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Tag: international trade

  • Factbox-Long-Range Weapons Ukraine Has Developed Since Russia’s 2022 Invasion

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    LONDON (Reuters) -Ukraine struck Russia’s port of Novorossiysk last week, forcing it to suspend oil exports. The Neptune missile it used is one of several long-range weapons Ukraine has developed since the 2022 invasion.

    Here is an overview of some of these new Ukrainian armaments based on statements from Kyiv.

    Ukraine says its domestically produced “Long Neptune” is a ground-launched land-attack cruise missile with a range of up to 1,000 km (621 miles). It was developed from the shorter-range Neptune anti-ship missile that existed before the invasion.

    President Volodymyr Zelenskiy announced its increased range in March. The military said on Friday it had been used to hit Novorossiysk, Russia’s largest Black Sea export hub. Ukraine says it is producing more of the missiles.

    The Flamingo, also known as the FP-5, is a new ground-launched land-attack cruise missile that Zelenskiy says has a range of 3,000 km (1,864 miles). He has talked it up as Ukraine’s most successful missile and said it should enter mass production by year-end. It is made by Fire Point, a private Ukrainian defence company.

    Zelenskiy said in October that the Flamingo had been used on Russian targets but did not elaborate.

    The long-range propeller-powered Lyutyi one-way attack drone has been a workhorse of Ukraine’s deep strikes on energy infrastructure in Russia this year. The drone, produced by aircraft manufacturer Antonov, can fly more than 1,000 km.

    The FP-1 long-range one-way attack drone made by Fire Point has also been widely used to conduct deep strikes on targets in Russia and also has a range of more than 1,000 km.

    The first combat use of the Palianytsia “drone missile” was announced by Zelenskiy in August 2024. The president said in October that the weapon, which is named after a type of Ukrainian bread, had hit Russian ammunition depots in dozens of cases.

    Ukraine’s Militarnyi defence news outlet said it has a range of 650 km (404 miles) and a turbojet engine that allows it to fly at 900 km per hour, much faster than a normal drone.

    The Ruta is another “drone missile” that Zelenskiy has said he expects to enter mass production by year-end. He said in October it had been used for the first time to strike a maritime platform at a range of more than 250 km (155 miles). 

    The Peklo, Ukrainian for “hell”, is another “drone missile”. Zelenskiy said in December 2024 that a first batch of the weapons had been supplied to the Ukrainian military. Ukraine’s Defence Express outlet estimates the range at around 700 km (435 miles).

    The Bars, Ukrainian for “leopard”, is a newer drone missile whose existence was revealed in April 2025. The Ukrainian military said last week that it was used by Ukraine to attack Russian targets.

    (Reporting by Tom Balmforth; editing by Gareth Jones)

    Copyright 2025 Thomson Reuters.

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  • Japan’s economy contracts as exports get hit by US tariffs

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    TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s economy sank at an annualized rate of 1.8% in the July-September period, government data showed Monday, as President Donald Trump’s tariffs sent the nation’s exports spiraling.

    On a quarter-by-quarter basis, Japan’s gross domestic product, or GDP, or the sum value of a nation’s goods and services, slipped 0.4%, in the first contraction in six quarters, the Cabinet Office said.

    The annualized rate shows what the economy would have done if the same rate were to continue for a year. The fall was still smaller than the 0.6% drop the market had expected.

    A big decline during the quarter came in exports, which were 1.2% down from the previous quarter.

    Some businesses had sped up exports, when they could, to beat the tariffs kicking in, inflating some of the earlier data for exports.

    On an annualized basis, exports dropped 4.5% in the three months through September.

    Imports for the third quarter slipped 0.1%. Private consumption edged up 0.1% during the quarter.

    Tariffs are a major blow to Japan’s export-reliant economy, led by powerful automakers like Toyota Motor Corp., although such manufacturers have over the years moved production abroad to avert the blunt of tariffs.

    The U.S. now slaps a 15% tariff on nearly all Japanese imports. Earlier the tariffs were 25%.

    Japan also faced political uncertainty recently, until Sanae Takaichi became prime minister in October.

    ___

    Yuri Kageyama is on Threads: https://www.threads.com/@yurikageyama

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  • Japan’s economy contracts as exports get hit by US tariffs

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    TOKYO — Japan’s economy sank at an annualized rate of 1.8% in the July-September period, government data showed Monday, as President Donald Trump’s tariffs sent the nation’s exports spiraling.

    On a quarter-by-quarter basis, Japan’s gross domestic product, or GDP, or the sum value of a nation’s goods and services, slipped 0.4%, in the first contraction in six quarters, the Cabinet Office said.

    The annualized rate shows what the economy would have done if the same rate were to continue for a year. The fall was still smaller than the 0.6% drop the market had expected.

    A big decline during the quarter came in exports, which were 1.2% down from the previous quarter.

    Some businesses had sped up exports, when they could, to beat the tariffs kicking in, inflating some of the earlier data for exports.

    On an annualized basis, exports dropped 4.5% in the three months through September.

    Imports for the third quarter slipped 0.1%. Private consumption edged up 0.1% during the quarter.

    Tariffs are a major blow to Japan’s export-reliant economy, led by powerful automakers like Toyota Motor Corp., although such manufacturers have over the years moved production abroad to avert the blunt of tariffs.

    The U.S. now slaps a 15% tariff on nearly all Japanese imports. Earlier the tariffs were 25%.

    Japan also faced political uncertainty recently, until Sanae Takaichi became prime minister in October.

    ___

    Yuri Kageyama is on Threads: https://www.threads.com/@yurikageyama

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  • Samsung and other South Korean firms pledge larger domestic investments after US tariff deal

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    SEOUL, South Korea — SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Samsung Electronics and other major South Korean companies on Sunday announced fresh domestic investment plans at a meeting with President Lee Jae Myung, who hopes the moves will counter concerns that the firms would prioritize U.S. investments under a trade deal.

    Lee’s meeting with business leaders came days after his government finalized a trade deal with the United States, in which Seoul pledged to invest $350 billion in U.S. industries in exchange for averting the Trump administration’s highest tariffs.

    Samsung, a global leader in computer chips, said it will invest 450 trillion won ($310 billion) over the next five years to expand its domestic operations, including building another production line at its Pyeongtaek manufacturing hub to meet surging global semiconductor demands fueled by artificial intelligence.

    Samsung said the new line, set to begin operations in 2028, is part of its broader effort to secure additional production capacity in anticipation of rising mid- to long-term demands for memory chips. The company also plans to build AI data centers in the country’s southwest South Jeolla Province and the southeastern city of Gumi to support government efforts to reduce the development gap between the greater Seoul metropolitan area and other regions.

    Hyundai Motor Group, South Korea’s largest automaker, said it plans to invest 125 trillion won ($86.3 billion) from 2026 to 2030 to expand domestic research and development and advance new technologies such as AI, robotics and self-driving cars.

