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Tag: Tariffs

  • Long Island business confidence dips amid economic challenges | Long Island Business News

    THE BLUEPRINT:

    • Long Island business confidence declined this year after a post-2024 election high.

    • Affordability and housing costs remain major concerns for local leaders.

    • Survey included 311 business leaders.

    Last year there was a measurable uptick in confidence among Long Island business leaders. This year that confidence dipped. Some of that decline reflects ongoing challenges, including long-standing affordability issues and, more recently, broader uncertainty. Local leaders met Thursday morning at the Crest Hollow Country Club in Woodbury to better understand the factors that are shaping Long Island’s economy.

    The gathering centered on the “Long Island Economic Survey Results Launch,” hosted by PKF O’Connor Davies in partnership with the Siena Research Institute (SRI). The results provided insights via 311 Long Island business leaders who participated in the survey, helping to identify emerging trends, challenges and opportunities.

    The event included a panel moderated by PKF O’Connor Davies Partner Jeffrey Davoli. The survey’s results were delivered by Don Levy, director of SRI. Levy was also part of a panel discussion that included U.S. Reps. Nick LaLota (R-Amityville) and Tom Suozzi (D-Glen Cove), as well as Stacey Sikes, vice president of government affairs and communications at Long Island Association.

    Business confidence slipped from a “post-2024 election high,” prompting leaders to take a more cautious approach, according to Levy.

    “Fifty-four percent of the businesses we spoke to a year ago predicted that the year ahead was going to be better,” Levy said. “They were excited.”

    Those business leaders had planned to invest in fixed assets, add employees and see increased revenue and profitability.

    But, Levy said, “the year did not live up to their expectations.”

    Expectations for both the Long Island and national economies, according to the survey, declined sharply, with pessimism about the Long Island economy more than doubling from the year prior.

    Volatility, including tariffs and energy, may play a role in impacting business confidence, LaLota said.

    “What government does or doesn’t do, I think, can help or hurt you, and just having stability in those areas” can be important to businesses as they look at revenues and the ability to hire, he said.

    Uncertainty around tariffs are a big concern for owners, Suozzi said, adding that they are worried about upcoming changes to the current business environment.

    “I’ve talked to so many businesses that ordered things from overseas. While it was on the boat, the tariffs went up,” Suozzi said. “They got hit when they got to the dock with a $500,000 bill that they didn’t plan for. People can’t function in that environment. That affects the confidence. That affects your desire to say yes, I’m going to invest in this.”

    Also impacting confidence is affordability, something that’s now part of a national discussion, although Long Island has been grappling with the challenge, especially housing costs, for decades.

    Affordability is even seeping into succession planning. Davoli pointed out that, according to the survey, “70 percent express concern, yet only 27 percent have a structure plan in place.”

    Sikes said she wasn’t surprised that succession planning is an issue, especially at a time when the population is getting older.

    “We already have a challenge keeping young people on Long Island,” she said. “A median home price is $800,000 on Long Island. How can any young person afford a down payment, a closing cost, the mortgage and the taxes?” The region’s high cost of living makes it difficult for businesses to bring in and retain the next generation of leaders.

    When it comes to adding housing and navigating zoning, LaLota, said, “local control is always best. The state and the feds should not have a role in that.”

    Suozzi said that 95 percent of housing should be single family homes, but recommended that 5 percent, or less, should include housing in downtowns. “We have to build places where young people can afford to live,” but still “preserve our suburban quality of life in the process,” he said.

    Both Suozzi and LaLota spoke about bringing tax dollars back to New York State, adding that at the federal level, the state only gets back 85 cents for every dollar it sends to Washington, DC.

    Suozzi pointed out that New York State is more expensive than Florida and Texas because New York has the lowest rate of uninsured adults and children, while the two other states have the highest. New York also pays teachers more than many other states.

    New York, he said, has tremendous wealth, “but we have to get that wealth back to our state to try and reduce our costs. Or we’re going to lose this population fight because people are moving to these southwestern and southeastern lowest tax states, and we’re not keeping up with them.

    “Federal tax policy can help with that,” he said. “But it’s going to be a tough fight.”

    The complete survey is available here.


    Adina Genn

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  • Trump says he’s raising tariffs on South Korea to 25%

    President Trump on Monday said he is raising tariffs on South Korea because the nation has not yet approved a trade deal with the U.S. that the two countries agreed to last year. 

    Mr. Trump said in a social media post that the U.S. will increase its tariff on imports from South Korea from 15% to 25% and also hike levies on the country’s automobiles, lumber and pharmaceutical goods. 

    “South Korea’s Legislature is not living up to its Deal with the United States. President Lee and I reached a Great Deal for both Countries on July 30, 2025, and we reaffirmed these terms while I was in Korea on October 29, 2025. Why hasn’t the Korean Legislature approved it?” Mr. Trump said in announcing the stepped-up duties. 

    The two countries reached a deal on trade and security issues after Mr. Trump met his South Korean President Lee Jae-myung in Seoul last year. Under the agreement, the U.S. cut its tariffs on South Korean vehicles, car parts, pharmaceuticals and other products from 25% to 15%. 

    The pact also called for South Korea to invest $350 billion in several key U.S. sectors, including semiconductors, shipbuiling and biotech.

    As of late 2025, South Korea was the U.S.’ eighth-largest trading partner, with total trade between the nations of $162 billion, according to Census Bureau data. The auto industry accounts for 27% of South Korea’s exports to the U.S., which takes in nearly half of the country’s car exports.

