MEF BUSINESS NEWS 22 JANUARY 2025 President Donald Trump plans to impose a 10% tariff on all Chinese imports by February 1, citing fentanyl trafficking concerns. While holding off immediate action against China, Trump criticized the EU, Canada, and Mexico for trade imbalances and border issues, hinting at future tariffs. In talks with President Xi Jinping, Trump maintained his tough trade stance, while China pledged to boost imports for balanced trade, aiming to promote high-quality products. ———————————————- The announcement of a potential 10% tariff rattled Chinese markets, with the CSI 300 index falling 1%, the Hang Seng dropping 1.6%, and the offshore renminbi weakening. 10% is less severe than the 25% tariffs threatened on Mexico and Canada, though. And Trump hinted at a broader deal linking tariffs to TikTok ownership. This relatively measured approach has sparked cautious optimism in Beijing about possible negotiations to avoid a second trade war, the Financial Times reported. Experts suggest both sides may seek a mutually acceptable deal, though specifics remain uncertain. ——————————————————- And, according to a Financial Times analysis, Trump’s swift rollback of Joe Biden’s climate policies has jeopardized over $300 billion in federal infrastructure funding. On his first day back in office, Trump signed executive orders halting disbursements under Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act and bipartisan infrastructure law, affecting $50 billion in approved Department of Energy loans and $280 billion in pending requests. Key loans, such as $9 billion to DTE Energy and $3.5 billion to PacifiCorp, are now at risk, the FT reports. The move, part of Trump’s broader agenda to dismantle Biden’s “Green New Deal” and prioritize fossil fuels, has shocked the clean energy sector and raised doubts about the future of U.S. energy transition initiatives. ——————————————————- Trump’s rapid executive orders on tax, immigration, trade, and energy policies have left businesses scrambling. According to the Wall Street Journal, JPMorgan Chase set up a “war room,” Fisher Phillips launched an immigration hotline, and manufacturers prepared for possible tariffs. Law firm Akin Gump created a tracker, summarizing over 30 orders. Businesses are grappling with uncertainty as they adjust to the sweeping changes. ——————————————————— The initial orders didn’t impose any tariffs, though. Trump said he planned to put 25% duties on imports from Mexico and Canada and 10% on imports for China. It might be just a negotiation tactic. Global leaders at the Davos summit expressed cautious relief after President Donald Trump’s first day in office, as he discussed trade wars without immediately imposing tariffs. Gary Cohn, IBM vice chairman and Trump’s former economic adviser, noted on Bloomberg TV that tariff debates have long been contentious. While Trump’s earlier administration saw sweeping steel and aluminum tariffs, Cohn emphasized it’s only the start of a four-year term, hinting that immediate action may not be necessary. Businesses and investors remain on edge about Trump’s trade policy trajectory. —— —— MEF MOBILE NEWS 22 JANUARY 2025 China, Myanmar, and Thailand agreed to dismantle telecom fraud centers and arrest syndicate leaders, with broader regional cooperation pledged. Myanmar has deported over 53,000 Chinese nationals linked to online fraud since 2023, emphasizing its crackdown on scams and urging collaboration to combat online gambling and fraud. ———————— MTN Nigeria Communications shares surged 10% after the Nigerian government raised telecommunications tariffs by 50% to address the naira’s depreciation and soaring inflation. Airtel Africa Plc shares remained unchanged. The Nigerian Communications Commission announced the hike, citing the need to sustain infrastructure investment and innovation. This marks the first tariff increase in over a decade, though it is only half of what telecom companies like MTN had requested to offset the 41% naira depreciation and three-decade-high inflation. ———————————- The UK government is launching a mobile wallet to store official documents like driving licenses, aiming for full rollout by 2027 to include all government-issued credentials. The wallet will use secure technologies like facial recognition. A new app will also debut, offering personalized access to government services, payments, and an AI chatbot. Additionally, the government introduced AI tools, dubbed Humphrey, to improve public services by reducing delays and cutting costs. ———————————- The Pacific Telecommunications Council conference in Waikiki highlights global technology and innovation, drawing nearly 9,000 attendees and boosting Hawaii’s economy. The event supports Hawaii’s fiber optics goals and broadband expansion to remote areas, championed by Gov. Sylvia Luke. It also raised over $15,000 for Make-a-Wish Hawaii through its annual 5K Run/Walk. MEF hosted an entire day, covering Wireless Tech’s Impact on Infrastructure, the Future of