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Trump signs ‘Fort Knox’ cryptocurrency order; revises tariffs, Musk role in budget slashing

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Trump signs ‘Fort Knox’ cryptocurrency order; revises tariffs, Musk role in budget slashing


Trump landed at Palm Beach International Airport after delivering remarks at a White House digital assets summit.

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WEST PALM BEACH — President Trump arrived Friday evening for his fifth Mar-a-Lago visit this term at a time when his home county is increasingly more vocal and visible in opposition to his policies.

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Trump landed at Palm Beach International Airport just before 8 p.m. With him on Air Force One were billionaire and special government employee Elon Musk, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Chief of Staff Susie Wiles and aide Walt Nauta.

Trump arrived after delivering remarks at a White House digital assets summit. Trump touted an executive order he issued Thursday creating a “Strategic Bitcoin Reserve” and “Digital Asset Stockpile” saying it will create a “virtual Fort Knox.”

“That’s a big thing,” he said, adding: “This is a tremendous opportunity for economic growth and innovation in our financial sector … We feel like pioneers, in a way.”

The measures have received a mixed reaction among crypto hedge and investment fund managers while others point out that Trump’s financial stake in a crypto platform could raise conflicts of interest.

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After the late afternoon roundtable, Trump departed Washington for the Winter White House, ending a week in which he attempted to quell tumult within his own government by clarifying who exactly is in charge of the federal budget’s crash diet. And one in which he partially flipped on his decision to implement punitive tariffs on America’s closest trading partners — and which economists have said could prove costly to U.S. consumers.

The White House claimed the administration this week continued “racking up major wins” citing liquefied natural gas deals, the arrest of the ISIS-K terrorist accused of leading the deadly bombing in Afghanistan that killed 13 U.S. servicemembers in 2021 and a plummet in “illegal border crossings” last month that was 94% less than in February 2024 and “down 96% from the all-time high of the Biden Administration.”

Trump in Palm Beach County as residents grow restless over his policies

On March 4, more than 100 people gathered for the West Palm Beach version of the National Day of Action demonstration in front of the Palm Beach County Courthouse. For two hours, they alternately condemned Trump’s slew of executive orders, efforts to end diversity programs, a nationwide immigration crackdown and other initiatives.

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Two days later, in a meeting with local Hispanic and community leaders, Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw said the county’s deputies would not engage in broad immigration sweeps but only seek to detain undocumented “bad guys” with existing warrants and criminal records.

“I am not doing immigration sweeps. Haven’t, won’t,” Bradshaw said, while also adding: “Send your kids to school, go to the hospitals when you need to go there, go to the grocery store, go wherever you want. I want people to be safe. Don’t be afraid of us.”

South Florida’s congressional Democrats have also fired broadsides at the administration, which has been in office for just six weeks. U.S. Rep. Lois Frankel of West Palm Beach said she was “appalled” by the Trump administration’s plan to eliminate 80,000 jobs from the Department of Veterans Affairs.

“As the mother of a U.S. Marine war Veteran who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, I know firsthand the service and sacrifice of our men and women in uniform,” said Frankel, a former mayor of West Palm Beach whose district includes the Winter White House, in a statement. “Veterans’ benefits are a sacred promise, earned through their service to our country … Slashing tens of thousands of VA jobs will mean longer wait times, delayed treatments, and increased reliance on private providers —many of whom lack the expertise to treat service-related conditions. This cruel decision doesn’t serve those who served our country — it abandons them.”

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On Friday, U.S. Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick along with her Democratic colleagues from Florida sent a letter warning the Trump administration that reducing resources for meteorologists and weather forecasts will imperil the Sunshine State, particularly during hurricane season.

“Here in South Florida, families have been hit hard by severe hurricanes, catastrophic flooding, and other natural disasters,” wrote Cherfilus-McCormick, whose district covers swaths of Palm Beach and Broward counties. “Abrupt workforce cuts at NOAA and NWS will only make it more difficult for our communities to get ahead before the next storm arrives.”

Week ends with back-and-forth on tariffs

It wasn’t just locals pushing back hard on Trump’s initiatives. After implementing long-threatened and steep tariffs, the president soon was backpedaling.

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After a call with leaders of America’s automotive industry, Trump removed automobiles from the list of items facing 25% duties. Another import, potash needed by farmers for fertilizer, was also added to a widening exempted list.

The partial retreat nonetheless elicited taunting from Canadian officials who called Trump’s trade back-and-forth a “psychodrama.”

“There’s too much unpredictability and chaos coming out of the White House right now,” Canadian Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly was quoted as saying.