    The Supreme Court is expected to rule soon on the legality of the Trump administration’s country-specific tariffs, which the White House has imposed on dozens of nations under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, or IEEPA. 

    If they are struck down, White House officials have said they can turn to other powers that effectively replace the sweeping levies. 

    Edited by

    Alain Sherter

    AFP

    contributed to this report.

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  • Gold Hits Record $5K While Bitcoin Struggles To Keep Pace

    Gold shone brightly today, racing to a new high while crypto took the back seat, and the gap between the two assets opened wide.

    Related Reading

    On Monday, the precious metal moved past the $5,000 mark, registering a price point market sentinels had not witnessed before. Bitcoin, by contrast, failed to keep pace and traded well below its recent highs.

    Gold Hits Record Levels

    Safe-haven demand pushed gold sharply higher. Prices were up above $5k an ounce and inked roughly $5,110 at the peak. Silver, for its part, did not go unnoticed, jumping to fresh peaks near $107/ounce.

    Source: Gold Price

    Traders pointed to simmering geopolitical friction and talk of tougher trade moves led by US President Donald Trump as fuel for the rally.

    A weaker greenback made metals more attractive to customers overseas, and central bank buying provided steady backing. Liquidity in some corners were thin as investors rushed to shift cash into things that feel stable when risk elevates.

    Bitcoin Falls Behind

    Market numbers show Bitcoin hovering in the mid-$80,000s range, retreating from peaks seen late last year. Reports note the alpha crypto is roughly 30% below the highest level it hit reached in October 2025, leaving some holders quite jittery.

    Volatility was another factor. Where bullion is being sought for safety, Bitcoin is viewed more as a growth or speculative play, and that difference in investor application becomes clear when markets tighten. Some funds slashed their crypto exposure, signaling a short reroute away from high-risk gambits.

    BTCUSD currently trading at $87,832. Chart: TradingView

    Why Investors Are Shifting

    Analysts and traders described a simple choice: shelter or swing for gains. When headlines push worry, money flows into assets that are widely trusted across markets and governments.

    Metals fit that ticket. Based on market chatter, fears of a US government funding clash and fresh tariff announcements stacked pressure on stocks and added a sense of urgency to safe-haven acquisition.

    Options and futures trading hinted at a more cautious perpective, with volatility indexes rising and bond yields behaving in ways that made the yellow metal look more appealing by comparison.

    Related Reading

    What Traders Are Watching

    Market watchers said eyes will be glued on a few key metrics: The dollar’s path, moves by major central banks, and any sign that US politics escalates could keep metals elevated.

    For Bitcoin, network activity, large wallet flows, and regulatory headlines will likely set the tone. Some traders expect swings both ways. Others caution that when risk appetite is back, crypto may bounce hard, but that outcome is not a sure thing and will be dependent on a string of policy and macro moves.

    Featured image from Unsplash, chart from TradingView

    Christian Encila

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  • Wall Street celebrates the end of Trump’s Greenland drama and is hoping the Supreme Court will kill the rest of his tariffs | Fortune

    The S&P 500 closed up 0.55% yesterday on good news about U.S. GDP growth and President Trump backing down over his plan to invade Greenland. The S&P is again above 6,900 and within 1% of its all-time high. Gold hit another record yesterday, too.

    But futures on the index were down 0.24% prior to the opening bell in New York and markets in Europe sold off slightly this morning after Asia closed mixed, a sign that traders are booking profits after yesterday’s rally. 

    On the macro front, Wall Street analysts are bullish. It’s a marked change from the fraught mood of the last few days, when investors were anticipating another transatlantic tariff war.

    In fact, Trump’s tariffs are turning out to be a much smaller economic deal than “earlier worst-case fears,” JPMorgan Chase says. Companies have adjusted their pricing and supply chains, and the result is “the realized tariff rate has been much lower at ~11% (versus expectations of 15%,”), according to Dubravko Lakos-Bujas and his team. “Only 14% of S&P 500 companies are highly sensitive to tariffs.” 

    And it could get better if the U.S. Supreme Court rules against the president, the bank says.

    “Prediction markets assign >65% odds that the Supreme Court rules against the government, and those odds have consistently been against the government, especially following the November Supreme Court oral arguments,” Lakos-Bujas told clients.

    Source: Polymarket

    Analysts were also cheered by a new upward revision for Q3 2025 U.S. GDP, at 4.4%. 

    “The 4.4% real growth rate is much higher than normal and is likely to moderate over the course of the year, but if we can stay above 3% for the entire year it could lead to double-digit returns in the stock market,” Chris Zaccarelli, chief investment officer at Northlight Asset Management said in an email seen by Fortune.

    EY-Parthenon Chief Economist Gregory Daco was singing from the same hymnbook. “Momentum was driven by resilient consumer spending, robust equipment and AI-related investment, a sizeable boost from net international trade, and a rebound in federal government outlays. The U.S. economy is neither overheating nor stalling—it is adjusting,” he said in a note.

    All of that explains the calm we’re seeing in the markets today.

    “For some assets, it was almost like the selloff never happened, with the VIX index of volatility (-1.26pts) back at 15.64pts, which is beneath its levels prior to Saturday’s tariff announcements,” according to Jim Reid and his team at Deutsche Bank. 

