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Tariffs 101: Why women’s products cost more

Tariffs 101: Why women’s products cost more

Did you know that women’s clothing and personal care products are often priced higher than men’s? It’s been that way for years and there’s even a name for it. Pink Tax. Now with Trump implementing widespread tariffs, how will this impact women’s goods and jobs? This week on Now You Know, we talk to Prachi Agarwal, a research fellow at the International Economic Development Group at ODI Global. She focuses on trade policy and women in trade, explaining how tariffs work and why they disproportionately impact women. Adblock test (Why?)

Elon Musk slams Trump’s ‘Big Beautiful Bill’, calls for new political party

Elon Musk slams Trump’s ‘Big Beautiful Bill’, calls for new political party

The world’s richest man and the US president have traded insults over Donald Trump’s tax cuts and spending bill. Tech billionaire Elon Musk has stepped up his criticism of United States President Donald Trump’s tax cuts and spending bill and renewed his call for a new political party. Musk’s criticism of Trump’s 940-page “Big, Beautiful Bill“, which proposes tax breaks and sweeping cuts to healthcare and food programmes, has been met with strong criticism from the Democratic Party as well as some members of Trump’s Republican Party. In early June, Musk, a major campaign donor to Trump and a former key aide, called the bill a “disgusting abomination”, leading to a public falling out with the Republican president. The two then appeared to cool tensions, with Trump telling reporters that he wished Musk well, while the latter wrote on X that he regretted having gone “too far”. But as US Senators gathered to vote on amendments to the bill on Monday, Musk ramped up his criticism once again, saying lawmakers who had campaigned on cutting spending but backed the bill “should hang their heads in shame!” “And they will lose their primary next year if it is the last thing I do on this Earth,” Musk said. The Tesla and SpaceX CEO called for a new political party, saying the bill’s massive spending indicated “that we live in a one-party country – the PORKY PIG PARTY!!” “Time for a new political party that actually cares about the people,” he wrote. Trump’s DOGE suggestion Trump hit back at Musk on Tuesday, stating that the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) – which Musk had previously led – should review the subsidies that Musk’s companies have received, to save the federal government “BIG” money. Advertisement “Elon may get more subsidy than any human being in history, by far, and without subsidies, Elon would probably have to close up shop and head back home to South Africa. No more Rocket launches, Satellites, or Electric Car Production, and our Country would save a FORTUNE,” Trump said in a post on his Truth Social platform. In response to Trump’s post, Musk posted on his own platform, X, saying, “I am literally saying CUT IT ALL. Now.” Hitting the debt ceiling is the only thing that will actually force the government to cut waste and fraud. That’s why the debt ceiling legislation exists! — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 1, 2025 It remains unclear how much sway Musk has over the US Congress or what effect his statements might have on the bill’s passage. But Republicans have expressed concern that his on-again, off-again feud with Trump could hurt their chances to protect their majority in the 2026 midterm congressional elections. Bill Schneider, a professor of public policy at George Mason University, told Al Jazeera it would likely be difficult for Musk to establish a viable political coalition consisting of the bill’s opponents. “Elon Musk is a billionaire. There are not enough billionaires to form a party in the US, even if they are unhappy with President Trump,” Schneider told Al Jazeera from Washington, DC. “Now, he has issues with Trump, who is not a very popular figure. He has a lot of opponents, a lot of critics, particularly among women in the US,” he added. “Republicans, almost all of whom are likely to support this particular bill, are very worried about how much debt it’s creating because of the huge tax cuts. Democrats are worried about the dangers to the safety net. It’s kind of hard to put those two worries, those two constituencies, together into one political party.” Adblock test (Why?)

Iran ‘needs more time’ to decide on resuming nuclear talks with US

Iran ‘needs more time’ to decide on resuming nuclear talks with US

Foreign minister’s comments come as the G7 calls for negotiations on a deal to address Iran’s nuclear programme. Iranian Minister of Foreign Affairs Abbas Araghchi has ruled out a quick resumption of talks with the United States after President Donald Trump said US negotiations with Tehran could restart as early as this week. Araghchi’s comments on CBS Evening News on Monday came as the foreign ministers of the G7 issued a statement calling for dialogue on a deal to curb Iran’s nuclear programme. Iran and the US were holding talks on Tehran’s nuclear programme when Israel launched attacks on Iran’s nuclear and military infrastructure. The US later joined in Israel’s attacks, by bombing the Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan sites on June 21. Tehran insists its programme is peaceful, but the US and Israel say they want to ensure Iran cannot build a nuclear weapon. Araghchi said negotiations would not start as quickly as Trump had indicated, and that Iran first needs assurances against further attacks. “In order for us to decide to reengage, we would have to first ensure that America will not revert back to targeting us in a military attack during the negotiations,” the minister said. “I think with all these considerations, we still need more time,” he said, although “the doors of diplomacy will never slam shut”. The Trump administration is seeking talks with Iran after the US president, during his first term, abandoned an agreement his predecessor signed with Tehran in 2015, which curbed the nuclear programme in exchange for sanctions relief. Under that deal, Iran was allowed to enrich uranium below 3.67 percent purity for fuel used in commercial nuclear power plants. Advertisement After Trump ditched the deal, Iran responded by producing uranium enriched to 60 percent, above levels for civilian usage but still below weapons grade. Trump has said the US attacks had “obliterated” Iran’s nuclear sites, and senior officials said it would be almost impossible for the country to resurrect its atomic programme. Araghchi pushed back against that assertion, however. “One cannot obliterate the technology and science for enrichment through bombings,” he told CBS. “If there is this will on our part, and the will exists in order to once again make progress in this industry, we will be able to expeditiously repair the damages and make up for the lost time.” Since the US and Israeli attacks, and the ensuing ceasefire, Iran has put on hold its cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) due to what Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Monday called the the agency chief’s “destructive” behaviour towards the country. Al Jazeera’s Resul Serdar, reporting from Tehran, said tensions are growing between Iran and the IAEA. “They [Iranians] are saying that they will only allow the inspectors to return once they secure the nuclear sites” that have been bombed by the US and Israel, Serdar said. Foreign ministers from the Group of Seven nations, meanwhile, said they supported the ceasefire between Iran and Israel, and urged for negotiations between Tehran and Washington to resume. “We call for the resumption of negotiations, resulting in a comprehensive, verifiable and durable agreement that addresses Iran’s nuclear program,” the G7 foreign ministers said on Monday. The ministers also urged “all parties to avoid actions that could further destabilise the region”. Adblock test (Why?)