    SK Group, another semiconductor powerhouse, and shipbuilders Hanwha Ocean and HD Hyundai also announced plans to increase their domestic investments. Both are central to South Korean commitments to boost the U.S. shipbuilding industry, a sector highlighted by President Donald Trump in negotiations with Seoul.

    In his meeting with the companies’ chiefs, Lee credited the business sector for helping his government negotiate the trade deal with Washington but urged the companies to maintain strong domestic investments to ease concerns they might cut spending at home to invest more in America. He said his government is exploring various policy steps, including easing regulations, to help create a more favorable business environment for the companies.

    SK Chair Chey Tae-won, whose group plans to invest at least 128 trillion won ($88.3 billion) domestically through 2028 with a focus on AI, said the finalization of trade talks with the United States eases uncertainties and paves way for bolder domestic investment.

    The two governments on Friday released the details of the trade agreement, including $150 billion in South Korean investments in the U.S. shipbuilding sector and an additional $200 billion in other American industries, which Seoul says will be capped at $20 billion per year to prevent financial instability.

    The United States agreed to reduce tariffs on South Korean cars and auto parts from 25% to 15%, and to apply tariffs on South Korean semiconductors on terms “no less favorable” than those granted to comparable competitors in the future.

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  • Thailand Says US Suspending Talks on Trade Framework Over Cambodia Truce Dispute

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    BANGKOK (Reuters) -Thailand said on Saturday the United States had told Bangkok that it was suspending talks on finalising a reciprocal trade deal until the Thai government reaffirms its commitment to a ceasefire with Cambodia.

    Thailand had said earlier that the U.S.-brokered ceasefire deal to end border clashes with Cambodia could not be carried out because of alleged breaches by Phnom Penh.

    A letter from the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative announcing the suspension of talks to conclude details of the trade deal was received on Friday night, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Nikorndej Balankura told reporters.

    He quoted the USTR letter as saying trade negotiations could resume once Thailand reaffirmed its commitment to carrying out the joint ceasefire declaration with Cambodia.

    The two sides must negotiate and finalise details of the trade deal and prepare it for signature before it takes effect.

    Last month, Washington and Bangkok announced a framework for reciprocal trade that would see the U.S. maintain a 19% tariff on Thai products while identifying products where tariffs could potentially be adjusted or cut to zero.

    Separately, U.S. President Donald Trump spoke with the leaders of Thailand and Cambodia on Friday night, after border tensions re-escalated this week, and said he thought they were “going to be fine”.

    He made no mention of the reported USTR letter saying trade talks were suspended. There was also no mention of it on the USTR or White House websites, where news on trade talks with other countries was posted.

    Thailand this week suspended the ceasefire deal and demanded an apology over allegations that Cambodia had laid fresh landmines that injured Thai soldiers, which Cambodia denies.

    Ministry spokesperson Nikorndej said Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul explained the matter to Trump on their call, “who expressed understanding regarding the issue”.

    In a Facebook post after the call, Anutin said he had asked Trump for a cut in the 19% tariff on Thai goods. He said Trump replied that it was already a low rate but he would consider the request if the removal of landmines along the border with Cambodia was completed quickly.

    (Reporting by Orathai Sriring; editing by Mark Heinrich)

    Copyright 2025 Thomson Reuters.

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  • Aficionados Fret as Trump Moves to Make Pasta Great Again

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    PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Steel: 50%. Copper: 50%. Cars: up to 25%. But an even bigger Trump-era levy looms: 107 % on Italian pasta.

    It started with the U.S. Commerce Department launching what it says was a routine antidumping review, based on allegations Italian pasta makers sold product into the US at below-market prices and undercut local competitors. That has led to a threat of 92% duties, which would come on top of the 15% tariff President Donald Trump’s administration imposed on European exports generally.

    The news sent shockwaves through Italy, where 13 producers would be subject to the whopping one-two punch. They say sales in their second biggest export market would shrivel if prices to American consumers more than double. And while the measure would hardly prompt pasta shortages, it still has perplexed importers like Sal Auriemma, whose shop in Philadelphia’s Italian market, Claudio Specialty Food, has been operating for over 60 years.

    “Pasta is a pretty small sector to pick on. I mean, there’s a lot bigger things to pick on,” said Auriemma, pointing to luxury items as an alternative.

    But pasta? “It’s basic food,” he said. “Something’s got to be sacred.”


    Pasta adds heft to Italy’s economy

    Italy is a nation of avid pasta eaters. Less known is that most of the tortellini, spaghetti and rigatoni its factories churn out gets sent abroad. The U.S. accounts for about 15% of its €4 billion ($4.65 billion) in exports, making it Italy’s largest market after Germany, data from farmers’ association Coldiretti show.

    The punitive pasta premium has become a cause célèbre for Italy’s politicians, executives and economists. Agriculture Minister Francesco Lollobrigida told lawmakers in mid-October that the government was working with the European Commission and engaging in diplomatic efforts, while supporting the companies’ legal actions to oppose U.S. sanctions.

    EU Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic addressed reporters in Rome last month, stressing the lack of evidence backing the U.S. decision and calling the combined 107% levy “unacceptable.”

    Margherita Mastromauro, president of the pasta makers sector of Unione Italiana Food, told The Associated Press that prices for Italian pasta in the U.S. remain high, and certainly higher than American-made rivals — undermining any dumping claim.

    She said that the measures could deal a fatal blow to small- and medium-sized producers. Lucio Miranda, president of consultancy group Export USA, agreed.

    “A duty rate of 107% would definitely kill this flow of export,” Miranda, who is Italian, said by phone from New York. “It’s not going to be something that you can just dump on the consumer and move on, life continues. It will definitely be a deal killer.”


    Wacky Mac owner cries foul

    The Commerce Department’s investigation started in 2024 after complaints from Missouri-based 8th Avenue Food & Provisions, which owns pasta brand Ronzoni, and Illinois-based Winland Foods, whose multiple brands include Prince, Mueller’s and Wacky Mac.

    The office’s review focused on La Molisana and Garofalo, chosen as primary respondents because they are Italy’s two largest exporters, the Commerce Department said in an emailed statement. Any sale price below either producers’ costs or the price they charge in the Italian market would be considered dumping, in line with numerous other reviews of Italian pasta since 1996, it said.

    The two companies presented information incorrectly or withheld it, significantly impeding analysis, according to the Commerce Department. And in the face of these alleged deficiencies, the office presented its 92% duty estimate, which it extended to 11 other companies based on an assumption the two companies’ behavior was representative.

    “After they screwed up their initial responses, the Commerce Department explained to them what the problems were and asked them to fix those problems; they didn’t,” White House spokesperson Kush Desai said in an emailed response to the AP’s questions. “And then Commerce communicated the requirements again, and they didn’t answer for a third time.”

    La Molisana declined to comment when contacted by the AP. Garofalo didn’t respond to a request for comment.

