Pentagon Invests $400 Million in MP Materials

President Donald Trump has announced a 50% tariff on all copper imports, effective August 1, 2025. The move follows a national security assessment that emphasizes copper's critical role in the defense and technology sectors, including semiconductors, aircraft, missiles, and hypersonic weapons.

Imported Metal 🟤 : According to the United States Geological Survey, more than 90% of refined copper imported by the U.S. last year came from just three countries: Chile, Canada, and Peru

Home-made 🏭: The U.S. produces just over half of the refined copper it needs each year, and most of that comes from Arizona, where a massive new mine has been delayed for more than a decade

What does it mean for the U.S. markets: Rising copper costs could squeeze U.S. companies that rely on the metal for construction and manufacturing. But for mining companies in places like Arizona and New Mexico, it means higher earnings.

The Pentagon is investing $400 million in rare earths miner MP Materials, acquiring a 15% equity stake through newly created convertible preferred stock, marking a rare direct U.S. government investment in a private-sector company.

As part of the agreement, MP Materials will:

Why is this a big deal? This partnership is central to the Trump administration’s push to reduce reliance on China, which currently controls 85% of global rare earth processing and 60% of critical mineral production.

Warehouse vacancy rates in the U.S. climbed to 7.1% in the second quarter of 2025, the highest level in over a decade, according to Cushman & Wakefield’s Q2 2025 industrial market report.

The increase comes as new warehouse supply continues to outpace demand, with 71.5 million square feet of new supply completed during the quarter, while net absorption remained steady at 29.6 million square feet.

According to the report, a record 225 million square feet of industrial space is now available for sublease, signaling ongoing consolidation and slower expansion across several regions. West Coast markets like the Inland Empire and Los Angeles posted negative absorption, while newer logistics facilities in Dallas and Chicago remained in high demand.

Despite rising vacancies, asking rents climbed modestly to $10.12 per square foot, with smaller warehouses seeing a 31% premium.

President Donald Trump has announced a sweeping 35% tariff on all Canadian goods starting August 1, escalating tensions just weeks ahead of a self-imposed July 21 deadline for a new U.S.-Canada trade deal.

In a letter posted to Truth Social, Trump accused Canada of failing to curb fentanyl flows into the U.S., maintaining unfair levies on U.S. dairy, and contributing to the bilateral trade deficit. He hinted that the tariffs could be adjusted “upward or downward” depending on Canada’s cooperation.

Trump also cautioned Canada against any retaliatory actions, warning that such moves could lead to even steeper tariffs in the future.

A long-standing tomato trade agreement between the U.S. and Mexico is set to expire on July 14, triggering a 17% tariff on Mexican imports and potentially raising U.S. tomato prices by nearly 10%.

NatureSweet, the top U.S. tomato importer, has warned retailers of immediate price hikes, with no room for margin to absorb new tariffs. Approximately 90% of U.S. tomato imports originate from Mexico, which accounts for roughly 72% of the U.S. fresh tomato market. The U.S. Department of Agriculture estimated in June that Mexico’s tomato exports would fall by 5% this year due to the new import tariffs.

A Bloomberg report stated, importing and marketing fresh tomatoes from Mexico supports roughly 47,000 full- and part-time jobs in the U.S., according to an April analysis by Texas A&M University.

Port authorities across the U.S. are urging the Trump administration to delay or exempt proposed tariffs of up to 100% on Chinese-made ship-to-shore cranes, warning of massive cost burdens and supply constraints.

The new duties—stacked atop existing 25% Biden-era tariffs—target equipment primarily produced by Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industries (ZPMC), which supplies nearly 80% of U.S. port cranes.

With few viable alternatives and a lead time of up to two years per crane order, port operators say they face unavoidable liabilities from orders placed before the tariffs were proposed.

The Port of Houston alone could incur $100 million in added costs for 22 cranes needed over the next six years. Executives and industry groups are asking for at least a three-year delay to develop domestic or allied manufacturing capacity.

