Odaily News Trump is poised to sign a key part of a US-UK trade deal that would reduce tariffs on British cars exported to the US in exchange for access to the UK market for US beef and ethanol producers. The "cars for agriculture" deal comes more than a month after Trump and Starmer signed the five-page Economic Prosperity Agreement at a televised news conference in the Oval Office on May 8. British officials familiar with the negotiations said the two sides were still negotiating the part of the deal that Starmer said would give UK steelmakers zero-tariff access to the US. [Financial Times]

Odaily News U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs may have brought the Bank of Japan’s rate hike cycle to an end, and the likelihood of further increases is falling rapidly as exports are expected to take a hit, former Bank of Japan board member Takako Masai said on Thursday. Uncertainty over U.S. trade policy is causing huge disruptions to the global economy, which could hit Japan’s exports, output, wage growth and consumption, said Masai, who maintains close ties with current policymakers. U.S. auto tariffs are particularly damaging because of the huge role the auto industry plays in Japan’s economy. She said the “real test for the Japanese economy may come in 2026” because the impact of U.S. tariffs will begin to show in six to 12 months. “The Bank of Japan may not be able to raise interest rates for quite some time,” she said. (Jinshi Data APP)

Odaily News Market data shows that Hong Kong stocks related to Ant Financial Services Group have risen sharply. Yunfeng Financial (00376.HK) once soared 98%, and now it is up 53%. Lion Holdings (02562.HK) has risen nearly 15%, and Yaocai Securities (01428.HK) has risen more than 12.5%. Earlier news said that Ant Group will apply for stablecoin licenses in Hong Kong and Singapore. Ant responded that it will submit the application as soon as the relevant channels in Hong Kong are opened.

Odaily News Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Lin Jian hosted a regular press conference. A foreign media reporter asked that yesterday, the US President posted on "Real Social" that he had reached an agreement with China, for example, China would provide rare earth magnets, etc. Can China confirm these details? Lin Jian responded that yesterday afternoon, China had released news about the first meeting of the China-US economic and trade consultation mechanism, which you can check. I want to emphasize that this meeting was held under the strategic guidance of the two heads of state. The two sides reached a principled agreement on the framework of measures to implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state on June 5 and consolidate the results of the Geneva economic and trade talks, and made new progress in resolving the economic and trade concerns of both sides. Lin Jian said that China has always kept its word and acted accordingly. Since a consensus has been reached, both sides should abide by it. It is hoped that the US will work with China to implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state in the call, give full play to the role of the China-US economic and trade consultation mechanism, and enhance consensus, reduce misunderstandings and strengthen cooperation through communication and dialogue.

Odaily News Paolo Ardoino, CEO of stablecoin issuer Tether, wrote on the X platform that mathematics is the only certainty in the entire universe. Bitcoin is math money.

Odaily News In response to reports that Ant International is planning to apply for stablecoin licenses in Hong Kong and Singapore, Ant International said that it is accelerating investment and expanding cooperation in global treasury management, and putting our AI, blockchain and stablecoin innovations into real and reliable large-scale applications. "We welcome the Hong Kong Legislative Council's passage of the Stablecoin Bill, and will submit an application as soon as the bill takes effect on August 1 and the relevant channels are opened. We hope to contribute more to Hong Kong's construction of a future international financial center." Ant International said. (The Paper)