U.S. Mulls Tariff Freeze, Trade-War Bill, Lunch Pals: Eco Day

(Bloomberg) --

Welcome to Wednesday, Americas. Here’s the latest news and analysis from Bloomberg Economics to help get your day started:

• The U.S. is willing to suspend the next round of tariffs on an additional $300 billion of Chinese imports while Beijing and Washington prepare to resume trade negotiations, people familiar with the plans said
  • Yet should the trade war escalate, the world economy runs the risk of having to foot a $1.2 trillion bill
  • Businesses across Asia Pacific are shelving investment plans because of the trade tensions, and in Southeast Asia a slump in exports is having a knock-on effect on imports
• Trump may be attacking the Federal Reserve, but Chairman Jerome Powell and top White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow remain lunch pals
• European Central Bank President Mario Draghi is once again testing the boundaries of the law in his efforts to lift the euro zone out of its economic malaise
• Bank of England policy makers stand ready to alter the economic assumptions behind their interest-rate stance if the government changes its Brexit policy, according to Governor Mark Carney
• Iceland’s central bank cut rates again, while Thailand and the Czech Republic held
  • New Zealand’s central bank said a further reduction in interest rates may be needed

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