Iran's Economic Lifeline; Nvidia Earnings Preview

**SPEAKER_1** (0:02)
Bloomberg Audio Studios. Podcasts, radio, news.

**Nathan Hager** (0:10)
Good morning, I'm Nathan Hager.

**Alexis Christoforos** (0:11)
And I'm Alexis Christoforos. Here are the stories we're following today.

**Nathan Hager** (0:15)
Alexis, we begin with the latest from the Middle East. Iran's foreign minister and his counterpart from Oman are discussing an interim framework to resume shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. That's after the US announced dozens of new sanctions on Iran's trading partners in an effort to put more pressure on the regime. We get more from Bloomberg Middle East correspondent Abir Abu Omar in Dubai.

**Abir Abu Omar** (0:35)
What we know is that this is a framework that is temporary in its nature, and it's a mechanism to open the Strait of Hormuz or reopen the movement in the Strait of Hormuz in some fashion. Now the two countries are set to have further negotiations over the next 30 to 60 days to carry out a more permanent solution to the Strait of Hormuz. But some things that stood out is, first, the fact that this is temporary. Second, is that this is an initiative that will also discuss who manages the Strait of Hormuz.

**Nathan Hager** (1:04)
And Bloomberg's Zabir Abou-Almah reports, President Trump claimed yesterday that the US Navy had cleared all mines from the Strait, but he provided no evidence of that. Iran says it is focused solely on the Hormuz talks with Oman and that they are independent of stalled negotiations with the US on ending the war.

**Alexis Christoforos** (1:19)
And Nathan, the trade war between the US and Canada is heating up. The White House official says the Trump administration is discussing higher tariffs and other trade actions now that Canada has answered 50% tariffs from the US with dollar for dollar duties of its own. Bloomberg Global Trade Editor Brendan Murray has more.

**Brendan Murray** (1:36)
President Trump has already said that come January 1st, we're going to raise tariffs even further. But January 1st is a long time, and you would think that President Trump, who has sort of a knee-jerk reaction in a lot of instances, would have done that sooner. And so I think that was a signal that he wants some sort of time to figure things out.

**Alexis Christoforos** (1:59)
Bloomberg's Brendan Murray reports Canada's counter tariffs don't take effect until September 8th, though they will hit US exports from key battleground states like Michigan, Pennsylvania and Ohio. Ontario Premier Doug Ford was one of the first to remove American alcohol at the start of the trade war. Now he's calling for compromise with President Trump.

**Doug Ford** (2:18)
He was throwing insults. He's not trying to throw insults to anyone. And I hit back. But I think it'd be more productive if we actually sit down and the prime minister and the president sit down and have a fair deal for everyone. Because right now there's not certainty in either country. There's not stability.

**Alexis Christoforos** (2:38)
Ontario Premier Doug Ford appeared on Bloomberg's balance of power. You can catch the full conversation on the video hub at bloomberg.com and the Bloomberg Business App.

**Nathan Hager** (2:46)
Well, now to election politics on this side of the northern border. Darlene Graham has won the Republican nomination to replace her late brother, Lindsey, in South Carolina's general election ballot for the US Senate. At her victory party, Graham thanked President Trump.

**Darlene Graham** (3:02)
I want to thank President Trump for all of his support and his endorsement. Mr. President, Lindsey truly loved you and viewed you as one of his closest friends.
I appreciate that bond and appreciate all that you've done for our country.

**Nathan Hager** (3:17)
And now Darlene Graham defeated Congressman Ralph Norman in yesterday's special Republican primary, ran off 52 to 48 percent. She will now face Democratic nominee pediatrician Annie Andrews in November.

**Alexis Christoforos** (3:28)
And a candidate with the same name as Alaska's incumbent senator has advanced to the general election. Dan J. Sullivan, who goes by Dan Sullivan, was among the top four finishers after the August 18th primary and moved on to the November matchup, which is a ranked choice contest. The incumbent Republican Senator Dan Sullivan and Democratic former representative Mary Peltola also have advanced.

**Nathan Hager** (3:51)
Ahead of the November midterms, Alexis, Congressional Democrats and Civil Liberties groups are taking new legal action against President Trump's mail-in voting restrictions. They allege the president's proposed rule exceeds the US Postal Service's authority and creates impossible burdens for the midterms. The new filings come a day after the Supreme Court unblocked the federal ballot mail portal rule in a separate case. The ruling does not guarantee that program will be in place for this year's election, but the proposed rules would require states to provide the federal government with voter lists and then use special bar-coded envelopes for mailed federal ballots.