FedEx has cut air cargo capacity between Asia and the Americas by over 35% in May, responding to shifting trade flows and tariff pressures. CEO Raj Subramaniam said the company has halved its third-party capacity and is redirecting its focus toward Southeast Asia, where demand is rising.

To meet this growing demand, FedEx launched a direct Singapore–Anchorage 777F flight, targeting e-commerce and electronics, with plans to expand return frequencies.

The cuts come amid declining China–U.S. volumes, driven by the removal of the de minimis exemption and tariffs reaching up to 168% on low-value Chinese e-commerce. According to FedEx, the China corridor — its largest — has seen stagnation since May, prompting network consolidation and fleet modernization.

U.S. containerized imports from China dropped 28.3% year-over-year in June, according to Descartes, as recently reinstated tariffs continued to weigh on trade. Total U.S. container imports were down 3.5% compared to June 2024, with China’s share of imports falling to 28.8%, far below its 40% peak last July.

The sharp decline follows a surge earlier in the year, when importers rushed shipments ahead of tariff deadlines. Popular categories, such as furniture, toys, and textiles, saw steep declines, while imports from Southeast Asia—including Vietnam, Indonesia, and Thailand—surged as U.S. companies diversified their sourcing. Year-to-date imports remain 3.8% higher than 2024 levels, though growth has slowed.

China has imposed new restrictions on imports of high-value medical devices from the European Union, in a direct response to recent EU procurement curbs targeting Chinese firms.

According to Reuters, the Chinese finance ministry announced that, effective immediately, government entities will no longer be permitted to purchase EU-made medical devices exceeding 45 million yuan ($6.3 million) in value.

The move follows Brussels’ decision last month to bar Chinese companies from bidding on EU public tenders for medical devices, citing a lack of reciprocal market access. That ban, valued at up to €60 billion annually, was the first enforcement under the EU’s International Procurement Instrument introduced in 2022.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stated that the federal government has collected approximately $100 billion in tariff revenue so far this year and anticipates that figure to triple by year-end, reaching $300 billion.

The surge stems from President Trump’s sweeping tariff measures, which included a near-universal 10% duty on all U.S. imports and higher levies on steel, aluminum, and automobiles, most of which took effect in Q2.

The Treasury recorded a monthly record of $22.8 billion in duties in May, nearly four times higher than in May 2024. Collections for calendar year 2025 totaled $63.4 billion through May and $86.1 billion for the fiscal year through June.

Automakers and shipping companies are warning that new port fees proposed by the Trump administration could sharply raise consumer costs and undermine U.S. exports.

The $14-per-net-tonne levy, due to take effect October 14, would apply to all non-U.S.-built vehicle carriers, potentially costing up to $600,000 per vessel, according to calculations submitted to the U.S. Trade Representative by the Alliance for American Manufacturing.

According to a Financial Times report, Ford said the blanket approach “unduly burdens” U.S. carmakers that rely on non-Chinese-built carriers. Caterpillar warned that the fees could reduce port access and export options.

Global oil supply is expected to grow by 2.1 million barrels per day in 2025, outpacing demand by a wide margin, according to the International Energy Agency. That’s a sharp increase from its earlier forecast of 1.8 million barrels per day.

The IEA said most of the growth is coming from producers outside the OPEC+ group, though the bloc’s recent production boost also played a role. In June alone, global output rose by 950,000 barrels per day.

Looking ahead to 2026, the agency now expects supply to rise by 1.3 million barrels per day, up from a previous estimate of 1.1 million. Despite the strong growth, the IEA noted that seasonal factors are keeping the oil market tight in the near term.

The European Commission announced plans to establish a "Critical Chemical Alliance" later this year to bolster domestic production of essential chemicals, citing increasing supply chain risks and foreign competition. The initiative will bring together EU member states, industry players, and the Commission to identify vulnerable production sites and chemical dependencies.

The move comes amid rising pressure on Europe’s chemical sector, which employs 1.2 million people but has struggled to recover since the COVID-19 pandemic. More than 20 chemical sites have shut down over the past two years, with petrochemicals and ammonia production being hit hardest due to higher energy costs compared to those in China and the U.S.