Updated Jun 27, 2018

White House won't put new investment restrictions on China

Dan Primack

Illustration: Lazaro Gamio/Axios

The White House will not propose new investment restrictions on China or other countries, outside of what Congress was already planning to do, according to senior administration officials.

Be smart: This modest approach comes as Senate Republicans have been considering ways to limit Trump's authority on trade, and is likely to be cheered by Wall Street.

  • President Trump will endorse a bipartisan piece of legislation called FIRRMA, which is intended to strengthen the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, an existing body that reviews foreign investments in the U.S.
  • A version of FIRRMA passed the House overwhelmingly yesterday, and final language is expected to soon be hammered out in conference.
  • Nothing new is being announced regarding U.S. tech exports, although there are some export controls in FIRRMA.
  • In May, the White House said it "will implement specific investment restrictions and enhanced export controls for Chinese persons and entities related to the acquisition of industrially significant technology. The list of restrictions and controls will be announced by June 30, 2018."
  • More: Trump's original sin on trade

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Federal court temporarily halts "Remain in Mexico" program

Migrant wearing a cap with U.S. flagin front of the border between Guatemala and Mexico. Photo: Jair Cabrera Torres/picture alliance via Getty Image

The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a lower court's earlier injunction on Friday, temporarily stopping the Trump administration from enforcing the Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP) — known as the "Remain in Mexico" policy.

Why it matters: Tens of thousands of migrants seeking asylum have been forced to wait out their U.S. immigration court cases across the border in Mexico under the policy. The Trump administration has long credited this program for the decline in border crossings following record highs last summer.

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Coronavirus updates: WHO raises global threat level to "very high"

Data: The Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins, the CDC, and China's Health Ministry. Note: China numbers are for the mainland only and U.S. numbers include repatriated citizens.

The World Health Organization raised its global risk assessment for the novel coronavirus to "very high" Friday, its highest risk level as countries struggle to contain it. Meanwhile, National Economic Council director Larry Kudlow this morning tried to reassure the markets, which continued to correct amid growing fears of a U.S. recession.

The big picture: COVID-19 has killed more than 2,860 people and infected about 83,800 others in almost 60 countries and territories outside the epicenter in mainland China. The number of new cases reported outside China now exceed those inside the country.

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Bernie's plan to hike taxes on some startup employees

Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios

Sens. Bernie Sanders (D-VT) and Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) introduced legislation that would tax nonqualified stock options at vesting, rather than at exercise, for employees making at least $130,000 per year.

The big picture: Select employees at private companies would be taxed on monies that they hadn't yet banked.

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