    Here’s a snapshot of the markets ahead of the opening bell in New York this morning:

    • S&P 500 futures were down 0.24% this morning. The last session closed up 0.55%.
    • STOXX Europe 600 was down 0.22% in early trading.
    • The U.K.’s FTSE 100 was down 0.11% in early trading. 
    • Japan’s Nikkei 225 was up 0.29%.
    • China’s CSI 300 was down 0.55%.
    • The South Korea KOSPI was up 0.76%. 
    • India’s NIFTY 50 was down 0.95%. 
    • Bitcoin was flat at $89.9K.
    Join us at the Fortune Workplace Innovation Summit May 19–20, 2026, in Atlanta. The next era of workplace innovation is here—and the old playbook is being rewritten. At this exclusive, high-energy event, the world’s most innovative leaders will convene to explore how AI, humanity, and strategy converge to redefine, again, the future of work. Register now.

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  • Trump Says Greenland Agreement Still Being Negotiated

    Jan 22 (Reuters) – President Donald Trump said the ‌details ​of a U.S. agreement ‌over Greenland were still being worked out on Thursday, ​speaking one day after he stepped back from a tariff threat and ruled out ‍the use of force ​to seize the Danish territory.

    Trump, in an interview on Fox Business Network ​from ⁠Davos, also acknowledged the impact of his quest for Greenland on global markets and said he did not plan to pay to acquire it.

    “It’s really being negotiated now, the details of it. But essentially it’s total access. It’s – ‌there’s no end, there’s no time limit,” Trump said from the ​sidelines of ‌the World Economic Forum.

    “I ‍noticed ⁠the stock market went up very substantially after we announced it,” he told FBN’s “Mornings with Maria” program.

    Asked about the possibility of Europeans selling U.S. stocks and bonds, he added: “If they do, they do. But if that would happen, there would be a big retaliation on our part, and we have all the cards.”

    Trump began ​floating the idea of acquiring Greenland after taking office last year but stepped up his rhetoric in recent weeks, threatening a 10% tariff on eight European countries over the weekend that shook investors.

    He continued his push in a more than hour-long speech at Davos on Wednesday before meeting with the head of NATO and announcing plans for a new deal that has yet to be defined.

    Asked on Thursday what he was willing to pay for the semi-autonomous ​territory, he added: “We’re going to not have to pay anything other than the fact that we are building the Golden Dome.”

    Trump said any deal would allow “total access” to Greenland, including for the military: “We’re ​getting everything we want at no cost”.

    (Reporting by Susan Heavey; Editing by Alex Richardson, William Maclean)

    Copyright 2026 Thomson Reuters.

    Photos You Should See – January 2026

    Reuters

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  • Denmark to Discuss Arctic Security, Seeks Respect for Territorial Integrity

    COPENHAGEN, Jan 22 (Reuters) – Danish Prime ‌Minister ​Mette Frederiksen said on ‌Thursday that Denmark and Greenland will continue ​to engage in a constructive dialogue on security in the ‍Arctic, provided that this is ​done with respect for her country’s territorial integrity.

    U.S. ​President ⁠Donald Trump abruptly stepped back on Wednesday from threats to impose tariffs as leverage to seize Greenland, ruled out the use of force and suggested a deal was in sight ‌to end a dispute over the Danish territory.

    After meeting ​with ‌NATO Secretary General Mark ‍Rutte, ⁠Trump said Western Arctic allies could forge agreement that satisfies his desire for a “Golden Dome” missile‑defence system and access to minerals while blocking Russia and China’s ambitions.

    Frederiksen said NATO was fully aware of Denmark’s position, and that she had been informed ​that Rutte’s talks did not involve her country’s sovereignty.

    “”Security in the Arctic is a matter for the entire NATO alliance. Therefore, it is good and natural that it is also discussed between NATO’s secretary general and the president of the United States,” Frederiksen said in a statement.

    “The Kingdom of Denmark wishes to continue to engage in a constructive dialogue with allies ​on how we can strengthen security in the Arctic, including the United States’ Golden Dome, provided that this is done with respect for our territorial integrity,” ​she said.

    (Reporting by Stine Jacobsen, editing by Terje Solsvik and Essi Lehto)

    Copyright 2026 Thomson Reuters.

    Photos You Should See – January 2026

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  • 7 ways Europe could hurt the U.S. if Trump doesn’t back down over Greenland | Fortune

    President Trump told those gathered at the World Economic Forum in Davos that he would not use force to take Greenland, and the world breathed a sigh of relief. But he is still pushing tariffs on Europe if Denmark refuses to sell its territory to the U.S.

    Trump’s plan has outraged European leaders. “Being a happy vassal is one thing. Being a miserable slave is something else,” Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever said. French President Emmanuel Macron said Trump’s “endless accumulation of new tariffs” were “fundamentally unacceptable.” Meanwhile, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called for the EU to become “independent” from the U.S. and to make that independence “permanent.”

    But does Europe have enough economic weaponry to force the White House to think again?

    Maybe, according to Wall Street analysts.

    Here are seven ways the E.U. could hurt the U.S. economically if Trump refuses to take “no” for an answer on Greenland, according to research by George Saravelos of Deutsche Bank, Joachim Klement of Panmure Liberum, Macquarie’s Thierry Wizman and Gareth Berry, and Pantheon Macreconomics’ Samuel Tombs and Oliver Allen.