    The sanctions would be applied not just to imports going forward, but also the 12 months through June 2024, according to the Commerce Department. It added that only 16% of total Italian pasta imports may be affected. Its final decision is scheduled for Jan. 2, which could be extended by 60 days.

    A little over an hour’s drive northeast from Naples is Benevento, a sleepy hilltop town of 55,000 people famed for its ancient Roman theater and Aglianico red wine. It’s also home to Pasta Rummo, founded in 1846, which prides itself on its seven-phase, “slow work” production method.

    CEO Cosimo Rummo is outraged by the threat to his company’s annual 20 million euros in exports to the U.S.

    “These tariffs are completely senseless,” Rummo said in a phone interview. “These are fast-moving consumer goods … Who would ever buy a pack of pasta that costs 10 dollars, the same price as a bottle of wine?”

    He added that he has no intention to start producing pasta stateside, as some companies have done and so would be spared the prospective levy. That includes Barilla, which for decades has been the main Italian pasta brand in the U.S. and now has large-scale production facilities there.

    When the transatlantic imbroglio started simmering, Robert Tramonte of Arlington, Virginia sought assurances. The owner of The Italian Store called his supplier, who told him there’s enough pasta inventory stocked in the warehouse to keep prices steady until Easter.

    Tramonte’s clients count on him for top-shelf product and he was relieved that, at least for the time being, they won’t have to shell out for the real deal. Or worse — perish the thought! — purchase made-in-America pasta.

    “They’ve tried to make Italian products and use the same ingredients, but the source wasn’t Italy,” he said. “And they just didn’t taste the same.”

    Zampano reported from Rome and Wiseman from Washington. Associated Press videojournalists Paolo Santalucia in Rome and Tassanee Vejpongsa in Philadelphia contributed to this report.

    Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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  • USDA Data Casts Doubt on China’s Soybean Purchase Promises Touted by Trump

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    OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — New data the Agriculture Department released Friday created serious doubts about whether China will really buy millions of bushels of American soybeans like the Trump administration touted last month after a high-stakes meeting between President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping.

    The USDA report released after the government reopened showed only two Chinese purchases of American soybeans since the summit in South Korea that totaled 332,000 metric tons. That’s well short of the 12 million metric tons that Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said China agreed to purchase by January and nowhere near the 25 million metric tons she said they would buy in each of the next three years.

    American farmers were hopeful that their biggest customer would resume buying their crops. But CoBank’s Tanner Ehmke, who is its lead economist for grains and oilseed, said there isn’t much incentive for China to buy from America right now because they have plenty of soybeans on hand that they have bought from Brazil and other South American countries this year, and the remaining tariffs ensure that U.S. soybeans remain more expensive than Brazilian beans.

    “We are still not even close to what has been advertised from the U.S. in terms of what the agreement would have been,” Ehmke said.

    Beijing has yet to confirm any detailed soybean purchase agreement but only that the two sides have reached “consensus” on expanding trade in farm products. Ehmke said that even if China did promise to buy American soybeans it may have only agreed to buy them if the price was attractive.

    The White House did not immediately respond to questions about the lack of Chinese purchases and whether farmers can still expect an aid package.

    The Chinese tariff on American beans remains high at about 24%, despite a 10-percentage-point reduction following the summit.

    Soybean prices fell sharply by 23 cents to $11.24 per bushel Friday. Ehmke said “that’s the market being shocked by the lack of Chinese demand that was confirmed in USDA data today.” Prices are still higher than they were before the agreement when they were selling for $10.60 per bushel, but the price may continue to drop unless there are significant new purchases.

    Before the trade agreement, Trump had promised to offer farmers a significant aid package to help them survive the trade war with China. That was put on hold during the shutdown, and now it’s not clear whether the administration will offer farmers aid like Trump did in his first administration.

    American farmers have been through this before after Trump’s first trade war with China. The trade agreement China signed with the United States in 2020 promised massive purchases of U.S. crops. But the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted trade between the two nations just as the agreement went into effect. In 2022, U.S. farm exports to China hit a record, but then fell.

    Soybean prices are actually still a little higher than they were a year ago even without China’s normal purchases of roughly one-quarter of the U.S. crop. That’s because this year’s soybean crop is a little smaller while domestic demand remained strong with the continued growth in biodiesel production.

    But farmers are dealing with the soaring cost of fertilizer, seed, equipment and labor this year, and that is hurting their profits. The Kentucky farmer who is president of the American Soybean Association, Caleb Ragland, has said he worries that thousands of farmers could go out of business this year without significant Chinese purchases or government aid.

    China is the world’s largest buyer of soybeans. China bought more than $12.5 billion worth of the nearly $24.5 billion worth of U.S. soybeans that were exported last year.

    But China quit buying American soybeans this year after Trump imposed his tariffs and continued to shift more of their purchases over to South America. Even before the trade war, Brazilian beans accounted for more than 70% of China’s imports last year, while the U.S. share fell to 21%, World Bank data shows.

    AP Writer Didi Tang contributed to this report from Washington.

    Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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  • Hungary to mount court challenge to EU’s planned phase-out of Russian energy, Orbán says

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    BUDAPEST, Hungary — Hungary will challenge the European Union’s plan to end Russian energy imports and take the case to an EU court, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said Friday.

    Speaking on state radio, Orbán accused the bloc of trying to sidestep his veto power over sanctions on Russian energy by using trade rules instead in its plan to phase out all imports of Russian oil and gas by the end of 2027.

    “We are turning to the European Court of Justice in this matter,” Orbán said Friday. “This is a flagrant violation of European law, the rule of law and European cooperation … They will pay a very high price for this.”

    Hungary remains heavily dependent on Russian fossil fuels and has sought exemptions and threatened to veto EU sanctions since Moscow’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine. During a visit to Washington last week, Orbán secured an exemption from U.S. sanctions on two Russian energy companies following a White House meeting with President Donald Trump.

    Numerous U.S. officials have said the waiver, which ensures Russian oil and gas will continue to flow to Hungary, will last one year, though Orbán has insisted it is indefinite. On Friday, Orbán credited his close personal relationship with Trump for receiving the exemption, and said it would remain in place as long as both he and the president remain in office.

    Orbán has called continued access to Russian energy “vital” for his landlocked country and warned cutting it off would result in an economic collapse, though some critics dispute that claim.

    The Hungarian leader on Friday said he was “also exploring other means of a non-legal nature” to avoid falling under the EU’s planned Russian energy phase-out, but declined to say what they were.

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    Follow the AP’s coverage of the war at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

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  • Russia Says North Korean Troops Play Key Role in De-Mining Its Kursk Region

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    (Reuters) -North Korean troops who helped Russia repel a major Ukrainian incursion into its western Kursk region are now playing an important role in clearing the area of mines, the Russian Defence Ministry said on Friday.