After a call with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, Trump said he would not apply tariffs on imports covered by an existing trade agreement he negotiated in his first term.

Florida has a lot at stake with Canada, Mexico tariffs

Trump’s adopted home state has plenty at stake as Canada and Mexico are among Florida’s top trade partners. In 2022, Florida imported close to $9.6 billion worth of products from Mexico and around $5.8 billion from Canada.

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The trade war is one factor that has taken a toll on Wall Street. On Friday, the S&P 500 closed down nearly 400 points from its highwater mark of 6,144.15 last month. And the Dow Jones industrial average was off just under 2,000 points since February.

Trump, who often touted his first-term success by noting stock market wealth increases, said this week he was “not even looking at the market” because he did not doubt the strength of the U.S. economy.

Trump also walks back orders to Musk, DOGE

The president also walked back his orders to super-billionaire Musk and his efforts to take a chainsaw to the federal government budget and workforce.

Last month, Trump wrote in an all-capitalized post on his social media platform that “ELON IS DOING A GREAT JOB, BUT I WOULD LIKE TO SEE HIM GET MORE AGGRESSIVE. REMEMBER, WE HAVE A COUNTRY TO SAVE, BUT ULTIMATELY, TO MAKE GREATER THAN EVER BEFORE. MAGA!”

That led to mass firings of workers and controversial weekly emails from Musk to all federal employees ordering them to detail how they were spending their work hours.

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But on Thursday, after weeks of protests, criticism and missteps in terminating vital federal employees, Trump recast his order saying the goal now is to to employ a “scalpel” and not a “hatchet” to reductions. Trump also stated he instructed that his Cabinet secretaries, and not Musk, the richest man on the planet, make the final decision on workforce reductions.

The role of Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, Trump stated, is “to work” with the Cabinet members in order to “be very precise as to who will remain, and who will go.”

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Debris from SpaceX Starship seen from West Palm Beach after explosion

Pieces of the unmanned Starship spacecraft are seen in the sky a half mile south of Southern Boulevard in West Palm Beach on Thursday. The spacecraft was SpaceX’s eighth flight test of its Starship. Video by Tim Lewis, West Palm Beach

Musk’s SpaceX venture also suffered its own setback when a rocket it launched on Thursday exploded in flight. The debris field over the skies above Florida was vast enough to delay flights at PBIA, Miami International Airport and Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport.

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A PBIA spokesperson said there was a ground stop at the airport Thursday that lasted until 7:30 p.m. It was unclear how many flights were affected.

Palm Beach Post reporters Valentina Palm and Julius Whigham II contributed to this story.

Antonio Fins is a politics and business editor at The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. You can reach him at afins@pbpost.com. Help support our journalism. Subscribe today.

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Bitdeer Invests $36 Million in First US Sealminer Factory as Bitcoin Mining Margins Stay Tight

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Bitdeer Invests  Million in First US Sealminer Factory as Bitcoin Mining Margins Stay Tight

Key Takeaways

Bitdeer Targets 10,000 Monthly Sealminer Units With New $36 Million Nevada Factory

Bitdeer is moving ahead with a major U.S. manufacturing push, breaking ground on a $36 million advanced electronics facility in Sparks, Nevada, even as bitcoin mining economics remain near historic lows.

The 187,000-square-foot plant will be the company’s first domestic manufacturing and assembly site in the U.S. It is expected to be completed by the end of 2026 and is designed to produce 10,000 Sealminer units per month.

Bitdeer said the project will create about 70 local jobs across engineering, skilled technician and support roles. The facility will expand the company’s U.S. footprint beyond mining and data centers, adding a domestic production base for its proprietary mining machines.

“Producing our advanced Sealminer units right here in Nevada reflects our long-term commitment to building capacity and nurturing the talent necessary to support our growing digital infrastructure operations in America,” remarked Paul Hanson, Chairman of Bitdeer Industrial.

Vertical Integration During a Mining Slump

The timing is notable. Bitcoin miners are still dealing with weak hashprice, a key measure of mining revenue per unit of computing power.

Spot hashprice was recently around $29.81 per PH/s/day, after touching a daily low of $27.89 on Feb. 24. March also marked a record-low monthly average of $31.27, according to industry data.

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The pressure reflects several factors: the April 2024 halving, rising network hashrate, and low transaction-fee revenue. Together, they have reduced revenue for miners using the same amount of computing power.

At these levels, profitability is increasingly concentrated among operators with cheap power and newer, more efficient machines.