    1. Reduce the supply of foreign direct investment into U.S. bonds and equities by incentivizing investors to keep their capital assets in Europe.
      “European countries own $8 trillion of U.S. bonds and equities, almost twice as much as the rest of the world combined,” Saravelos told clients a few days ago.
    2. Impose the $100 billion in duties on U.S. imports that were proposed and then dropped when the E.U. accepted a tariff deal last year. 
    3. Use the Digital Services Act to further limit how U.S. tech companies operate. 
    4. Implement the “Buy European” act to direct government purchases more toward European vendors.
    5. Implement the Anti-Coercion Instrument (ACI) to impose tariffs on U.S. services companies and companies linked to the U.S. government.
      The ACI would virtually ban U.S. services companies from operating in Europe, while Europe holds a trade surplus with the U.S. in services. This measure is often referred to as Europe’s trade “bazooka.”
    6. “Introduce export taxes on EU products exported to the U.S. that are hard to replace, such as chip-making equipment or specialized machinery,” Macquarie says.
      Removing the U.S.’s access to Netherlands-based semiconductor suppliers ASML, which has a virtual monopoly on some technologies, would create logistical challenges for many U.S tech companies.
    7. Place sanctions on U.S. companies operating in Greenland.

    “The U.S. has one key weakness: it relies on others to pay its bills via large external deficits. Europe, on the other hand, is America’s largest lender: European countries own $8 trillion of US bonds and equities, almost twice as much as the rest of the world combined. In an environment where the geoeconomic stability of the western alliance is being disrupted existentially, it is not clear why Europeans would be as willing to play this part,” Saravelous told clients in a note that annoyed Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.

    Trump is not likely to take this lying down. Klement wrote on his Substack: “Of course, these actions will trigger an escalation by Trump in the short term, which is why some EU leaders like Friedrich Merz of Germany are currently trying to soften the EU’s response.

    “But 2025 also has shown that if countries remain firm, the escalation cycle ends within a couple of weeks and Trump rows back (or should I say ‘chickens out’?) once he realises he can’t bully others into submission.”

    At Macquarie, the analysts warned that a comprehensive package of economic sanctions against the U.S. would increase price inflation in America. “The EU has the capacity to retaliate economically, and may do so in the hope that a firm EU retaliation (to threats or military action by the U.S.) will end the escalation cycle after a few weeks, and that this is a risk worth taking. What can the EU do, actually? The EU can do enough to hurt the U.S. economy and U.S. security, and these the trade-related measures would likely be jointly inflationary,” they said.

    The ACI “bazooka” won’t hobble the U.S. but it could hurt, Tombs and Allen say. “U.S. services exports to the E.U. were $295bn in 2024, equivalent to 0.9% of U.S. GDP, suggesting the harm could be much greater if the E.U. pulled this relatively new lever at its disposal than if it responded simply with tariffs, though its economy would be hurt more too,” they told clients.

    Join us at the Fortune Workplace Innovation Summit May 19–20, 2026, in Atlanta. The next era of workplace innovation is here—and the old playbook is being rewritten. At this exclusive, high-energy event, the world’s most innovative leaders will convene to explore how AI, humanity, and strategy converge to redefine, again, the future of work. Register now.

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  • Amazon CEO warns prices have gone up from tariffs

    Some of the things people buy the most are at their most expensive point of the year as the calendar changes over to 2026. Our get the facts data team dug into what actually caused the prices of some items to go up or go down. Let’s start with beef. Right now, the average price for ground beef is 823 per pound and 967 for steaks, the highest prices for both all year. Several factors like President Trump’s tariffs. Cattle inventories and an aging farming population contributed to the increase, but so did something called the New World screwworm, *** parasitic fly that produced *** deadly disease in some places like Mexico. Another grocery staple that is more expensive now, coffee. Our get the Facts data team found the price rose each month throughout the year, maxing out at 926 cents *** pound. Two of the world’s biggest coffee producers, Brazil and Vietnam, Were impacted by drought and excessive rains earlier this year, which reduced coffee production, and Brazil saw an additional 40% tariff over the summer as well. One of the biggest talking points, especially from President Trump about the state of the economy was egg prices. They are one of the few items tracked that actually are cheapest now. Egg prices saw their biggest price hike in nearly 10 years in January, then rose to an all-time high of 623. Per dozen in March. This was in large part to ongoing bird flu outbreaks. Egg prices would start falling in the summer and are now 286 *** dozen. Some other groceries that saw increases this year, cookies, potato chips, bacon, cheddar cheese, and orange juice. But it wasn’t all increases at the supermarket. Some items are cheaper now compared to January, like pasta, white bread, tomatoes, and strawberries. In Washington, I’m Amy Lou.

    If your next Amazon order seems more expensive, President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs may be partially to blame, Amazon CEO Andy Jassy said Tuesday.Like many retailers, Amazon and its vast network of third-party sellers loaded up on inventory ahead of Trump’s tariff rollout last spring. But that supply ran out by the fall, Jassy said in a CNBC interview on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.“So you start to see some of the tariffs creep into some of the prices, some of the items,” he said. “Some sellers are deciding that they’re passing on those higher costs to consumers in the form of higher prices, some are deciding that they’ll absorb it to drive demand and some are doing something in between.”The comments are a stark shift from last June, when Jassy said in a CNBC interview that the company had not seen “prices appreciably go up.” That was after Amazon drew the direct ire of Trump and members of his administration following reports that the e-commerce giant planned to display how tariffs were impacting prices.After Trump spoke with Amazon founder Jeff Bezos at the time, a company spokesperson told CNN the move “was never a consideration for the main Amazon.” It was only being considered for certain products on its spinoff site, Haul, which sells items below $30, the company said.On Tuesday, though, Jassy said: “We’re going to do everything we can to work with our selling partners to make prices as low as possible for consumers, but you don’t have endless options.”In a statement, though, the company told CNN that overall price levels have not changed more than expected. “While we are seeing prices for some sellers and some brands go up, overall the prices of products on Amazon have not changed outside of normal fluctuations,“ an Amazon spokesperson said.And the White House said it maintains that foreign exports are footing that tariff bill.“The average tariff imposed by America has increased by almost tenfold under President Trump, and inflation has continued to cool from Biden-era highs,” White House spokesman Kush Desai said in a statement.“The Administration has consistently maintained that foreign exporters who depend on access to the American economy, the world’s biggest and best consumer market, will ultimately pay the cost of tariffs, and that’s what’s playing out,” he added.Amazon isn’t the only retailer warning of higher prices because of tariffs. Walmart, Target and Home Depot and many other companies have publicly said tariffs are making products more expensive. And while overall consumer inflation was modest last year, many businesses surveyed by the Federal Reserve in its latest Beige Book, a collection of anecdotes, warned they’re planning bigger price hikes this year.

