And what would you do with a spare 25 Billion Euros . Thats the question facing the irish Government Today as it delivers its budget following a huge Tax Windfall from Tech Firms. Live from london, this is business today. Im lukwesa burak. We start in the us where in the last 30 minutes tens of thousands of East And Gulf Coast Port workers have started striking for the first time in nearly 50 years. This comes after the international longshoremen s association and the us Maritime Alliance were unable to reach an agreement on the terms of their contract. The strikes will halt trade in a wide range of goods and disrupt the Countrys Economy just as we enter the final weeks before the president ial election. Our North America Business correspondent Ritika Gupt the two major sticking points between international longshoreman s association and the us Maritime Alliance are wages and automation for the workers are unhappy with the current contract which spanned the pandemic and dockworkers st
And pharmaceuticals, to clothes and toys, with ports accounting for more than half imports in containers. If it extends for weeks, it could lead to shortages and high prices ahead of the presidential election. That is something the new york governor weighed in on. The potential for disruption is significant. We have not had an event like this in our ports since 1977 and that lasted 12 days. We are deeply concerned about the impact that a strike could have on our supply chains, especially when it comes to critical goods like medical supplies and others. Under the 1947 act, president biden has the authority to order workers back to work but the current administration said it would not intervene and encourages all parties to keep negotiating in good faith. The chairman of the federal reserve has dampened hopes of another big rate cut. He was speaking in tennessee and added the central bank was not in a hurry to cut rates. Indexes saw price falls during the speech but have since recovered.
On automation, the union boss has been warning dock workers that their jobs could be replaced by machines. In response, that us maritime alliance says it is offering to keep the current ban on fully automated equipment. A strike could cost the us economy $5 billion a day according to jp morgan analysts. A range of goods flow through the east and gulf coast ports. Everything from raw materials and pharmaceuticals, to clothes and toys, with the ports accounting for more than half of containerized imports. While consumers may not feel the impact of the strikes right away, if it extends for weeks, it could lead to shortages and high prices ahead of the presidential election. That is something new york governor kathy hochul weighed in on. The potential for disruption is significant. We have not had an event occur like this in our ports since 1977 and that lasted 12 days. We are deeply concerned about the impact that a strike could have on our supply chains, especially when it comes to criti