Bitdeer is trying to address that pressure through vertical integration. The company has been developing its own Sealminer hardware and deploying the machines across its self-mining fleet.

Catherine Guo, CEO of Bitdeer Industrial, commented that the Sparks plant reflects the company’s contribution to Nevada’s diversifying economy.

“Our commitment underscores the state’s strategic advantages, including a highly accessible and skilled workforce, robust logistics networks, and a consistently business-friendly environment,” Guo said.

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U.S. Expansion Meets AI Demand

The Nevada facility will complement Bitdeer’s existing U.S. data centers and its innovation hub in San Jose, California.

The project also comes as Bitdeer expands across mining and AI infrastructure. In its May operating update, the company reported 70.2 EH/s of self-mining hashrate, 921 bitcoin mined during the month, and about $69 million of annualized recurring revenue from its AI Cloud business.

Bitdeer also said it was in advanced talks with a potential colocation tenant at its Tydal, Norway site. That follows a broader industry trend in which miners are exploring AI and high-performance computing uses for power-rich data center assets.

The facility is expected to begin contributing to Bitdeer’s manufacturing capacity as the mining hardware market becomes more selective. Weak hashprice can slow equipment demand, but it can also push well-capitalized miners to replace older machines with more efficient models.

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British Airline Jet2 Shares Jump 9% After $536M Fuel Hedge Gain Offsets Middle East Travel Fears

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British Airline Jet2 Shares Jump 9% After 6M Fuel Hedge Gain Offsets Middle East Travel Fears

Key Takeaways

Sector Resilience Amid Fuel Volatility

British airline and package holiday provider Jet2 defied intense geopolitical instability and travel sector panic triggered by the Middle East war by reporting a more than $500 million balance sheet boost, fueled by the rising price of jet fuel.

As the conflict in the Middle East escalated, spiking fuel rates caused the value of the company’s fuel derivatives to soar. According to Jet2’s full financial results released July 8, an extra $536 million in income was primarily driven by these favorable fair value movements.

The financial buffer comes after widespread fears earlier this year that rising energy costs could push airlines into bankruptcy and force massive summer holiday cancellations. In the United States, higher fuel prices contributed to the collapse of low-budget airline Spirit in May. The United Kingdom had been labeled as the nation “most exposed” to the jet fuel crisis, forcing government ministers to scramble to protect airline fuel access and temporarily suspend airport capacity rules.

While Jet2 was able to mitigate the price shock, the broader conflict still took a toll on booking behaviors. The airline conceded that ongoing travel uncertainty from the war caused holidaymakers to delay their trips and book much closer to their departure dates than usual. As a result, Jet2’s cash inflow plummeted by 67% to approximately $103 million for the fiscal year ending March 31.

Financially, Jet2 reported mixed full-year results. Group revenue climbed 4% to $10.05 billion, but pre-tax profit slipped 7% to $738.6 million, hit hard by lower income earned on its cash deposits.

Despite the profit dip, operational metrics showed strong consumer demand. Jet2 increased its total seat capacity by 8% to 24 million and flew 20.8 million passengers — a 5% increase year-over-year. The company also announced a new $335 million share buyback program, pointing to robust liquidity and confidence in its midterm outlook.

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On the stock market, shares of the AIM-listed company jumped 9% to $19.92 at Wednesday’s opening bell, leaving the stock up 5% for the year.

Chief Executive Issues Tax Warning

The financial report coincided with an aggressive political warning from Jet2 Chief Executive Steve Heapy. Speaking to shareholders, Heapy cautioned political figures — specifically naming prominent politician Andy Burnham — against treating the aviation and holiday industry as a “cash cow.”

Burnham is widely anticipated to enter Downing Street later this month following recent political shifts.

“Don’t treat the aviation or holiday industry as a cash cow, because taxes increase the price of flying,” Heapy said, pointing out that Jet2 had to absorb $67 million in additional regulatory and tax costs over the last year. “I think, you know, enough is enough.”

Operationally, Jet2 is pushing a major expansion strategy designed to challenge the UK’s dominant legacy carriers. In March, the airline launched a six-aircraft hub at London Gatwick Airport, signaling an aggressive move out of its traditional northern England strongholds. The company notes it now operates within a 90-minute drive of more than 90% of the UK population.

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Binance maintains commitment to EU, seeking more licences in Asia

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Binance maintains commitment to EU, seeking more licences in Asia
Cryptocurrency exchange Binance remains in “close talks” with regulators in the ​European Union over its application to operate in the bloc and is seeking to secure more licences in ‌Asia, said its co-chief executive Richard Teng on Thursday.
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