    If your next Amazon order seems more expensive, President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs may be partially to blame, Amazon CEO Andy Jassy said Tuesday.

    Like many retailers, Amazon and its vast network of third-party sellers loaded up on inventory ahead of Trump’s tariff rollout last spring. But that supply ran out by the fall, Jassy said in a CNBC interview on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

    “So you start to see some of the tariffs creep into some of the prices, some of the items,” he said. “Some sellers are deciding that they’re passing on those higher costs to consumers in the form of higher prices, some are deciding that they’ll absorb it to drive demand and some are doing something in between.”

    The comments are a stark shift from last June, when Jassy said in a CNBC interview that the company had not seen “prices appreciably go up.” That was after Amazon drew the direct ire of Trump and members of his administration following reports that the e-commerce giant planned to display how tariffs were impacting prices.

    After Trump spoke with Amazon founder Jeff Bezos at the time, a company spokesperson told CNN the move “was never a consideration for the main Amazon.” It was only being considered for certain products on its spinoff site, Haul, which sells items below $30, the company said.

    On Tuesday, though, Jassy said: “We’re going to do everything we can to work with our selling partners to make prices as low as possible for consumers, but you don’t have endless options.”

    In a statement, though, the company told CNN that overall price levels have not changed more than expected. “While we are seeing prices for some sellers and some brands go up, overall the prices of products on Amazon have not changed outside of normal fluctuations,“ an Amazon spokesperson said.

    And the White House said it maintains that foreign exports are footing that tariff bill.

    “The average tariff imposed by America has increased by almost tenfold under President Trump, and inflation has continued to cool from Biden-era highs,” White House spokesman Kush Desai said in a statement.

    “The Administration has consistently maintained that foreign exporters who depend on access to the American economy, the world’s biggest and best consumer market, will ultimately pay the cost of tariffs, and that’s what’s playing out,” he added.

    Amazon isn’t the only retailer warning of higher prices because of tariffs. Walmart, Target and Home Depot and many other companies have publicly said tariffs are making products more expensive. And while overall consumer inflation was modest last year, many businesses surveyed by the Federal Reserve in its latest Beige Book, a collection of anecdotes, warned they’re planning bigger price hikes this year.

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  • Live fact-checking Donald Trump’s Davos speech

    President Donald Trump will address the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Jan. 21. His address to world, policy and economic leaders follows Trump’s jockeying to own Greenland, tensions with NATO allies and the U.S. military capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro.

    PolitiFact will fact-check Trump live: 

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  • How Europe Can Respond to Trump’s Greenland Imperialism

    That is interesting, but it’s not exactly ideological. It’s that he sees European weakness and wants to exert power.

    That is true. When Trump first came to power, there was some very interesting analysis from historians trying to gain an understanding of Trump’s world view. Something that they figured out was that, throughout his career, President Trump has held a strong belief that there was something totally wrong that, after the end of World War Two, countries like Germany and Japan were able to do so well. In his understanding, it did not make sense that the United States, the United Kingdom, and even the Soviet Union won the war, but the Germans and the Japanese were doing so well. And then it transformed into “America won, so why are Europeans living better than us? Why do they have better cars?” Etc.

    And I do believe that world view stayed with him. Moreover, he does not understand what the European Union is. Europeans believe in win-win scenarios. They do believe that you really can find a way to compromise. If there is a religion of European politics, it is about compromise and consensus. And then you have somebody like Trump, who’s not interested in this.

    I was talking to an American analyst, a colleague of mine, and he made an observation, which I found profound, but will probably seem trivial to you. He said President Trump had a successful business career in many respects, but he was not spectacularly successful in one business that he tried, and this was the casino business. The problem is that in the casino business, in order to win, you should try to create the illusion that others are winning.

    I think that’s pretty good. I don’t find that trivial, actually.

    This was looking like a Crimean moment. So trust in the United States was very much based on the fact that, regardless of our differences, Europe can rely on the Americans when it comes to Russia, and now nobody believes it anymore.

    When you say a Crimean moment, I assume you’re referring to Russia taking Crimea twelve years ago, and that that was only the beginning of their designs on Ukraine, and that Trump’s desire to seize Greenland could similarly be a first step. Is that what you meant?

    No. It is that in 2012 and 2013, prior to the invasion of Crimea, President Putin’s popularity had declined a bit, and there had been some protests in Russia. And then suddenly you have basically this super-majority of support that emerges after he annexes Crimea. And, in my view, President Trump also thinks that if suddenly, overnight on July 4, 2026, Greenland becomes part of the United States, then America is going to understand how great they have become. And I do believe this is really scaring many in Europe because they imagine that this is going to be a politics that others want to imitate.

    I think Trump is totally wrong about how Americans would react to that, but it also just might not matter. And that in itself is scary enough. Are there off-ramps you see?