    Under a mutual defence pact between the two countries, North Korea last year sent some 14,000 soldiers to fight alongside Russia in Kursk, and more than 6,000 were killed, according to South Korean, Ukrainian and Western sources.

    Ukrainian forces smashed across the border in August 2024 and held on to substantial pockets of territory for months. Russian President Vladimir Putin said in April that Russia had finally pushed them out, with help from the North Koreans.

    The significant North Korean role in Russia’s de-mining operations highlights the desire on both sides to further develop their military ties, which North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said last month would “advance non-stop”.

    Video published by the Russian Defence Ministry showed North Korean troops being shown different types of mines and mine detection equipment, taking part in training exercises and singing patriotic songs.

    “They’re great lads, they learn quickly, listen attentively and take notes,” said a Russian commander with the call sign “Veles”.

    A second commander, “Lesnik”, said: “They are on an equal level with my sappers, carrying out the same tasks as my lads.”

    Russian military news outlet Krasnaya Zvezda said the Russian and North Korean soldiers were dealing with a “previously unseen density” of anti-tank and anti-personnel mines left behind by Ukrainian forces in Kursk. It said many of the devices had been manufactured by NATO countries.

    In the Bolshesoldatsky region of Kursk, 37 out of 64 settlements were still no-go areas for civilians because of the danger from mines, it said.

    The sappers were coming under attack by Ukrainian artillery and drones while carrying out their work, according to the report, which Reuters could not independently verify.

    Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that Moscow was grateful for the “selfless, heroic assistance”.

    “We will never forget this help. This work continues. It is dangerous and difficult, but our Korean friends are truly helping us, and we greatly appreciate it,” he said.

    (Additional reporting by Gleb Stolyarov, Editing by William Maclean)

    Copyright 2025 Thomson Reuters.

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  • Former customs officer sentenced to 15 years for helping drug traffickers

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    A former Customs and Border Protection officer has been sentenced to 15 years in prison after he pleaded guilty to working with Mexican traffickers to bring drugs into the U.S. Diego Bonillo pleaded guilty in July to multiple charges, including conspir…

    LOS ANGELES — A former U.S. Customs and Border Protection officer was sentenced to 15 years in prison after he pleaded guilty to working with Mexican traffickers to bring drugs into the U.S., officials said Thursday.

    Diego Bonillo, 30, pleaded guilty in July to multiple charges, including conspiracy to import controlled substances such as cocaine, methamphetamine and heroin.

    As part of his plea deal, he admitted to using his position to allow drug-filled cars into the U.S. from Mexico without inspection. He allowed at least 75 kilograms of fentanyl, 11.7 kilograms of methamphetamine, and more than 1 kilogram of heroin into the country, the U.S. Attorney’s Office in San Diego said in a news release Thursday.

    Prosecutors said in sentencing documents that Bonillo was using a secret phone to alert the drug trafficking group which lanes he would be overseeing at the Tecate and Otay Mesa border crossings so he could ensure their entry without inspection.

    Agents determined that Bonillo was part of the scheme no later than October 2023 and continued until April 2024, allowing at least 15 vehicles to enter uninspected, prosecutors said.

    Bonillo used his payments to travel internationally, purchase luxury gifts, attempt to purchase property in Mexico, and spend time at the Hong Kong Gentlemen’s Club in Tijuana, Mexico, prosecutors said.

    He was sentenced Nov. 7 to 15 years in federal prison.

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  • South Korea, U.S. Agree on Trade, Security Deal, Nuclear Subs, Lee Says

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    SEOUL (Reuters) -South Korean President Lee Jae Myung said on Friday South Korea and U.S. had finalised a joint fact sheet on agreements on trade and security issues after his summit with U.S. President Donald Trump last month.

    South Korea will be building nuclear-powered submarines and will be forming a new partnership with the U.S. on shipbuilding, artificial intelligence and the nuclear industry, Lee told a televised briefing.

    Lee met Trump in South Korea’s Gyeongju last month and agreed to a deal that will cut U.S. import duties on South Korean products to 15% from the earlier 25%.

    (Reporting by Jack KimEditing by Ed Davies)

    Copyright 2025 Thomson Reuters.

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  • Trump is ramping up a new effort to convince a skeptical public he can fix affordability worries

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    WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump is adjusting his messaging strategy to win over voters who are worried about the cost of living with plans to emphasize new tax breaks and show progress on fighting inflation.

    The messaging is centered around affordability, and the push comes after inflation emerged as a major vulnerability for Trump and Republicans in Tuesday’s elections, in which voters overwhelmingly said the economy was their biggest concern.

    Democrats took advantage of concerns about affordability to run up huge margins in the New Jersey and Virginia governor races, flipping what had been a strength for Trump in the 2024 presidential election into a vulnerability going into next year’s midterm elections.

    White House officials and others familiar with their thinking requested anonymity to speak for this article in order to not get ahead of the president’s actions. They stressed that affordability has always been a priority for Trump, but the president plans to talk about it more, as he did Thursday when he announced that Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk would reduce the price of their anti-obesity drugs.

    “We are the ones that have done a great job on affordability, not the Democrats,” Trump said at an event in the Oval Office to announce the deal. “We just lost an election, they said, based on affordability. It’s a con job by the Democrats.”

    The White House is keeping up a steady drumbeat of posts on social media about prices and deals for Thanksgiving dinner staples at retailers such as Walmart, Lidl, Aldi and Target.

    “I don’t want to hear about the affordability, because right now, we’re much less,” Trump told reporters Thursday, arguing that things are much better for Americans with his party in charge.

    “The only problem is the Republicans don’t talk about it,” he said.

    The outlook for inflation is unclear

    As of now, the inflation outlook has worsened under Trump. Consumer prices in September increased at an annual rate of 3%, up from 2.3% in April, when the president first began to roll out substantial tariff hikes that suddenly burdened the economy with uncertainty. The AP Voter Poll showed the economy was the leading issue in Tuesday’s elections in New Jersey, Virginia, New York City and California.

    Grocery prices continue to climb, and recently, electricity bills have emerged as a new worry. At the same time, the pace of job gains has slowed, plunging 23% from the pace a year ago.

    The White House maintains a list of talking points about the economy, noting that the stock market has hit record highs multiple times and that the president is attracting foreign investment. Trump has emphasized that gasoline prices are coming down, and maintained that gasoline is averaging $2 a gallon, but AAA reported Thursday that the national average was $3.08, about two cents lower than a year ago.

    “Americans are paying less for essentials like gas and eggs, and today the Administration inked yet another drug pricing deal to deliver unprecedented health care savings for everyday Americans,” said White House spokesman Kush Desai.

    Trump gets briefed about the economy by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and other officials at least once a week and there are often daily discussions on tariffs, a senior White House official said, noting Trump is expected to do more domestic travel next year to make his case that he’s fixing affordability.

    But critics say it will be hard for Trump to turn around public perceptions on affordability.

