gas and things that it needs to power its economy like every country does, and it buys it from Russia, because Russian oil is sanctioned and cheap and – meaning they have to – in many cases, they’re selling it under the global price because of the sanctions.”

He added that “unfortunately, that is helping to sustain the Russian war effort. So it is most certainly a point of irritation in our relationship with India – not the only point of irritation. We also have many other points of cooperation with them.

“But I think what you’re seeing the President express is the very clear frustration that with so many other oil vendors available, India continues to buy so much from Russia, which in essence is helping to fund the war effort” and allowing this war to continue in Ukraine.

His comments came a day after Trump announced the imposition of a 25 per cent tariff on all goods coming from India starting August 1, plus an unspecified penalty for buying Russian crude oil and military equipment.

The US president, Donald Trump, has signed an executive order imposing “reciprocal” tariffs ranging from 10% to 41% on imports from dozens of countries and foreign locations, shortly after extending the deadline for a tariff deal with Mexico by another 90 days.

The order listed higher import duty rates that would start from 7 August for 69 trading partners, just hours before the original deadline of 12.01am EDT (4.01am GMT) on Friday was due to elapse.

Brazil received a 10% “reciprocal” tariff, but a separate executive order on Wednesday imposed a 40% additional levy from 1 August linked to the prosecution of the country’s former president Jair Bolsonaro, taking the total to 50%.

The Guardian has a searchable table of the countries and the new tariff levels they face.

The rates can be found in the table below.

• Markets rattled by tariff shift and jobs: US stocks opened lower after a weak jobs report and following the White House’s unveiling of a new trade policy starting August 7 that affects virtually every nation, cementing a break from decades of free trade and signaling a new protectionist era.

• Meanwhile, US job growth stalled in July, with just 73,000 jobs added, while May and June totals were revised down by a combined 258,000, according to new data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

• “Universal” rate: A tariff of 10% will remain for countries with which the US has a trade surplus, which is most of them. About 40 nations with which the US has a trade deficit face a 15% floor. Deals with China and Mexico are still pending.

• New Canada rate: President Donald Trump also said he is raising tariffs on Canada to 35%. Goods compliant with the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement would not be subject to that higher rate, the White House said, which would blunt the impact.

The US economy added 73,000 jobs in July, far lower than expected, amid ongoing concerns with Donald Trump’s escalating trade war.

Forecasters surveyed by Bloomberg had predicted the July jobs report would show a drop in added jobs to around 109,000. The unemployment rate rose to 4.2% from 4.1% in June.

The Bureau of Labor also slashed the number of jobs added in recent months. May’s jobs figure was revised down by 125,000, from 144,000 to 19,000, and June was revised down by 133,000, from 147,000 to 14,000 – a combined 258,000 fewer jobs than previously reported.

Healthcare and social assistance added 73,300 jobs over the month but growth was dragged down by more cuts to federal workers. Twelve thousand federal jobs were lost in July and federal employment is down by 84,000 since reaching a peak in January.

“There was little to celebrate in the July Employment Report,” Thomas Ryan, North America economist for Capital Economics, wrote in a note to investors. He noted that the three-month average employment gain had now fallen to “a troublingly low 35,000 – a figure that is difficult to interpret as anything other than a sign of hiring stalling, even as population growth slows.”

Shortly before the latest official jobs data was published, two Federal Reserve policymakers who broke ranks with its other officials on interest rates earlier this week released statements explaining their respective decisions.

The labor market “has become less dynamic and shows increasing signs of fragility”, said Michelle W Bowman, Fed vice-chair for supervision and a Trump appointee. Putting off a rate cut “could result in a deterioration in the labor market and a further slowing in economic growth”, she added.

Christopher Waller, another Trump appointee, said waiting before cutting rates was “overly cautious”, adding: “I see no reason that we should hold the policy rate at its current level and risk a sudden decline in the labor market.”

Trump, who has lambasted the Fed for months after it repeatedly opted to hold rates steady, welcomed the pair’s official interventions – and called on the central bank’s board to “assume control” of policy if Jerome Powell, the central bank’s chair, refuses to cut rates. Powell wants to how sweeping tariffs affect the US economy first.

The jobs report comes in a week packed with economic news. On Wednesday, the Bureau of Economic Analysis reported that gross domestic product, a broad measure of the US’s economic health, grew at 3% in the last three months, up from a 0.5% decline in the first quarter.

The first quarter fall and second quarter bounceback were driven by Trump’s tariff policies as businesses stocked up on imports ahead of the levies at the start of the year – which cut growth – and cut back on imports in the second – which boosted growth.

Taken together, the US economy grew at a sluggish 1.2% in the first six months of the year, down from the 2.5% average pace in 2024.

Also on Wednesday, the Federal Reserve announced it would not cut interest rates. The Fed is under intense pressure from Trump to cut rates but Fed chair Jerome Powell said the central bank is still waiting to see what impact Trump’s tariffs will have on prices.

“Higher tariffs have begun to show through more clearly to prices of some goods, but their overall effects on economic activity and inflation remain to be seen,” Powell said.

