China ha intensificado su retórica contra las guerras de precios entre productores, suscitando expectativas sobre la posible implementación de recortes en la capacidad industrial como parte de una campaña para combatir la deflación. Líderes del Partido Comunista prometieron este mes incrementar la regulación contra la reducción agresiva de precios, con advertencias difundidas a través de medios estatales de que esta competencia daña la economía.

Estos mensajes recuerdan a las reformas de oferta que Beijing impulsó hace una década para reducir la producción de acero, cemento, vidrio y carbón, medidas que resultaron determinantes para poner fin a 54 meses consecutivos de caída en los precios de fábrica. No obstante, economistas advierten que el escenario actual es más complejo. Factores como la mayor propiedad privada, incentivos desalineados entre autoridades locales y nacionales, y limitadas opciones de estímulo en otros sectores económicos complican cualquier plan para recortar capacidad sin generar impactos negativos en el empleo y el crecimiento.

La disputa comercial entre China y Estados Unidos intensifica la presión a la baja sobre los precios y reduce los márgenes en las fábricas. Analistas observan que la mayor parte de los fabricantes reciben apoyo estatal pero son de propiedad privada, a diferencia de los productores de materias primas bajo control estatal que se vieron afectados por los recortes de la década pasada. Según Societe Generale, la mayoría de los sectores industriales en el país operan por debajo del nivel del 80% de utilización de capacidad considerado saludable, atribuyendo el fenómeno a la debilidad de la demanda interna y un modelo de crecimiento basado en la inversión que prioriza a los productores por encima de los consumidores.

Funcionarios tanto estadounidenses como europeos han expresado su preocupación por el impacto global de la sobrecapacidad china, que, dicen, inunda los mercados internacionales con productos a bajo costo y afecta a las industrias nacionales de otras economías.

El Politburó del Partido Comunista se reunirá presumiblemente a finales de julio, con la posibilidad de lanzar nuevas directrices sectoriales, aunque habitualmente estos encuentros no presentan una hoja de ruta detallada.

Se espera que los primeros recortes apunten a industrias emergentes que Beijing promovió en la última década como nuevos motores de crecimiento, pero que ahora han sido señaladas por entablar guerras de precios: automóviles, baterías y paneles solares. La expansión acelerada de estos sectores absorbió recursos tras la crisis inmobiliaria, pero la sobrecapacidad resultante es generalizada en la industria. Un directivo anónimo del sector químico afirmó que la sobrecapacidad es visible desde 2023, pero las firmas continúan expandiéndose respaldadas por créditos abundantes y baratos.

La ejecución de recortes será desafiante, ya que depende de limitar subsidios, créditos y otros incentivos locales a la producción, lo que se enfrenta al interés de las autoridades regionales de atraer inversiones y sostener el empleo en sus jurisdicciones. Yan Se, subdirector del Instituto de Política Económica de la Universidad de Beijing, señaló que la resistencia gubernamental local transformará los recortes necesarios en un proceso largo cuya efectividad, por sí sola, no resolverá la presión deflacionaria.

En junio, los precios al productor se redujeron por 33º mes consecutivo. Economistas advierten que el país enfrenta una disyuntiva entre acelerar recortes con el costo de una mayor pérdida de empleo, o mantener el exceso de capacidad a costa de una deflación prolongada. Macquarie estima que las reformas de la década pasada eliminaron decenas de millones de empleos, compensados entonces por inversiones en renovación urbana valoradas en 10 billones de yuanes (1,4 billones de dólares), según Morgan Stanley.

Actualmente la manufactura emplea a menos trabajadores, y los sectores alternativos muestran una demanda débil que dificulta absorber nuevos desempleados. Si bien surgieron nuevos debates sobre inversión urbana, expertos como John Lam, responsable de investigación inmobiliaria para Gran China en UBS, consideran que este canal no podrá absorber las pérdidas laborales derivadas de nuevas reformas, destacando que las autoridades no parece que recurran nuevamente al sector inmobiliario como válvula de escape.

(Con información de Reuters)

Senate Republicans and Democrats advanced the first set of spending bills through the upper chamber, despite signals from Democrats that they may block the government funding process.

In the days and weeks leading up to the vote, Senate Democrats warned that Republicans’ passage of highly partisan bills, like President Donald Trump’s $9 billion clawback package, had eaten away at the trust that girds the appropriations process.