Telecom Wholesale, Securing Mobile Network, Mobile Evolution & Connectivity. All details in our website, mobileecosystemforum.com —— —— MEF TECH NEWS 22 JANUARY 2025 President Trump announced a $100 billion joint venture, Stargate, between OpenAI, SoftBank, and Oracle to develop computing infrastructure for artificial intelligence. The initiative, which could expand to $500 billion over four years, begins with 10 data centers under construction in Texas. Stargate aligns with Trump’s push for American-made AI dominance and deregulation, including rolling back Biden-era AI safety standards. Trump also pledged emergency measures to enable Stargate to generate its own electricity. ——————————- Microsoft has revised its deal with OpenAI, allowing the AI startup to use cloud services from competitors, provided Microsoft doesn’t want the business. The agreement, running until 2030, grants Microsoft the first option to supply computing resources for OpenAI’s AI models. Previously, Microsoft was OpenAI’s exclusive cloud provider, but a one-time exemption last year allowed OpenAI to buy some capacity from Oracle. OpenAI can now also build some of its own cloud capabilities. The deal aligns with OpenAI, SoftBank, and Oracle’s $500 billion joint venture, Stargate, announced by President Trump. Microsoft will contribute technology but not funding. ——————————- Google is investing an additional $1 billion in Anthropic, a leading artificial intelligence developer and competitor to OpenAI, bringing its total investment to over $2 billion. The deal includes a business agreement for the use of Anthropic’s online tools and services. Anthropic, known for its Claude language models, is also backed by Amazon. The new funding follows reports that Anthropic is in talks to raise $2 billion in a round led by Lightspeed Venture Partners, which would value the company at $60 billion. ——————————— CapCut, ByteDance’s video-editing app, returned online in the U.S. after briefly going dark due to a federal ban on ByteDance apps. The ban, which also affected TikTok and Lemon8, required app store operators like Apple and Google to stop distributing these apps. TikTok resumed service after President Trump issued an order delaying enforcement of the law by 75 days, but the apps remain unavailable for download. CapCut’s return is notable amid competition from Meta’s new rival app, Edits, and mixed responses from tech companies on ByteDance’s legal challenges. Influencers welcomed CapCut’s reappearance. —— ——

MEF BUSINESS NEWS 22 JANUARY 2025 President Donald Trump plans to impose a 10% tariff on all Chinese imports by February 1, citing fentanyl trafficking concerns. While holding off immediate action against China, Trump criticized the EU, Canada, and Mexico for trade imbalances and border issues, hinting at future tariffs. In talks with President Xi Jinping, Trump maintained his tough trade stance, while China pledged to boost imports for balanced trade, aiming to promote high-quality products. ———————————————- The announcement of a potential 10% tariff rattled Chinese markets, with the CSI 300 index falling 1%, the Hang Seng dropping 1.6%, and the offshore renminbi weakening. 10% is less severe than the 25% tariffs threatened on Mexico and Canada, though. And Trump hinted at a broader deal linking tariffs to TikTok ownership. This relatively measured approach has sparked cautious optimism in Beijing about possible negotiations to avoid a second trade war, the Financial Times reported. Experts suggest both sides may seek a mutually acceptable deal, though specifics remain uncertain. ——————————————————- And, according to a Financial Times analysis, Trump’s swift rollback of Joe Biden’s climate policies has jeopardized over $300 billion in federal infrastructure funding. On his first day back in office, Trump signed executive orders halting disbursements under Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act and bipartisan infrastructure law, affecting $50 billion in approved Department of Energy loans and $280 billion in pending requests. Key loans, such as $9 billion to DTE Energy and $3.5 billion to PacifiCorp, are now at risk, the FT reports. The move, part of Trump’s broader agenda to dismantle Biden’s “Green New Deal” and prioritize fossil fuels, has shocked the clean energy sector and raised doubts about the future of U.S. energy transition initiatives. ——————————————————- Trump’s rapid executive orders on tax, immigration, trade, and energy policies have left businesses scrambling. According to the Wall Street Journal, JPMorgan Chase set up a “war room,” Fisher Phillips launched an immigration hotline, and manufacturers prepared for possible tariffs. Law firm Akin Gump created a tracker, summarizing over 30 orders. Businesses are grappling with uncertainty as they adjust to the sweeping changes. ——————————————————— The initial orders didn’t impose any tariffs, though. Trump said he planned to put 25% duties on imports from Mexico and Canada and 10% on imports