    I believe there is going to be a group of countries, including those in Eastern Europe, saying, “Listen, let’s talk seriously. We are going to recognize the strategic dimension of Greenland, but what we cannot talk about is America owning it.” And here President Trump basically has an option. Either he’s going to say, “I achieved what I wanted to do. I never meant owning it. It was just about a deal, and now we are going to, for example, increase our military presence there, or it is going to be our companies that are going to develop some of the rare-earth resources of Greenland.” Something like this can happen. But my feeling is that at this moment President Trump is not interested in this. It has become too symbolic for him.

    The other option for compromise is that Europeans are going to keep Greenland, and we are going to make Trump the chair of the Nobel Prize Committee so he can give the next Nobel Prize to himself. But, as of now, I do believe that Europeans probably are going to target some American goods. And we will see about the Anti-Coercion Instrument going forward.

    You mentioned earlier that Europeans thought Trump really did care about building a coalition against China. But now it seems possible that one of the long-term effects of America potentially breaking with Europe in a major way would be to provide an opening for China.

    Totally. This is the story. And I also believe Europeans are still hanging on to the hope that some part of the American élite—the financial élite but also the military élite—is going to go to President Trump and say, “Listen, you dislike Europe. And, of course, Europeans are idiots as you told us, but they’re idiots that we need.” If you look at global public opinion, people believe China is rising, but what is more interesting is that they have stopped fearing this. And I do believe this is something that President Trump slightly underestimated.

    And then there is the question of NATO. Many Europeans have started to ask themselves the question of whether their belief in NATO has started to resemble the French belief in the famous Maginot Line. Before World War Two, the French created this “fortification” on the German-French border, which created the feeling that they were defended, and then it turned out that it was not the case. So, suddenly, this destabilization of Europe can really have far-reaching consequences. This is why some Europeans still believe that at a certain point there is going to be a strategic realization on the side of the Trump Administration that this is not a war worth fighting.

    I hope you’re right, but you said Trump may have “underestimated” what effect all this would have with regard to China’s potential influence going forward. I don’t think this was underestimated or overestimated. I don’t think it goes into the equation of what he’s thinking about. The concept of a misguided national interest is one thing. Lots of Presidents have had those. The concept of a person who has no conception of the national interest is maybe closer to the mark.

    No, you’re right. And do you know what the real risk for Europe is? The real risk for Europe is that Greenland will become Trump’s obsession. Because one of the important things about President Trump is that he has strong views, but he cannot keep his attention for a very long time on the same issue. And, if this basically becomes an obsession, then the nature of the change to the transatlantic relationship is going to be really, really dramatic. ♦

    Isaac Chotiner

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  • ‘This will be an interesting trip’: President Trump to speak in Switzerland amid Greenland uproar

    President Donald Trump will deliver a speech today at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, focusing on a plan to make housing more affordable, while his comments about acquiring Greenland continue to stir tensions with European allies.”This will be an interesting trip. I have no idea what’s going to happen, but you are well represented,” Trump told reporters before departing the White House for Switzerland.The speech comes shortly after he threatened to impose tariffs on Denmark and seven other allies due to their opposition to his interest in acquiring Greenland. Trump announced that the tariffs would start at 10% next month and increase to 25% by June. The tensions over the U.S. interest in the Danish territory have already affected Wall Street, with stocks rattled on Tuesday.In Davos, Canada’s Prime Minister Mark Carney warned global leaders that the world is “facing a rupture,” emphasizing the risks of countries trying to avoid conflict by compliance. “There is a strong tendency for countries to go along to get along, to accommodate to avoid trouble, to hope that compliance will buy safety. Well, it won’t,” Carney said.Carney also added that Canada opposes tariffs over Greenland. Trump’s speech is expected to focus largely on housing, and following his address, he will meet with leaders at the forum, according to the White House.Home sales in the U.S. are at a 30-year low with rising prices. Reports show elevated mortgage rates are keeping prospective home buyers out of the market. Rent, for several years, has been the largest contributor to inflation.This comes as Trump announced his plan to buy $200 billion in mortgage securities to help lower interest rates on home loans. He’s also called for a ban on large financial companies buying houses. Keep watching for the latest from the Washington News Bureau:s

    WASHINGTON —

    President Donald Trump will deliver a speech today at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, focusing on a plan to make housing more affordable, while his comments about acquiring Greenland continue to stir tensions with European allies.

    “This will be an interesting trip. I have no idea what’s going to happen, but you are well represented,” Trump told reporters before departing the White House for Switzerland.

    The speech comes shortly after he threatened to impose tariffs on Denmark and seven other allies due to their opposition to his interest in acquiring Greenland.

    Trump announced that the tariffs would start at 10% next month and increase to 25% by June.

    The tensions over the U.S. interest in the Danish territory have already affected Wall Street, with stocks rattled on Tuesday.

    In Davos, Canada’s Prime Minister Mark Carney warned global leaders that the world is “facing a rupture,” emphasizing the risks of countries trying to avoid conflict by compliance.

    “There is a strong tendency for countries to go along to get along, to accommodate to avoid trouble, to hope that compliance will buy safety. Well, it won’t,” Carney said.

    Carney also added that Canada opposes tariffs over Greenland.

    Trump’s speech is expected to focus largely on housing, and following his address, he will meet with leaders at the forum, according to the White House.

    Home sales in the U.S. are at a 30-year low with rising prices. Reports show elevated mortgage rates are keeping prospective home buyers out of the market. Rent, for several years, has been the largest contributor to inflation.