DEMS SEEK RETALIATION OVER GOP CUTS AS THUNE CALLS FOR ‘COOPERATION’ ON FUNDING VOTE

Still, after meeting behind closed-doors Tuesday afternoon, Democrats ultimately provided enough votes to advance the bill, which would fund military construction and the VA. The vote allows for lawmakers to make amendments and debate the bill.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said after the meeting that Democrats were still gunning for a bipartisan spending deal, effectively opening the door for his conference to back the spending bill package for now. 

«We’re working together to get one,» Schumer said. «But the bottom line is, Republicans are making it much harder. Rescissions, impoundment, pocket rescissions directly undoes this.» 

The bill advanced on a 90 to 8 vote, with Schumer and the majority of Senate Democrats joining every Republican to open debate on the bill.

Democrats were largely frustrated with the passage of Trump’s rescissions package last week, which slashed funding from foreign aid and public broadcasting, arguing that doing so dissolved trust between the parties when it came to crafting spending bills.

CONGRESSIONAL REPUBLICANS FACE BRUISING BATTLE TO AVOID GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (Reuters)

They argued that reaching an agreement on a funding bill, only to see their priorities later stripped out through rescissions, shattered confidence in their Republican colleagues to stick to their word.

«There’s no doubt,» Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., a high-ranking member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, told Fox News Digital. «I mean, someone does one thing one day and undoes it the next day, that obviously creates issues with trust.»

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., opted to call his counterparts’ bluff, and put the bill on the floor. Failure to advance the the legislation could have signaled a rocky road ahead for funding the government and beating the Sept. 30 deadline to avert a partial government shutdown.

«Democrats have indicated that they’re so upset over a rescissions bill last week, which, by the way, cut one tenth of 1% of all federal spending, that somehow they could use that to shut down the appropriations process and therefore shut down the government,» Thune said. 

«We think that would be a big mistake, and hopefully they will think better of it and work with us, and we’re trying to give them what they’ve been asking for, [which] is a bipartisan appropriations process,» he continued.

Prior to the vote, Senate Appropriations Chair Susan Collins, R-Maine, urged passage of the bill through the procedural hurdle, and noted that when she and Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., the top Democrat on the panel, took the helm of the committee, they «committed to working together» on spending bills.  

She noted that when Democrats controlled the chamber, lawmakers didn’t get the same opportunity to consider spending bills, but acknowledged that it was still a «challenging legislative environment.»

«This is a fundamental responsibility of Congress, and I want to express my gratitude to Senate Majority Leader, Sen. Thune, for giving us the opportunity to bring the first of the fiscal year 2026 appropriations bills to the Senate floor,» she said.

‘ALL THE OPTIONS’: GOP EYES CUTTING AUGUST RECESS TO MOVE DOZENS OF TRUMP NOMINEES STALLED BY DEMS

Sen. John Fetterman during the sixth installment of The Senate Project moderated by FOX NEWS anchor Shannon Bream at the Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the United States Senate on June 2, 2025, in Boston. (Scott Eisen/Getty Images)

But, passage of the first bill, and the ensuing amendment process leading to a final vote, does not guarantee that the appropriations process will go smoothly before the deadline hits in the next couple of months.

Congress has not passed spending bills through a process called regular order since the late 1990s and has typically relied on short government funding extensions, known as continuing resolutions, and year-end, colossal spending packages, known as omnibuses, to keep the lights on in Washington.

Disagreements over funding levels between the Senate and House, coupled with lingering questions about whether Schumer will continue to play ball with Republicans, could tee up another showdown around the September deadline.

Schumer said that he would have a confab with House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., and the top Democrats on the House and Senate Appropriations committees, Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., and Murray, «to discuss the appropriations process in both the House and the Senate in the weeks ahead.» 

«With so much hard work ahead, the government funding deadline only less than 25 legislative days away, Republicans should be focused on working with us to deliver for American families,» he said. 

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Sen. John Fetterman, who earlier this year voted with Republicans and a handful of his Democratic colleagues to thwart a partial government shutdown, had a stern message for Senate Democrats that may want to obstruct the government funding process.

«I will never, ever vote to shut our government down,» the Pennsylvania Democrat told Fox News Digital. «That’s a core responsibility. And now we may not like a lot of these changes to things, and I don’t, but I’m saying that’s the way that democracy works.»

«And now shutting the government down, how could you do that and plunge our country into chaos,» he continued. 

Syrian jihadists reportedly executed a 35-year-old Syrian American – a member of the religious minority Druze community – last week as government-backed forces viciously attacked members of the Druze community in the country.

