The U.S. Commerce Department imposed preliminary anti-dumping duties of 93.5% on Chinese imports of graphite, a key battery component, after concluding the materials had been unfairly subsidized, Bloomberg News reported. A trade association representing US graphite producers in December filed petitions with two federal agencies, asking for investigations into whether Chinese companies were violating anti-dumping laws. The new duties will add to existing rates making the effective tariff 160%, according to American Active Anode Material Producers, the trade group that filed the complaint.

China’s government is threatening to block a deal that would transfer ownership of dozens of seaports to Western investors if Cosco, China’s largest shipping company, doesn’t get a stake, the Wall Street Journal reported. The proposed sale includes two ports at the Panama Canal and more than 40 others around the world, all owned by Hong Kong-based CK Hutchison. China is pushing for state-owned Cosco to be an equal partner and shareholder of the ports with BlackRock and Mediterranean Shipping Co., a containership operator.

President Donald Trump said on Wednesday the U.S. will probably "live by the letter" on tariffs with Japan and may have another trade deal coming up with India, following his announcement of an accord with Indonesia on Tuesday, Reuters reported. "We have some pretty good deals to announce," Trump told reporters at the start of a meeting with Bahrain's Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa at the White House. He said he would also discuss trade issues with the Bahraini leader.

Prime Minister Mark Carney on Wednesday said Canada will introduce a tariff rate quota for countries with which it has free trade agreements, excluding the United States, to protect the domestic steel industry, Reuters reported. A 50% tariff will apply to imports from these countries that surpass the 2024 volumes, though Canada will honor existing arrangements with its United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement trade partners, Carney said. Canada will implement additional tariffs of 25% on steel imports from all countries containing steel melted and poured in China before the end of July.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said on Wednesday that she had spoken with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and that the two had agreed to strengthen trade collaboration, particularly in light of the tariffs from U.S. President Donald Trump set to go in effect on August 1, Reuters reported. "We both agreed that the (U.S.-Canada-Mexico) trade agreement needed to be respected, and we shared our experiences about the letter than we received from President Trump," Sheinbaum said in her daily morning press conference.

Indonesia’s president, Prabowo Subianto, confirmed on Wednesday the broad outlines of a trade agreement with the United States that was reached after what he called “tough negotiations” with Washington, the New York Times reported. Under the terms, which President Trump on Tuesday called a “great deal for everybody,” U.S. exports to Indonesia would face no tariffs, while Indonesian goods would be charged a tariff of 19 percent in the United States. Mr. Prabowo confirmed in brief remarks in Jakarta that the two nations had “finally” reached an agreement.

The New York federal judge who gave Argentina until yesterday to cede its controlling stake in YPF SA to holders of a $16 billion judgment granted the South American nation a three-day extension to seek a longer delay from an appeals court, Bloomberg News reported. U.S.

Canada's annual inflation rate rose to 1.9% in June, meeting analysts' expectations, as increases in the price of automobiles, clothing and footwear pushed the index higher, data showed on Tuesday, Reuters reported. The consumer price index was at 1.7% in the prior month. Statistics Canada said on a monthly basis the CPI increased 0.1%, matching analysts' forecasts. CPI has been under 2%, or the mid-point of the Bank of Canada's inflation target range, for three consecutive months.

Mexico's banking regulator slapped three financial institutions, which had been sanctioned by the U.S. for alleged money laundering, with more than 185 million pesos ($9.81 million) in fines in June, local media reported on Tuesday, Reuters reported. The U.S. Treasury last month prohibited certain transactions with Mexico's CIBanco, Intercam Banco and Vector Casa de Bolsa as part of fentanyl sanctions. The fines were largely related to money-laundering prevention, local media reported, citing data published by the regulator.