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A coalition of 25 Democratic-led states has filed a lawsuit challenging the Trump administration's latest tariffs on imports from 60 trading partners, arguing that the broad measures exceed the president's legal authority under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974. The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. Court of International Trade, follows similar legal challenges by small businesses. The states claim the tariffs are an unlawful attempt to reimpose measures that courts have already ruled illegal. The tariffs, introduced on July 24, impose duties of 10% and 12.5% on goods from countries, including members of the European Union, over concerns about forced labor. The Trump administration maintains the measures are a lawful response to unfair trade practices, while the states argue that Section 301 has historically been used to target specific countries or industries, not nearly all U.S. imports, and that the broad tariffs will do little to address forced labor while increasing costs for businesses and consumers. 

 

USA Today

CNBC

Politico

Reuters

The Trump administration has banned imports from a further 43 Chinese companies over alleged rights abuses of Uyghur and other minority groups. The firms - operative in supply chains ‌from electronics to food and metals - were added to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act Entity List. It is the largest single ​expansion of the list since the act creating it was signed into law in 2021, and brings the number of mentioned entities to 187 from 144. "Today's action by the Trump administration strengthens America's economy against products made with slave labor," said Representative John Moolenaar, chairman of the House Select Committee on China.

 

Reuters

U.S. regulators have fined UBS a record $125m over the Swiss bank's failure to implement adequate anti-money laundering controls despite being sanctioned for similar shortcomings in 2018. The U.S. ​Department of the Treasury's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) said UBS Financial Services (UBSFS) admitted ​to willfully violating the Bank Secrecy Act by failing to implement and maintain an anti-money ⁠laundering program and by failing to file suspicious activity reports.  The settlement - the largest civil fine ever against a broker-dealer for violating the main U.S. anti-money laundering law - resolved related accusations by the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, and the Financial ​Industry Regulatory Authority. "Today’s historic action against UBSFS should send a clear message ​that recidivist financial institutions will face severe repercussions,” FinCEN Director Andrea Gacki said. 

 

Financial Times

Reuters

Capital One has asked a federal judge to dismiss the Trump Organization's lawsuit over the closure of approximately 385 bank accounts in 2021, arguing the decision followed a months-long anti-money laundering (AML) review rather than political retaliation related to the January 6 Capitol riot. In court filings, the bank said its financial crimes team determined the accounts should be closed after an extensive compliance review and maintained that it acted within its contractual right to terminate accounts "at any time, for any or no reason." Capital One also argued that federal banking secrecy laws prevented it from disclosing the AML-related reasons for the closures to the Trump Organization. The Trump Organization alleges the accounts were closed for political reasons and that the AML justification was created after the fact. Capital One is seeking to have the amended lawsuit dismissed permanently, while a related legal dispute continues over what court documents should remain under seal. The case is one of several lawsuits brought by Trump-affiliated entities against major U.S. banks over alleged politically motivated "debanking."

 

CBS News

NPR

Apple has launched a fresh legal challenge against a U.K. government order requiring access to encrypted iCloud data belonging to British users, arguing against the Home Office's powers to issue secret Technical Capability Notices (TCNs) under the Investigatory Powers Act. The case, lodged with the Investigatory Powers Tribunal, follows the U.K. government's revised request after it abandoned an earlier demand that would also have affected U.S. users. Privacy campaign groups, including Privacy International and Liberty, have welcomed Apple's challenge, arguing it is vital for protecting digital privacy and security. Apple previously withdrew its Advanced Data Protection service for U.K. users after refusing to create a "back door" into encrypted data. The Home Office maintains that the legislation includes robust safeguards and is used only when strictly necessary. 

 

Financial Times

Reuters

The Guardian

A landmark lawsuit filed in 2019 by Brazil's Office of the Attorney General (Advocacia-Geral da União, or AGU) seeking to hold the country's largest cigarette manufacturers financially accountable for the public health costs caused by smoking has reached a critical milestone. All legal submissions are now complete, including an opinion from the Federal Public Prosecutor's Office supporting the AGU's claims. The case is now awaiting a decision before the Federal Court in Porto Alegre on whether the tobacco companies are liable for the harms caused by the marketing and sale of their cigarettes in Brazil.  

 

The Globe and Mail

Eli Lilly and privately held contract manufacturer Resilience are to invest $750m to expand pharmaceutical manufacturing ​capacity in the U.S. and strengthen the domestic ‌medicine supply chain. Reuters notes that drugmakers have been boosting  U.S. manufacturing since last year ​and stockpiling inventory as the Trump administration moves ​to impose 100% tariffs on branded drugs ⁠unless companies cut prices or manufacture medicines ​locally.

 

Reuters

U.S. construction spending unexpectedly fell 0.1% in June, missing economists' expectations for a 0.2% increase, as higher mortgage rates continued to weigh on residential construction activity. The Commerce Department also revised May's reading to show spending was unchanged, rather than rising 0.1%, while total construction spending was 3.2% lower than a year earlier. Private residential construction declined 0.3%, with spending on new single-family homes falling 0.6% and down 3.3% year over year. Multi-family construction also slipped 0.7%, reflecting continued pressure from elevated borrowing costs, with the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate reaching 6.66% last week. Private nonresidential construction edged up 0.1%, although spending on factory projects fell 1.2%, marking continued weakness in business investment. Public construction spending was unchanged in June, with state, local, and federal government outlays all flat. 

 

Reuters

Cybersecurity has overtaken geopolitical risk as the leading concern for chief executives, according to Aon finance chief Edmund Reese, who said executives are increasingly focused on managing multiple interconnected risks, including cyberattacks, geopolitical instability, AI investment, and talent shortages, rather than addressing individual threats in isolation. Reese said Aon is investing heavily in AI to improve productivity and client service, with AI-driven automation contributing 70 basis points of margin improvement in the second quarter. The company also said AI-enabled risk analysis tools have increased request-for-proposal win rates by 40%, supporting growth from new clients and expanded business with existing customers. Aon is continuing to expand its client-facing workforce, targeting 4% to 8% growth this year after increasing those roles by 6% in 2025. Reese said the company's strategy centers on helping clients better quantify financial risks and make informed decisions about which exposures to retain and which to transfer to insurers or other providers.

 

Fortune

Bordeaux's wine industry is on high alert as persistent "zombie fires" near the city threaten vineyards just weeks before harvest, with producers fearing not only damage from flames but also smoke taint, which can permanently affect grape quality and wine flavor. Although authorities say the Gironde wildfire is no longer expanding, firefighters continue to tackle flare-ups. The fires add to mounting pressures on French winemakers from climate change, following years of rising temperatures, lower yields and changing consumer habits. Weak demand has led to the removal of around 21,000 hectares of vineyards in the Gironde since 2023, while the Liv-ex Bordeaux 500 fine wine index has fallen by nearly 20% over the past five years, highlighting the increasing challenges facing one of the world's most prestigious wine-producing regions.

 

Euronews

Financial Times

Gen Z workers at Tokyo-based business support and development firm Global Partners (GP) who are disenchanted with “soft” modern workplace culture that they see as hindering growth, are seeking to tap the corporate zeal that fueled Japan’s post-war economic miracle. Japan Times reports that the company has become a viral sensation for its routine corporate practices - including the chanting of work targets during daily meetings - aimed at boosting productivity. The company's internal motto is “Holding back is evil.”  GP founder and CEO Koji Yamamoto, 54, explained: “If you don’t say anything because you don’t want to rock the boat, you end up ’quietly quitting’.” 

 

Japan Times