13/03/2025

BIZ & FINANCE THURSDAY | MAR 13, 2025

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US tariffs of 25% on steel, aluminium kick in

Salesforce to invest US$1b in Singapore SINGAPORE: US cloud software giant Salesforce said yesterday it planned to invest US$1 billion (RM4.43 billion) in Singapore over the next five years to boost the use of artificial intelligence agents (AI) in the workforce. The island state has been increasingly turning to technology to solve its workforce problem as it struggles to deal with a declining birthrate and an ageing population. The investment aims to accelerate the adoption in Singapore and the region of Agentforce, which enables businesses to create and manage AI agents designed to independently perform tasks such as sales, customer service and marketing. Unlike chatbots that follow a preset script, AI agents are more advanced as they can think, decide and take action and complete tasks such as booking appointments or processing requests. “We are in an incredible new era of digital labour where every business will be transformed by autonomous agents that augment the work of humans, revolutionising productivity and enabling every company to scale without limits,”Salesforce chief executive Marc Benioff said in a statement. “Singapore is at the forefront of this shift, and as the world’s largest provider of digital labour through our Agentforce platform, Salesforce is thrilled to expand our work with the business community and our longtime partners in the region to drive innovation, productivity and growth.” In an interview with CNBC, Benioff said Salesforce had been in Singapore for the past 25 years and described it as the hub of Southeast Asia. “We’re investing another billion dollars in our operations here and we don’t just do sales and marketing. We also do extremely advanced artificial intelligence development,” he added. “We have dozens of the very best AI engineers in the world here in our Singapore research centre.” – AFP Zara owner posts record annual profit MADRID: Zara owner Inditex, the world’s biggest fashion retailer, reported a record annual profit for the third consecutive year yesterday due to dynamic sales and higher prices. The Spanish group, which owns seven other top brands including Massimo Dutti, Pull & Bear and Bershka, posted a net profit of €5.87 billion (RM28 billion) in the fiscal year which ended on Jan 31, up from €5.38 billion in 2023, which was also a record. The figure, which follows a solid fourth quarter, matched the expectations of analysts polled by financial data firm FactSet. Inditex pointed to “very satisfactory” sales which hit €38.6 billion in 2024, a 7.5% increase from the previous year. The group, which has introduced price hikes to offset rising production costs due to inflation, said “collections have been very well received by our customers”. By comparison, Inditex’s main rival in the fast-fashion industry, Sweden’s H&M, saw its sales slip in 2024 due to greater competition from low-priced Asian online retailers such as Shein and supply problems. Looking head, Inditex said it was optimistic about the new year given that sales rose 4% between Feb 1 and March 10 when compared to the same time last year. – AFP

WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump’s increased tariffs on all US steel and aluminium imports took effect yesterday, stepping up a campaign to reorder global trade in favour of the United States and drawing swift retaliation from Europe. Trump’s action to bulk up protections for American steel and aluminium producers restores effective global tariffs of 25% on all imports of the metals and extends the duties to hundreds of downstream products made from the metals, from nuts and bolts to bulldozer blades and soda cans. Trump’s hyper-focus on tariffs since taking office in January has rattled investor, consumer and business confidence in ways that economists worry could cause a US recession and further lag on the global economy. The European Commission, the executive arm of the European Union charged with o EU responds with duties on €26b of American exports

Australian Anthony Albanese said the move was “against the spirit of our two nations’ enduring friendship” but ruled out tit-for-tat duties. “Tariffs and escalating trade tensions are a form of economic self-harm, and a recipe for slower growth and higher inflation,” he told reporters. The countries most affected by the tariffs are Canada, the biggest foreign supplier of steel and aluminium to the US, as well as Brazil, Mexico and South Korea, which all have enjoyed some level of exemptions or quotas. Trump initially threatened Canada with doubling the duty to 50% on its steel and aluminium exports to the US but backed off after Ontario province suspended a move to impose a 25% surcharge on electricity exports to the states of Minnesota, Michigan and New York. That incident whip-sawed US financial markets already jittery over Trump’s broad tariff offensive. Asian markets were broadly steady yesterday, although Australia’s benchmark closed 9.6% below February’s record high. – Reuters Prime Minister

coordinating trade matters, responded swiftly, saying it would impose counter tariffs on €26 billion (RM124 billion) worth of US goods from next month. “We are ready to engage in meaningful dialogue,” Commission President Ursula von der Leyen told reporters, adding she had tasked Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic to resume his talks to “explore better solutions with the US”. “We firmly believe that in a world fraught with geoeconomic and political uncertainties, it is not in our common interest to burden our economies with such tariffs.” China’s Foreign Ministry said Beijing would take all necessary measures to safeguard its rights and interests, while Japan’s chief Cabinet secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi said the move could have a major impact on US-Japan economic ties. Close US allies Canada, Britain and Australia criticised the blanket tariffs, with Canada mulling reciprocal actions and Britain’s Trade Minister Jonathan Reynolds saying “all options were on the table” to respond in the national interest.

Workers installing steel rods at a construction site in the American city of Miami. – REUTERSPIC

China holds talks with Walmart on price cut demand BEIJING: Chinese authorities have held discussions with Walmart after the US retail giant demanded local suppliers cut their prices, reports said yesterday, as the wide-ranging impacts of President Donald Trump’s tariff hikes begin to sink in. suppliers and consumers,” the report said. Earlier this month, Trump raised the 10% blanket tariff he previously imposed on Chinese products to 20%, citing Beijing’s continued failure to stem the flow of deadly fentanyl precursors. the consequences for the company will go beyond just a discussion,” it added. Separately, the China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Textiles issued a statement yesterday calling on US retailers to “solve international trade problems fairly and reasonably”.

China responded by slapping its own tariffs of up to 15% on a range of US agricultural goods including soybeans, chicken and pork. The CCTV-affiliated account said it “believes that there are several key points worth noting from this discussion”, including that Walmart’s demand for price cuts “may violate commercial contracts”. “If Walmart insists on this course of action,

“A source revealed to us that on March 11, the Ministry of Commerce and other relevant departments held talks with Walmart,” Yuyuan Tantian, a social media account under state broadcaster CCTV, reported. “The reason for the talks was Walmart’s demand for significant price reductions from some Chinese suppliers, attempting to shift the burden of US tariffs on China onto Chinese

The body said it had recently received reports from members that large US firms had asked Chinese suppliers to lower their prices. “We are further verifying the situation. “If the situation is true, we will take positive measures to safeguard the legitimate interests of member companies,” the statement read. – AFP