The State Department confirmed on Tuesday to Fox News Digital that an American, who has been identified as Hosam Saraya from Oklahoma, was killed in Syria. A State Department spokesperson said, «Time and time again, Secretary Rubio has emphasized the importance of prioritizing the safety and security of U.S. citizens. We can confirm the death of a U.S. citizen in the Sweida region of Syria last week. We offer condolences to the family on their loss and are providing consular assistance to them.»

Sen. James Lankford, R-Okla, wrote on X, «Hosam was an Oklahoman and member of the Druze community who was tragically executed alongside other members of his family in Syria. We are praying for his family, friends, and the entire community as they grieve this senseless loss.»

WHY SYRIA PLAYS A KEY ROLE IN TRUMP’S PLANS FOR MIDDLE EAST PEACE

Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla, wrote on X that an «American citizen from Oklahoma» was «brutally executed alongside his family members in Syria,» adding, «I’m working with partners in the region to learn more, and we’re in touch with @GovStitt on this devastating situation. Our prayers are with the family at this time.»

President Ahmed Al-Sharaa had reportedly taken the side of the jihadi-influenced Bedouin tribes who executed Druze residents in southern Syria, declaring they carried out «heroic actions.»

Al-Sharaa, who used a nom de guerre «Abu Mohammed al-Golani,» was on the FBI’s Most Wanted List from 2013 through 2024 for his role in terrorism. Critics accuse al-Sharaa of seeking to violently repress the struggling ethnic and religious minority populations in Syria – Christians, Druze, and Kruds. 

Last week Israel launched military strikes against the jihadi forces on their way to the southern city of Sweida, where there is a large Druze population, to stop the massacre. Israel also attacked the Syrian Defense headquarters in Damascus to halt the bloodshed in Sweida. 

Syrian security forces walk together along a street after clashes between government troops and local Druze fighters in Sweida, July 16, 2025. (Reuters/Karam al-Masri)

An Israel Defense Force spokesman told Fox News Digital during a Zoom call that it «learned its lesson» from the Hamas invasion of the Jewish state in 2023 and has two goals in southern Syria: border security and the rescue of Syrian Druze.

The bulk of the world’s Druze community lives in Syria. There are also sizable Druze populations in Israel and Lebanon.

WHO ARE THE DRUZE? RELIGIOUS GROUP AIDS SYRIAN MEMBERS UNDER ISLAMIST ATTACK, ISRAELI MEMBERS OFFER SUPPORT

Arizona GOP Congressman Abe Hamadeh, who is of Druze background, told Fox News Digital, «The barbaric violence against the Druze community in Syria must end immediately. Under the bold leadership of President Donald J. Trump, Secretary Rubio, and Ambassador Barrack, the United States took bold steps to ease sanctions and extend goodwill to the Syrian government and its people in the hope of seeing real reforms.»

Hamadeh, whose mother is from Sweida, added, «Now is the time for the Syrian government to turn their words into real actions, if they want to maintain legitimacy: restore order, protect all of its citizens, and demonstrate a genuine commitment to peace and long-term stability. The only way is to build a new Syria that is reflective of its ethnic and religious mosaic. The United States wants Syria to succeed, but bloodshed, senseless violence, and division is not the path forward.»

Israeli Druze cross the border near Majdal Shams in a show of support for the Druze community in Hader on the Syrian side on July 16, 2025. (Ilia Yefimovich/picture alliance via Getty Images)

The Arizona congressman said, «My staff and I are engaged in interagency efforts to ascertain what is, and is not, happening on the ground in Syria amid the fog of this conflict. We will not rest until all American remains and victims are returned. Justice and accountability must be served. We are praying for the victims and for peace.»

Al-Sharaa’s rule since he toppled the pro-Iran regime of Bashar al-Assad in December has experienced massacres of Alawites, Christian and Druze. Critics argue that Al-Sharaa refuses to rope in the jihadi forces who seek to impose a Taliban-style rule on Syria.

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After Al-Sharaa’s forces executed Syrian Christians in March, Rev. Johnnie Moore, the president of the Congress of Christian Leaders, told Fox News Digital: «This is a warning that the Syrian government is not ready for prime time if it can’t protect a handful of vulnerable Christians who had absolutely nothing to do with this violence except being its victims,» 

The death toll involving the clashes between Sunni Bedouin tribes and Druze fighters, which includes government forces and Israel, topped 1,000, according to the U.K.-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR).

Washington helped implement a fragile ceasefire. SOHR noted, «Reaching an agreement including ceasefire and sponsored by Washington coincided with threats to keep Syria on the list of state sponsors of terrorism, in case that the agreement’s terms were violated.»