    “He’s in real trouble and I think it’s bigger than just cost of living,” said Lindsay Owens, executive director of Groundwork Collaborative, a liberal economic advocacy group.

    Owens noted that Trump has “lost his strength” as voters are increasingly doubtful about Trump’s economic leadership compared to Democrats, adding that the president doesn’t have the time to turn around public perceptions of him as he continues to pursue broad tariffs.

    New hype about income tax cuts ahead of April

    There will be new policies rolled out on affordability, a person familiar with the White House thinking said, declining to comment on what those would be. Trump on Thursday indicated there will be more deals coming on drug prices. Two other White House officials said messaging would change — but not policy.

    A big part of the administration’s response on affordability will be educating people ahead of tax season about the role of Trump’s income tax cuts in any refunds they receive in April, the person familiar with planning said. Those cuts were part of the sprawling bill Republicans muscled through Congress in July.

    This individual stressed that the key challenge is bringing prices down while simultaneously having wages increase, so that people can feel and see any progress.

    There’s also a bet that the economy will be in a healthier place in six months. With Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s term ending in May, the White House anticipates the start of consistent cuts to the Fed’s benchmark interest rate. They expect inflation rates to cool and declines in the federal budget deficit to boost sentiment in the financial markets.

    But the U.S. economy seldom cooperates with a president’s intentions, a lesson learned most recently by Trump’s predecessor, Democrat Joe Biden, who saw his popularity slump after inflation spiked to a four-decade high in June 2022.

    The Trump administration maintains it’s simply working through an inflation challenge inherited from Biden, but new economic research indicates Trump has created his own inflation challenge through tariffs.

    Since April, Harvard University economist Alberto Cavallo and his colleagues, Northwestern University’s Paola Llamas and Universidad de San Andres’ Franco Vazquez, have been tracking the impact of the import taxes on consumer prices.

    In an October paper, the economists found that the inflation rate would have been drastically lower at 2.2%, had it not been for Trump’s tariffs.

    The administration maintains that tariffs have not contributed to inflation. They plan to make the case that the import taxes are helping the economy and dismiss criticisms of the import taxes as contributing to inflation as Democratic talking points.

    The fate of Trump’s country-by-country tariffs is currently being decided by the Supreme Court, where justices at a Wednesday hearing seemed dubious over the administration’s claims that tariffs were essentially regulations and could be levied by a president without congressional approval. Trump has maintained at times that foreign countries pay the tariffs and not U.S. citizens, a claim he backed away from slightly Thursday.

    “They might be paying something,” he said. “But when you take the overall impact, the Americans are gaining tremendously.”

    _____

    Associated Press writers Will Weissert and Michelle L. Price contributed to this report.

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  • What to know about Trump’s plan to give Americans a $2,000 tariff dividend

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    WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump boasts that his tariffs protect American industries, lure factories to the United States, raise money for the federal government and give him diplomatic leverage.

    Now, he’s claiming they can finance a windfall for American families, too: He’s promising a generous tariff dividend.

    The president proposed the idea on his Truth Social media platform Sunday, five days after his Republican Party lost elections in Virginia, New Jersey and elsewhere largely because of voter discontent with his economic stewardship — specifically, the high cost of living.

    The tariffs are bringing in so much money, the president posted, that “a dividend of at least $2000 a person (not including high income people!) will be paid to everyone.’’

    Budget experts scoffed at the idea, which conjured memories of the Trump administration’s short-lived plan for DOGE dividend checks financed by billionaire Elon Musk’s federal budget cuts.

    “The numbers just don’t check out,″ said Erica York, vice president of federal tax policy at the nonpartisan Tax Foundation.

    Details are scarce, including what the income limits would be and whether payments would go to children.

    Even Trump’s treasury secretary, Scott Bessent, sounded a bit blindsided by the audacious dividend plan. Appearing Sunday on ABC’s “This Week,’’ Bessent said he hadn’t discussed the dividend with the president and suggested that it might not mean that Americans would get a check from the government. Instead, Bessent said, the rebate might take the form of tax cuts.

    The tariffs are certainly raising money — $195 billion in the budget year that ended Sept. 30, up 153% from $77 billion in fiscal 2024. But they still account for less than 4% of federal revenue and have done little to dent the federal budget deficit — a staggering $1.8 trillion in fiscal 2025.

    Budget wonks say Trump’s dividend math doesn’t work.

    President Donald Trump speaks during an event to mark Veterans Day at Arlington National Cemetery, Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

    John Ricco, an analyst with the Budget Lab at Yale University, reckons that Trump’s tariffs will bring in $200 billion to $300 billion a year in revenue. But a $2,000 dividend — if it went to all Americans, including children — would cost $600 billion. “It’s clear that the revenue coming in would not be adequate,’’ he said.

    Ricco also noted that Trump couldn’t just pay the dividends on his own. They would require legislation from Congress.

    Moreover, the centerpiece of Trump’s protectionist trade policies — double-digit taxes on imports from almost every country in the world — may not survive a legal challenge that has reached the U.S. Supreme Court.

    In a hearing last week, the justices sounded skeptical about the Trump administration’s assertion of sweeping power to declare national emergencies to justify the tariffs. Trump has bypassed Congress, which has authority under the Constitution to levy taxes, including tariffs.

    If the court strikes down the tariffs, the Trump administration may be refunding money to the importers who paid them, not sending dividend checks to American families. (Trump could find other ways to impose tariffs, even if he loses at the Supreme Court; but it could be cumbersome and time-consuming.)

    Mainstream economists and budget analysts note that tariffs are paid by U.S. importers who then generally try to pass along the cost to their customers through higher prices.

    The dividend plan “misses the mark,’’ the Tax Foundation’s York said. ”If the goal is relief for Americans, just get rid of the tariffs.’’

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  • Traditional acai berry dishes surprise visitors to Brazil climate summit, no sugar added

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    BELEM, Brazil (AP) — Some acai berry lovers visiting Brazil for this week’s U.N. climate summit are in for a surprise when they taste the fruit popular around the world in smoothies and breakfast bowls.

    Acai bowls served by local vendors in Belem — the city hosting the 30th annual United Nations climate summit, the Conference of the Parties, known less formally as COP30 — are true to the dish’s rainforest roots, served unadulterated and without sugar.

    This traditional preparation has been a tough sell for some visitors, used to the frozen and sweetened acai cream sold in other countries and elsewhere in Brazil.

    “I can’t say this is bad and I totally respect the cultural importance of it, but I still prefer the ice creamy version,” said Catherine Bernard, a 70-year-old visitor from France, as she tasted a traditional acai berry bowl in downtown Belem on Thursday.

    “Maybe if we add a little honey, some banana,” she added.

    Acai is put in a blender at a market amid the nearby COP30 U.N. Climate Summit, Saturday, Nov. 8, 2025, in Belem, Brazil. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)

    Not a dessert

    People in the Amazon, where the nutrient-rich berry has been cultivated for centuries by Indigenous populations, don’t treat their acai bowls as a side order or dessert.