From 32m ago 15.40 BST ‘Killing jobs and jacking up prices’: Democrats lambast Trump over tariffs and weak jobs report Democratic lawmakers have slammed Trump’s “reckless and chaotic” tariff policies and federal cuts after today’s weak jobs report revealed that 258,000 fewer jobs were created in May and June than previously thought. Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer said on X: The chickens are coming home to roost for Trump, and American families are paying the price. His reckless and chaotic tariffs and his drastic cuts are catching up with the economy which means fewer jobs and more people out of work. Trump must end his trade war and reverse his horrible cuts now. California governor Gavin Newsom wrote: A July jobs report way below expectations. May and June revised down as well. Unemployment rate ticked back up to 4.2%. We haven’t seen conditions like these since 2020. Don’t let Donald Trump gaslight you. He is failing Americans and crashing our economy. Kathy Hochul, New York’s governor, said: Donald Trump is killing jobs and jacking up prices with his tariffs. Sellout Stefanik calls his leadership a “masterclass.” I call it bullshit. We will fight back. Senator Chris Murphy, of Connecticut wrote: Unsurprising bad jobs report. Just 73,000 added in July, and most of those were health care. Even worse, May and June jobs numbers revised down by 258,000. Awful. Companies don’t want to create jobs in Trump’s chaos economy with weakening rule of law and rampant corruption. Representative Richard Neal, of Massachusetts, said: The American people didn’t ask for this. Hiring has stalled, prices are surging, and this administration is actively undermining the labor market Democrats rebuilt. This goes beyond failed Republican leadership, it’s actively making life harder for people. Share Updated at 15.41 BST

4m ago 16.07 BST Lisa O’Carroll Some countries received a reprieve from Donald Trump when he announced sweeping new levies yesterday. Lesotho was facing 50% tariffs on 2 April, an existential threat to its textile industry, but came out on Friday with a 15% rate. That should make it easier for manufacturers in Lesotho – which last month declared a national state of disaster over the country’s “high rates of youth unemployment and job losses” – to sell their goods to American consumers. That’s a relief for a nation which Trump said “nobody has ever heard of” when he halted USAID earlier this year. Also getting a drastic reduction in tariffs are Madagascar, down from 47% on 2 April to 15% on 1 August, and Botswana, down from 37% to 15%. Liechtenstein, the wealthy European state best known as a financial centre, has seen rates slashed from 37% to 15%, while the Falkland Islands have gone from 41% to 10%. Cambodia went from 49% to 19%, while Iraq only got a four-point reduction, from 39% to 35%. Share

32m ago 15.40 BST ‘Killing jobs and jacking up prices’: Democrats lambast Trump over tariffs and weak jobs report Democratic lawmakers have slammed Trump’s “reckless and chaotic” tariff policies and federal cuts after today’s weak jobs report revealed that 258,000 fewer jobs were created in May and June than previously thought. Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer said on X: The chickens are coming home to roost for Trump, and American families are paying the price. His reckless and chaotic tariffs and his drastic cuts are catching up with the economy which means fewer jobs and more people out of work. Trump must end his trade war and reverse his horrible cuts now. California governor Gavin Newsom wrote: A July jobs report way below expectations. May and June revised down as well. Unemployment rate ticked back up to 4.2%. We haven’t seen conditions like these since 2020. Don’t let Donald Trump gaslight you. He is failing Americans and crashing our economy. Kathy Hochul, New York’s governor, said: Donald Trump is killing jobs and jacking up prices with his tariffs. Sellout Stefanik calls his leadership a “masterclass.” I call it bullshit. We will fight back. Senator Chris Murphy, of Connecticut wrote: Unsurprising bad jobs report. Just 73,000 added in July, and most of those were health care. Even worse, May and June jobs numbers revised down by 258,000. Awful. Companies don’t want to create jobs in Trump’s chaos economy with weakening rule of law and rampant corruption. Representative Richard Neal, of Massachusetts, said: The American people didn’t ask for this. Hiring has stalled, prices are surging, and this administration is actively undermining the labor market Democrats rebuilt. This goes beyond failed Republican leadership, it’s actively making life harder for people. Share Updated at 15.41 BST

1h ago 15.01 BST Switzerland facing higher tariff because it did not drop trade barriers, White House says The Swiss government is disappointed by the US tariffs imposed on Switzerland, president Karin Keller-Sutter has said, with the shock 39% figure much higher than expected – and one of the highest rates for any country. “The Federal Council is disappointed,” Keller-Sutter told Reuters on the sidelines of a Swiss national day event in Ruetli. “It is a pity that there is a tariff that is much higher than what we negotiated.” Although the pharmaceuticals sector was not included in the tariffs, the increased duties would have a “very bad” effect on the Swiss economy, she said. The government has already been in touch with Washington to find a solution, she added. The White House said on Friday that Switzerland is facing a higher 39% tariff rate on its exports because it refused to make “meaningful concessions” by dropping trade barriers with the US. “Switzerland, being one of the wealthiest, highest income countries on earth, cannot expect the United States to tolerate a one-sided trade relationship,” a White House official said. View image in fullscreen Karin Keller-Sutter in New York on 1 August 2024. Photograph: Julia Nikhinson/AP Share Updated at 15.11 BST