    This comes as Trump announced his plan to buy $200 billion in mortgage securities to help lower interest rates on home loans. He’s also called for a ban on large financial companies buying houses.

    Keep watching for the latest from the Washington News Bureau:

    s

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  • Supreme Court releases three unanimous opinions, does not rule on tariffs yet

    The Supreme Court released three unanimous opinions on Tuesday, but has yet to release one on a case about President Trump’s tariffs. CBS News legal contributor Jessica Levinson has more details.

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  • Trump takes on angry European leaders over Greenland with memes and published text messages

    President Trump will face shocked European leaders in Davos, Switzerland, as he remains defiant in his stance on Greenland. CBS News’ Holly Williams reports.

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  • 1/19: The Takeout with Major Garrett


    1/19: The Takeout with Major Garrett – CBS News









































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    Minneapolis ICE protests continue in face of Trump’s Insurrection Act threat; Indiana and Miami students reflect on lead-up to football championship.

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  • U.S. Steel CEO says Trump’s “golden share” won’t stop company from “doing what we want to do”

    Nippon Steel’s acquisition of U.S. Steel came with an unusual provision, a so-called “golden share” that gives President Trump the power to approve some major corporate decisions. U.S. Steel CEO David Burritt talked to “CBS Evening News” anchor Tony Dokoupil about that golden share and the future of the company.

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  • Trump ties his stance on Greenland to not getting Nobel Peace Prize, European officials say

    President Donald Trump linked his aggressive stance on Greenland to last year’s decision not to award him the Nobel Peace Prize, telling Norway’s prime minister that he no longer felt “an obligation to think purely of Peace,” two European officials said Monday.Trump’s message to Jonas Gahr Støre appears to ratchet up a standoff between Washington and its closest allies over his threats to take over Greenland, a self-governing territory of NATO member Denmark. On Saturday, Trump announced a 10% import tax starting in February on goods from eight nations that have rallied around Denmark and Greenland, including Norway.Those countries issued a forceful rebuke. But British Prime Minister Keir Starmer sought to de-escalate tensions on Monday. While the White House has not ruled taking control of the strategic Arctic island by force, Starmer said he did not believe military action would occur.”I think this can be resolved and should be resolved through calm discussion,” he said.Still, the American leader’s message to Gahr Støre could further fracture a U.S.-European relationship already strained by differences over how to end the nearly four-year war in Ukraine, previous rounds of tariffs, military spending and migration policy.In a sign of how tensions have increased in recent days, thousands of Greenlanders marched over the weekend in protest of any effort to take over their island. Greenland Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen said in a Facebook post Monday that the tariff threats would not change their stance.“We will not be pressured,” he wrote.Meanwhile, Naaja Nathanielsen, Greenland’s minister for business, minerals, energy, justice and equality, told The Associated Press that she was moved by the quick response of allies to the tariff threat and said it showed that countries realize “this is about more than Greenland.”“I think a lot of countries are afraid that if they let Greenland go, what would be next?”Trump sends a message to the Norwegian leaderAccording to two European officials, Trump’s message to Gahr Støre read in part: “Considering your Country decided not to give me the Nobel Peace Prize for having stopped 8 Wars PLUS, I no longer feel an obligation to think purely of Peace, although it will always be predominant, but can now think about what is good and proper for the United States of America.”It concluded: “The World is not secure unless we have Complete and Total Control of Greenland.”The officials, who were not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity, said it had been forwarded to multiple European ambassadors in Washington. PBS first reported on the content of Trump’s note.U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent defended the president’s approach in Greenland during a brief Q&A with reporters in Davos, Switzerland, which is hosting the World Economic Forum meeting this week.“I think it’s a complete canard that the president would be doing this because of the Nobel,” Bessent said, immediately after saying he did not “know anything about the president’s letter to Norway.”Bessent insisted Trump “is looking at Greenland as a strategic asset for the United States,” adding that “we are not going to outsource our hemispheric security to anyone else.”The White House did not respond to questions about the message or the context for Trump sending it.Gahr Støre confirmed Monday that he had received a text message the day before from Trump but did not release its contents.The Norwegian leader said Trump’s message was a reply to an earlier missive sent on behalf of himself and Finnish President Alexander Stubb, in which they conveyed their opposition to the tariff announcement, pointed to a need to de-escalate, and proposed a telephone conversation among the three leaders.“Norway’s position on Greenland is clear. Greenland is a part of the Kingdom of Denmark, and Norway fully supports the Kingdom of Denmark on this matter,” the Norwegian leader said in a statement. “As regards the Nobel Peace Prize, I have clearly explained, including to President Trump what is well known, the prize is awarded by an independent Nobel Committee and not the Norwegian Government.”He told TV2 Norway that he hadn’t responded to the message, but “I still believe it’s wise to talk,” and he hopes to talk with Trump in Davos this week.The Norwegian Nobel Committee is an independent body whose five members are appointed by the Norwegian Parliament.Trump has openly coveted the peace prize, which the committee awarded to Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado last year. Last week, Machado presented her Nobel medal to Trump, who said he planned to keep it though the committee said the prize can’t be revoked, transferred or shared with others.Starmer says a trade war is in no one’s interestIn his latest threat of tariffs, Trump indicated they would be retaliation for last week’s deployment of symbolic numbers of troops from the European countries to Greenland — though he also suggested that he was using the tariffs as leverage to negotiate with Denmark.European governments said that the troops traveled to the island to assess Arctic security, part of a response to Trump’s own concerns about interference from Russia and China.Starmer on Monday called Trump’s threat of tariffs “completely wrong” and said that a trade war is in no one’s interest.He added that “being pragmatic does not mean being passive and partnership does not mean abandoning principles.”Six of the eight countries targeted are part of the 27-member European Union, which operates as a single economic zone in terms of trade. European Council President Antonio Costa said Sunday that the bloc’s leaders expressed “readiness to defend ourselves against any form of coercion.” He announced a summit for Thursday evening.Starmer indicated that Britain, which is not part of the EU, is not planning to consider retaliatory tariffs.“My focus is on making sure we don’t get to that stage,” he said.Denmark’s defense minister and Greenland’s foreign minister are expected to meet NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte in Brussels on Monday, a meeting that was planned before the latest escalation.___Associated Press writers Josh Boak in West Palm Beach, Florida; Emma Burrows in Nuuk, Greenland; and Bill Barrow in Atlanta contributed to this report.