    It is often the main course for any meal. They don’t add granola, fresh fruit or nuts. Sugar is forbidden. Served at room temperature, the traditional dish is a thick liquid prepared from whole berries and a bit of water, typically sprinkled with tapioca flour.

    Locals hope that exposing visitors to this original blend will increase awareness about a fruit facing pressure from tariffs and a changing environment.

    “The acai coming from Indigenous people is the food when there’s no food. It was never a drink or an extra. It can be the main course for us,” Tainá Marajoara, an activist and owner of a restaurant, told The Associated Press, wearing an Indigenous headdress.

    As Marajoara poured some of the dark liquid into an Amazon bowl called “cuia,” a vessel traditionally fashioned from gourds and now popular throughout Brazil, she said that acai trees need a protected surrounding in the rainforest so they can be at their best.

    Acai berries sit in a bowl at a market amid the nearby COP30 U.N. Climate Summit, Saturday, Nov. 8, 2025, in Belem, Brazil. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)

    Acai berries sit in a bowl at a market amid the nearby COP30 U.N. Climate Summit, Saturday, Nov. 8, 2025, in Belem, Brazil. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)

    “Acai is also the blood running in the forest,” she added.

    Marajoara’s restaurant at the COP30 pavilion charges 25 Brazilian reais ($5) for a bowl, about the same as bowls in other parts of Brazil that use industrially processed and sweetened acai cream, often with toppings.

    That version was made popular in the mid-1990s by surfers and jiujitsu fighters in Rio de Janeiro, and then exported around the world as millions of tourists developed a taste for it.

    Even in many parts of Brazil, it can be hard to find unsweetened acai. Some Brazilian parents who want their children to have the superfood’s benefits without the sugar look for stores that sell acai cream without added sweeteners. But most popular brands only produce sweetened versions.

    Where the world’s acai comes from

    Nearly all the acai consumed in the United States originates from Brazil, with the state of Para, whose capital is Belem, accounting for 90% of the country’s total production. Many communities in the Amazon depend on its harvest, which largely goes to the industrialized product.

    Prices of acai smoothies look uncertain for U.S. consumers as the product is subject to a 50% tariff imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump on many Brazilian exports.

    The harvesting of acai is a physically demanding job that requires workers known as “peconheiros” to climb tall trees with minimal safety equipment to fill baskets and place them carefully in crates.

    Acai is served to a kid at a market amid the nearby COP30 U.N. Climate Summit, Saturday, Nov. 8, 2025, in Belem, Brazil. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)

    Acai is served to a kid at a market amid the nearby COP30 U.N. Climate Summit, Saturday, Nov. 8, 2025, in Belem, Brazil. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)

    A full crate of acai sells for around $50 at local markets in Brazil, a price that is expected to plummet if U.S. sales slow down. The U.S. is by far the largest acai importer of a total Brazilian output, currently estimated at about 70,000 tons (63,500 metric tons) per year.

    In some coastal areas of the Amazon under little environmental protection, erosion is changing the taste of some of the acai, making them saltier and less colorful. That’s why people like Marajoara keep pushing not only for their original bowls during COP30, but also for higher surveillance for acai trees of the region.

    “The acai berry that belongs in our food culture comes from flood plain areas, from a healthy ecosystem,” she said. “For acai to be healthy, the rainforest needs to be healthy too.”

    ___

    The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

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  • Chinese State Media Blast Japan PM as Taiwan Spat Rumbles On

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    By Liz Lee and John Geddie

    BEIJING/TOKYO (Reuters) -A spat between China and Japan over Japanese Premier Sanae Takaichi’s Taiwan comments showed no signs of abating on Wednesday after a series of vitriolic articles in Chinese state media and calls in Tokyo to expel a Chinese diplomat.

    Takaichi sparked the furore with remarks in parliament last week that a Chinese attack on Taiwan could amount to a “survival-threatening situation” and trigger a potential military response from Tokyo.

    That drew a formal protest from China and a threatening post from China’s Consul General in Osaka, Xue Jian, aimed at Takaichi, which Tokyo said was “extremely inappropriate” and complained to Beijing about.

    While Takaichi has since said she would refrain from making such comments again and Tokyo called for mutual efforts to reduce friction on Tuesday, a brace of editorials in Chinese state media suggest the furore could rumble on.

    State broadcaster CCTV said in an editorial late Tuesday that Takaichi’s remarks were of “extremely malicious nature and impact” and have “crossed the line” with China.

    A post on a social media account affiliated with CCTV called Takaichi a “troublemaker”, using the word as a play on the pronunciation of her family name in Chinese.

    “Has her head been kicked by a donkey?” the post on the Yuyuan Tantian account challenged.

    “If she continues to spew shit without any boundaries like this, Takaichi might have to pay the price!”

    The CCTV editorial also likened Takaichi’s reference to “survival-threatening situations” with Japan’s 1931 invasion of northeast China’s Manchuria.

    Japan’s foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

    CALLS TO EXPEL CHINESE DIPLOMAT

    Japanese leaders have until now avoided mentioning Taiwan when publicly discussing such scenarios, maintaining a strategic ambiguity also favoured by Tokyo’s main security ally, the United States.

    Beijing claims Taiwan, and has not ruled out using force to take control of the island which sits just over 110 km (68 miles) from Japanese territory. Taiwan’s government rejects Beijing’s sovereignty claims.

    Meanwhile some senior political figures in Tokyo have called for Japan to consider expelling the Chinese diplomat Xue, who shared a news article about Takaichi’s remarks on Saturday and commented: “the dirty head that sticks itself in must be cut off”.

    Takayuki Kobayashi, the ruling party’s policy chief, urged the government on Tuesday to expel Xue if Beijing showed no effort to resolve the situation. Prominent opposition lawmaker Kenta Izumi also called for Xue’s quick expulsion.

    (Reporting by Liz Lee and Beijing newsroom and John Geddie and Tim Kelly in Tokyo; Editing by Raju Gopalakrishnan)

    Copyright 2025 Thomson Reuters.

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  • Vietnam Eyes Tariff Deal Soon, as US Seeks to Cut Huge Trade Deficit

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    By Khanh Vu and Francesco Guarascio

    HANOI (Reuters) – Vietnam is working to sign a trade agreement with the United States soon, Deputy Prime Minister Bui Thanh Son said on Wednesday, as a new round of negotiations gets underway in Washington. 

    In October, the two countries agreed to finalise a trade deal within weeks that would maintain U.S. tariffs of 20% on its imports of Vietnamese goods, but exempt some unspecified products from the new duty imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump in August.

    Son urged U.S. businesses at a conference in Hanoi to help in bilateral negotiations so that the two parties could “soon sign a fair and balanced trade agreement.” 

    Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, Michael DeSombre, told the conference in a recorded statement that the trade deal should rebalance commercial flows between the two countries, reducing the U.S. deficit with Hanoi, which is the largest after China and Mexico.

