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This is the world in brief from The Economist.

Our top stories.

The bromance between Donald Trump and Elon Musk has soured.

America's president said he is disappointed in the billionaire, who has repeatedly criticized his budget bill.

He threatened to cut Mr. Musk's federal contracts. In a slew of retaliatory social media posts,

Mr. Musk, who recently left the government, accused Mr. Trump of ingratitude. Tesla's shares

plunged by more than 14%. Mr. Trump of ingratitude. Tesla's shares plunged by more than 14%.

Mr. Trump said that he held a very good call with Xi Jinping, China's leader, the first

time they have spoken since America's president returned to office. The pair discussed

rare mineral exports and said trade representatives from the two countries

will meet shortly at a location to be determined. Chinese media suggests the call was made at Mr.

Trump's request. The European Central Bank lowered interest rates by a quarter of a percentage point to 2%, the

eighth such cut in the past year.

Data released on Tuesday showed the annual inflation rate was 1.9% in May, below the ECB's 2%

target.

Meanwhile, the bank hopes to bolster Europe's economy amid Mr. Trump's trade war.

America's defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, said that NATO was sleepwalking to irrelev

...