2h ago 14.35 BST Mark Carney ‘disappointed’ by Trump raising tariffs on Canadian goods to 35% Here’s more on Canadian prime minister Mark Carney’s comments from earlier, when he said Ottawa is “disappointed” by the US decision to raise tariffs to 35% on Canadian goods not covered under a pre-existing US-Mexico-Canada free trade agreement. View image in fullscreen Trump has imposed a 35% tariff on Canadian goods not covered by the US-Mexico-Canada trade agreement. Photograph: Canadian Press/Shutterstock The US application of the USMCA treaty “means the US average tariff rate on Canadian goods remains one of its lowest for all of its trading partners”, Carney said. “Other sectors of our economy – including lumber, steel, aluminium, and automobiles – are, however, heavily impacted by US duties and tariffs,” Carney said. “For such sectors, the Canadian government will act to protect Canadian jobs, invest in our industrial competitiveness, buy Canadian, and diversify our export markets.” He also criticized Trump’s justification for raising the tariffs. “Canada accounts for only 1% of US fentanyl imports and has been working intensively to further reduce these volumes,” Carney said. Trump has long complained about a “flood” of fentanyl” coming from the north. He also said earlier this week that it would be “very hard” to make a trade deal with Canada after Carney’s announcement that he plans to join other countries in recognizing a Palestinian state. “Canada will be our own best customer,” Carney went on. “We can give ourselves more than any foreign government can ever take away by building with Canadian workers and by using Canadian resources to benefit all Canadians.” Here’s Carney’s full statement: My statement on Canada-U.S. trade: pic.twitter.com/0PSG9kKtiO — Mark Carney (@MarkJCarney) August 1, 2025 Share Updated at 14.36 BST

2h ago 14.08 BST Trump again demands interest rate cut as dollar falls after weak jobs report Graeme Wearden Donald Trump has again repeated his plea for the Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell to cut interest rates. Shortly after today’s weak jobs report was released, Trump posted on his Truth Social site: Too Little, Too Late. Jerome “Too Late” Powell is a disaster. DROP THE RATE! The good news is that Tariffs are bringing Billions of Dollars into the USA! The US dollar is being hammered on the foreign exchange markets, following the news that employment growth across America has been much weaker than previously thought over the last three months – a sign that the US labor market may be cooling. US jobs report The latest non-farm payroll, just released, shows that US employment rose by just 73,000 in July, rather weaker than the 110,000 new jobs expected. But the big shock comes in the latest revisions to payrolls, with previous estimates for both May and June being revised sharply lower. The Bureau of Labor Statistics now estimates that just 19,000 new jobs were created in May, 125,000 fewer than the 144,000 previously estimated. June’s data has been revised down too – showing that just 14,000 new jobs were created, not the 147,000 reported a month ago. That means 258,000 fewer jobs were created in May and June than previously thought. The US unemployment rate has risen to 4.2% from 4.1% in June. This surprisingly weak data may be a sign that Trump’s trade wars, and the associated uncertainty, have cause more damage to the US economy than previously thought. There could also be an impact from cost-cutting Doge program pushed by Elon Musk. Trump trade war live: US jobs market weakening, as stock markets fall after US announces new tariffs Read more Share Updated at 14.10 BST

3h ago 13.19 BST The full list of Trump’s tariffs – from India to Taiwan My colleagues have created a searchable table of the countries and the “reciprocal” tariffs they face. The rates, which range from 41% for Syria to 10% for the UK, can be found in the table via the link below. The full list of Trump’s tariffs – from India to Taiwan Read more Share Updated at 13.21 BST

3h ago 12.56 BST Cambodia’s prime minister has praised the new tariff rate and said it is good news for the nation’s economic development. Prime minister Hun Manet said in a statement posted to Facebook late on Thursday night that “this is the best news for the people and economy of Cambodia to continue to develop the country.” “The United States has decided to reduce the tax on goods imported from Cambodia to the United States by 19% (down 30% compared to the initial tax rate of 49%),” Manet wrote in a translation of the post. This comes after Donald Trump had originally threatened a 49% tariff on Cambodia as part of his “Liberation Day” measures, but cut it to 36% last month. Share

4h ago 12.35 BST India is engaged with further trade talks with the US, a source said on Friday. This comes after Donald Trump signed an order imposing a 25% tariff on New Delhi’s export. “We remain focused on the substantive agenda that our two countries have committed to and are confident that the relationship will continue to move forward,” India’s foreign ministry said in a statement on Friday. Previously, trade talks between Washington and New Delhi have been bogged down by issues including access to India’s highly protected agriculture and dairy sector. Trump set steep import duties on dozens of trading partners, including a 35% tariff on many goods from Canada, 50% for Brazil, 20% for Taiwan and 39% for Switzerland, according to a presidential executive order. Share