     For the first 10 months of the year, Vietnam has recorded a $111 billion trade surplus with the U.S. – pointing to another potential annual record – according to Vietnamese data, which is usually more conservative than U.S. trade figures, currently unavailable because of an ongoing federal government shutdown.

    A Vietnamese delegation led by Trade Minister Nguyen Hong Dien is in Washington this week for a new round of talks with U.S. officials to work on finalising the trade agreement, the Vietnamese trade ministry said on its web portal.

    A person briefed about the talks said negotiations would focus on identifying Vietnamese items that could be exempted from U.S. tariffs, such as coffee, and on the scope of the preferential access to the Vietnamese market that Hanoi has pledged for U.S. products, such as cars and farm goods. 

    The Vietnamese side aimed to finalise the deal ideally after the U.S. Supreme Court decides on the legality of U.S. tariffs imposed by Trump, and possibly by December, the person said, declining to be named because the information was not public. The court ruling is expected anytime before the end of this year and mid-2026.

    Vietnamese negotiators are keen to mark the signing of a trade deal with a meeting between Trump and Vietnam’s top leader To Lam, multiple officials have said.

    Son urged U.S. businesses at Wednesday’s conference to support Vietnam’s efforts to set up the high-level meeting. Past attempts have not been successful, according to multiple officials.

    He also called on U.S. businesses to encourage Washington to recognise Vietnam as a market economy and lift its restrictions on the export of high-tech products, such as advanced semiconductors. 

    DeSombre said Vietnam could play a role in global supply chains for critical minerals. Vietnam has large resources of rare earths and gallium but has been slow in exploiting them.

    (Reporting by Khanh Vu and Francesco Guarascio; Editing by David Stanway and Kate Mayberry)

    Copyright 2025 Thomson Reuters.

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  • Trump has other tariff options if the Supreme Court strikes down his worldwide import taxes

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    WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump has warned that the United States will be rendered “defenseless’’ and possibly “reduced to almost Third World status” if the Supreme Court strikes down the tariffs he imposed this year on nearly every country on earth.

    The justices sounded skeptical during oral arguments Wednesday of his sweeping claims of authority to impose tariffs as he sees fit.

    The truth, though, is that Trump will still have plenty of options to keep taxing imports aggressively even if the court rules against him. He can re-use tariff powers he deployed in his first term and can reach for others, including one that dates back to the Great Depression.

    “It’s hard to see any pathway here where tariffs end,” said Georgetown trade law professor Kathleen Claussen. “I am pretty convinced he could rebuild the tariff landscape he has now using other authorities.”

    At Wednesday’s hearing, in fact, lawyer Neal Katyal, representing small businesses suing to get the tariffs struck down, argued that Trump didn’t need the boundless authority he’s claimed to impose tariffs under 1977 International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). That is because Congress delegated tariff power to the White House in several other statutes — though it carefully limited the ways the president could use the authority.

    “Congress knows exactly how to delegate its tariff powers,” Katyal said.

    Tariffs have become a cornerstone of Trump’s foreign policy in his second term, with double-digit “reciprocal” tariffs imposed on most countries, which he has justified by declaring America’s longstanding trade deficits a national emergency.

    The average U.S. tariff has gone from 2.5% when Trump returned to the White House in January to 17.9%, the highest since 1934, according to calculations by Yale University’s Budget Lab.

    The president acted alone even though the U.S. Constitution specifically gives the power to tax – and impose tariffs – to Congress.

    Still, Trump “will have other tools that can cause pain,’’ said Stratos Pahis of Brooklyn Law School. Here’s a look at some of his options:

    Countering unfair trade practices

    The United States has long had a handy cudgel to wallop countries it accuses of engaging in “unjustifiable,” “unreasonable” or “discriminatory” trade practices. That is Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974.

    And Trump has made aggressive use of it himself — especially against China. In his first term, he cited Section 301 to impose sweeping tariffs on Chinese imports in a dispute over the sharp-elbowed tactics that Beijing was using to challenge America’s technological dominance. The U.S. is also using 301 powers to counter what it calls unfair Chinese practices in the shipbuilding industry.

    “You’ve had Section 301 tariffs in place against China for years,” said Ryan Majerus, a partner at King & Spalding and a trade official in Trump’s first administration and in Biden’s.

    There are no limits on the size of Section 301 tariffs. They expire after four years but can be extended.

    But the administration’s trade representative must conduct an investigation and typically hold a public hearing before imposing 301 tariffs.

    John Veroneau, general counsel for the U.S. trade representative in the George W. Bush administration, said Section 301 is useful in taking on China. But it has drawbacks when it comes to dealing with the smaller countries that Trump has hammered with reciprocal tariffs.

    “Undertaking dozens and dozens of 301 investigations of all of those countries is a laborious process,” Veroneau said.

    Targeting trade deficits

    In striking down Trump’s reciprocal tariffs in May, the U.S. Court of International Trade ruled that the president couldn’t use emergency powers to combat trade deficits.

    That is partly because Congress had specifically given the White House limited authority to address the problem in another statute: Section 122, also of the Trade Act of 1974. That allows the president to impose tariffs of up to 15% for up to 150 days in response to unbalanced trade. The administration doesn’t even have to conduct an investigation beforehand.

    But Section 122 authority has never been used to apply tariffs, and there is some uncertainty about how it would work.

    Protecting national security

    In both of his terms, Trump has made aggressive use of his power — under Section 232 of Trade Expansion Act of 1962 — to impose tariffs on imports that he deems a threat to national security.

    In 2018, he slapped tariffs on foreign steel and aluminum, levies he’s expanded since returning to the White House. He also plastered Section 232 tariffs on autos, auto parts, copper, lumber.

    In September, the president even levied Section 232 tariffs on kitchen cabinets, bathroom vanities and upholstered furniture. “Even though people might roll their eyes” at the notion that imported furniture poses a threat to national security, Veroneau said, “it’s difficult to get courts to second-guess a determination by a president on a national security matter.”

    Section 232 tariffs are not limited by law but do require an investigation by the U.S. Commerce Department. It’s the administration itself that does the investigating – also true for Section 301 cases — “so they have a lot of control over the outcome,” Veroneau said.

    Reviving Depression-era tariffs

    Nearly a century ago, with the U.S. and world economies in collapse, Congress passed the Tariff Act of 1930, imposing hefty taxes on imports. Known as the Smoot-Hawley tariffs (for their congressional sponsors), these levies have been widely condemned by economists and historians for limiting world commerce and making the Great Depression worse. They also got a memorable pop culture shoutout in the 1986 movie “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.”

    Section 338 of the law authorizes the president to impose tariffs of up to 50% on imports from countries that have discriminated against U.S. businesses. No investigation is required, and there’s no limit on how long the tariffs can stay in place.