for China. It might be just a negotiation tactic. Global leaders at the Davos summit expressed cautious relief after President Donald Trump’s first day in office, as he discussed trade wars without immediately imposing tariffs. Gary Cohn, IBM vice chairman and Trump’s former economic adviser, noted on Bloomberg TV that tariff debates have long been contentious. While Trump’s earlier administration saw sweeping steel and aluminum tariffs, Cohn emphasized it’s only the start of a four-year term, hinting that immediate action may not be necessary. Businesses and investors remain on edge about Trump’s trade policy trajectory. —— —— MEF MOBILE NEWS 22 JANUARY 2025 China, Myanmar, and Thailand agreed to dismantle telecom fraud centers and arrest syndicate leaders, with broader regional cooperation pledged. Myanmar has deported over 53,000 Chinese nationals linked to online fraud since 2023, emphasizing its crackdown on scams and urging collaboration to combat online gambling and fraud. ———————— MTN Nigeria Communications shares surged 10% after the Nigerian government raised telecommunications tariffs by 50% to address the naira’s depreciation and soaring inflation. Airtel Africa Plc shares remained unchanged. The Nigerian Communications Commission announced the hike, citing the need to sustain infrastructure investment and innovation. This marks the first tariff increase in over a decade, though it is only half of what telecom companies like MTN had requested to offset the 41% naira depreciation and three-decade-high inflation. ———————————- The UK government is launching a mobile wallet to store official documents like driving licenses, aiming for full rollout by 2027 to include all government-issued credentials. The wallet will use secure technologies like facial recognition. A new app will also debut, offering personalized access to government services, payments, and an AI chatbot. Additionally, the government introduced AI tools, dubbed Humphrey, to improve public services by reducing delays and cutting costs. ———————————- The Pacific Telecommunications Council conference in Waikiki highlights global technology and innovation, drawing nearly 9,000 attendees and boosting Hawaii’s economy. The event supports Hawaii’s fiber optics goals and broadband expansion to remote areas, championed by Gov. Sylvia Luke. It also raised over $15,000 for Make-a-Wish Hawaii through its annual 5K Run/Walk. MEF hosted an entire day, covering Wireless Tech’s Impact on Infrastructure, the Future of Telecom Wholesale, Securing Mobile Network, Mobile Evolution & Connectivity. All details in our website, mobileecosystemforum.com —— —— MEF TECH NEWS 22 JANUARY 2025 President Trump announced a $100 billion joint venture, Stargate, between OpenAI, SoftBank, and Oracle to develop computing infrastructure for artificial intelligence. The initiative, which could expand to $500 billion over four years, begins with 10 data centers under construction in Texas. Stargate aligns with Trump’s push for American-made AI dominance and deregulation, including rolling back Biden-era AI safety standards. Trump also pledged emergency measures to enable Stargate to generate its own electricity. ——————————- Microsoft has revised its deal with OpenAI, allowing the AI startup to use cloud services from competitors, provided Microsoft doesn’t want the business. The agreement, running until 2030, grants Microsoft the first option to supply computing resources for OpenAI’s AI models. Previously, Microsoft was OpenAI’s exclusive cloud provider, but a one-time exemption last year allowed OpenAI to buy some capacity from Oracle. OpenAI can now also build some of its own cloud capabilities. The deal aligns with OpenAI, SoftBank, and Oracle’s $500 billion joint venture, Stargate, announced by President Trump. Microsoft will contribute technology but not funding. ——————————- Google is investing an additional $1 billion in Anthropic, a leading artificial intelligence developer and competitor to OpenAI, bringing its total investment to over $2 billion. The deal includes a business agreement for the use of Anthropic’s online tools and services. Anthropic, known for its Claude language models, is also backed by Amazon. The new funding follows reports that Anthropic is in talks to raise $2 billion in a round led by Lightspeed Venture Partners, which would value the company at $60 billion. ——————————— CapCut, ByteDance’s video-editing app, returned online in the U.S. after briefly going dark due to a federal ban on ByteDance apps. The ban, which also affected TikTok and Lemon8, required app store operators like Apple and Google to stop distributing these apps. TikTok resumed service after President Trump issued an order delaying enforcement of the law by 75 days, but the apps remain unavailable for download. CapCut’s return is notable amid competition from Meta’s new rival app, Edits, and mixed responses from tech companies on ByteDance’s legal challenges. Influencers welcomed CapCut’s reappearance. —— ——