    Those tariffs have never been imposed — U.S. trade negotiators traditionally have favored Section 301 sanctions instead — though the United States used the threat of them as a bargaining chip in trade talks in the 1930s.

    In September, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Reuters that the administration was considering Section 338 as a Plan B if the Supreme Court ruled against Trump’s use of emergency powers tariffs.

    The Smoot-Hawley legislation has a bad reputation, Veroneau said, but Trump might find it appealing. “To be the first president to ever use it could have some cache.”

    ____

    Associated Press Staff Writer Lindsay Whitehurst contributed to this story.

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  • South Korean solar firm cuts pay and hours for Georgia workers as US officials detain imports

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    A South Korean solar company says it will temporarily reduce pay and working hours for about 1,000 of its 3,000 employees in Georgia because U.S. customs officials have been detaining imported components for solar panels

    ATLANTA — A South Korean solar company says it will temporarily reduce pay and working hours for about 1,000 of its 3,000 employees in Georgia because U.S. customs officials have been detaining imported components needed to make solar panels.

    Qcells, a unit of South Korea’s Hanwha Solutions, said Friday that it will also lay off 300 workers from staffing agencies at its plants in Dalton and Cartersville, both northwest of Atlanta.

    The company says U.S. Customs and Border Protection has been detaining imported components at ports on suspicion that they contain materials that may have been made with forced labor in China, meaning it can’t run its solar panel assembly lines at full strength.

    Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced in August that her department was stepping up enforcement of the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, a 2021 law that restricts Chinese goods made with forced labor from entering the U.S. Published reports indicate that U.S. officials began detaining solar cells made by Qcells in June. A spokesperson for Customs and Border Protection couldn’t immediately answer questions about Qcells on Friday.

    Qcells says none of its materials or components are made with forced labor or even come from China. Spokesperson Marta Stoepker said the company maintains “robust supply chain due diligence measures” and “very detailed documentation,” which has been successful in getting some shipments released.

    “Our latest supply chain is sourced completely outside of China and our legacy supply chains contain no material from Xinjiang province based on third party audits and supplier guarantees,” Stoepker said.

    She said Qcells is continuing to cooperate and expects to resume full production in the coming weeks and months.

    “Although our supply chain operations are beginning to normalize, today we shared with our employees that HR actions must be taken to improve operational efficiency until production capacity returns to normal levels,” Stoepker said in a statement.

    Qcells has said it pays workers an average of about $53,000 a year. Workers will retain full benefits during furloughs.

    Qcells is completing a $2.3 billion plant in Cartersville that will let it take polysilicon refined in Washington state and make ingots, wafers and solar cells — the building blocks of finished solar modules. That will allow it to reduce imports of solar modules. The company has said it will finish the plant even though President Donald Trump and the Republican Congress dismantled most of the tax credits for buying solar panels earlier this year.

    “Our commitment to building the entire solar supply chain in the United States remains,” Stoepker said. “We will soon be back on track with the full force of our Georgia team delivering American-made energy to communities around the country.”

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  • U.S. Backs EU Using Frozen Russian Assets to Help End War, U.S. Source Says

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    (Reuters) -The United States fully backs the European Union using frozen Russian assets as a tool to support Ukraine and end the war with Russia, a U.S. source familiar with the situation told Reuters on Friday.

    As the West seeks to ramp up pressure on Moscow, the European Commission has proposed a plan allowing EU governments to use up to 185 billion euros ($217 billion) – most of the 210 billion euros worth of Russian sovereign assets currently frozen in Europe – without confiscating them.

    Washington “absolutely supports (the EU) and the steps they’re taking right now to be in a position to make use of those assets as a tool,” the source said, requesting anonymity to discuss an ongoing issue.

    After Russian President Vladimir Putin sent troops into Ukraine in 2022, the United States and its allies prohibited transactions with Russia’s central bank and finance ministry, immobilizing around $300 billion of sovereign Russian assets.

    The European proposal is being held up due to concerns from Belgium, where most of the assets are located.

    Germany suggested on Friday that recent drone sightings over airports and military bases in Belgium were a message from Moscow not to touch the frozen assets. Moscow has denied any connection to the incidents and has promised a “painful response” if its assets are seized.

    In a renewed attempt to end Russia’s war, U.S. President Donald Trump hit Rosneft and Lukoil, its two biggest oil companies, with sanctions late last month, adding to an unprecedented basket of economic sanctions that seek to pressure Moscow and those doing business with it.

    The move underlined Washington’s intent to squeeze Russia’s finances and force the Kremlin towards a peace deal in its 3-1/2-year-old full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

    Washington is watching the fallout from the Rosneft and Lukoil move and “there are more things we could do to try to up the pressure,” the source said.

    (Reporting by Jonathan Spicer; editing by Philippa Fletcher)

    Copyright 2025 Thomson Reuters.

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  • Honda’s Profit Slips as President Trump’s Tariffs Take Their Toll on Japanese Automakers

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    TOKYO (AP) — Honda reported Friday that its profit for the first fiscal half through September fell 37% from the previous year, as the damage from President Donald Trump’s tariffs offset the lift from solid motorcycle sales.

    Tokyo-based Honda Motor Co. recorded a 311.8 billion yen ($2 billion) profit for April-September, down from 494.6 billion yen a year before.

    Sales over the six months totaled 10.6 trillion yen ($69 billion), down 1.5% from nearly 10.8 trillion yen.

    Honda lowered its profit projection for the fiscal year through March 2026 to 300 billion yen ($2 billion), which would be a decline of 64% from 835.8 billion yen the year before. It had earlier forecast a 420 billion yen ($2.7 billion) annual profit.

    Honda, which makes the Accord sedan and Odyssey minivan, said an unfavorable currency rate also hurt its bottom line, erasing 116 billion yen ($756 million) from its operating profit over the six months.

    But Honda achieved record sales in motorcycles, led by strong results in the Asian region, excluding Vietnam. Honda said it sold more than 9 million motorcycles in Asia during the first half, up from 8.8 million a year ago. Honda’s motorcycle sales improved in every global region, except for Europe, at a record 10.7 million units sold.

    Honda’s global vehicle sales in the first half totaled 1.68 million vehicles, down from 1.78 million. By region, vehicle sales grew in North America, but fell in Japan, the rest of Asia and Europe.

    Although it helps that Honda produces many of its vehicles in the U.S., tariffs caused a decline of 164 billion yen ($1.1 billion) in operating profit over the six-month period, the company said.

    In response, China blocked shipments of chips from Nexperia’s plant in the southern Chinese city of Dongguan, though it has now allowed those exports to resume.

    Vehicle production at Honda’s plant in Celaya, Mexico, has halted since Oct. 28, while production at North American plants were adjusted, starting Oct. 27, due to the Nexperia-related supply disruptions. Honda did not give a date on when production will be restored to normal levels.

    Honda stocks on Friday gained 1.8% to 1,585 yen ($10) in Tokyo trading.

    Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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