    President Donald Trump linked his aggressive stance on Greenland to last year’s decision not to award him the Nobel Peace Prize, telling Norway’s prime minister that he no longer felt “an obligation to think purely of Peace,” two European officials said Monday.

    Trump’s message to Jonas Gahr Støre appears to ratchet up a standoff between Washington and its closest allies over his threats to take over Greenland, a self-governing territory of NATO member Denmark. On Saturday, Trump announced a 10% import tax starting in February on goods from eight nations that have rallied around Denmark and Greenland, including Norway.

    Those countries issued a forceful rebuke. But British Prime Minister Keir Starmer sought to de-escalate tensions on Monday. While the White House has not ruled taking control of the strategic Arctic island by force, Starmer said he did not believe military action would occur.

    “I think this can be resolved and should be resolved through calm discussion,” he said.

    Still, the American leader’s message to Gahr Støre could further fracture a U.S.-European relationship already strained by differences over how to end the nearly four-year war in Ukraine, previous rounds of tariffs, military spending and migration policy.

    In a sign of how tensions have increased in recent days, thousands of Greenlanders marched over the weekend in protest of any effort to take over their island. Greenland Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen said in a Facebook post Monday that the tariff threats would not change their stance.

    “We will not be pressured,” he wrote.

    Meanwhile, Naaja Nathanielsen, Greenland’s minister for business, minerals, energy, justice and equality, told The Associated Press that she was moved by the quick response of allies to the tariff threat and said it showed that countries realize “this is about more than Greenland.”

    “I think a lot of countries are afraid that if they let Greenland go, what would be next?”

    Trump sends a message to the Norwegian leader

    According to two European officials, Trump’s message to Gahr Støre read in part: “Considering your Country decided not to give me the Nobel Peace Prize for having stopped 8 Wars PLUS, I no longer feel an obligation to think purely of Peace, although it will always be predominant, but can now think about what is good and proper for the United States of America.”

    It concluded: “The World is not secure unless we have Complete and Total Control of Greenland.”

    The officials, who were not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity, said it had been forwarded to multiple European ambassadors in Washington. PBS first reported on the content of Trump’s note.

    U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent defended the president’s approach in Greenland during a brief Q&A with reporters in Davos, Switzerland, which is hosting the World Economic Forum meeting this week.

    “I think it’s a complete canard that the president would be doing this because of the Nobel,” Bessent said, immediately after saying he did not “know anything about the president’s letter to Norway.”

    Bessent insisted Trump “is looking at Greenland as a strategic asset for the United States,” adding that “we are not going to outsource our hemispheric security to anyone else.”

    The White House did not respond to questions about the message or the context for Trump sending it.

    Gahr Støre confirmed Monday that he had received a text message the day before from Trump but did not release its contents.

    The Norwegian leader said Trump’s message was a reply to an earlier missive sent on behalf of himself and Finnish President Alexander Stubb, in which they conveyed their opposition to the tariff announcement, pointed to a need to de-escalate, and proposed a telephone conversation among the three leaders.

    “Norway’s position on Greenland is clear. Greenland is a part of the Kingdom of Denmark, and Norway fully supports the Kingdom of Denmark on this matter,” the Norwegian leader said in a statement. “As regards the Nobel Peace Prize, I have clearly explained, including to President Trump what is well known, the prize is awarded by an independent Nobel Committee and not the Norwegian Government.”

    He told TV2 Norway that he hadn’t responded to the message, but “I still believe it’s wise to talk,” and he hopes to talk with Trump in Davos this week.

    The Norwegian Nobel Committee is an independent body whose five members are appointed by the Norwegian Parliament.

    Trump has openly coveted the peace prize, which the committee awarded to Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado last year. Last week, Machado presented her Nobel medal to Trump, who said he planned to keep it though the committee said the prize can’t be revoked, transferred or shared with others.

    Starmer says a trade war is in no one’s interest

    In his latest threat of tariffs, Trump indicated they would be retaliation for last week’s deployment of symbolic numbers of troops from the European countries to Greenland — though he also suggested that he was using the tariffs as leverage to negotiate with Denmark.

    European governments said that the troops traveled to the island to assess Arctic security, part of a response to Trump’s own concerns about interference from Russia and China.

    Starmer on Monday called Trump’s threat of tariffs “completely wrong” and said that a trade war is in no one’s interest.

    He added that “being pragmatic does not mean being passive and partnership does not mean abandoning principles.”

    Six of the eight countries targeted are part of the 27-member European Union, which operates as a single economic zone in terms of trade. European Council President Antonio Costa said Sunday that the bloc’s leaders expressed “readiness to defend ourselves against any form of coercion.” He announced a summit for Thursday evening.

    Starmer indicated that Britain, which is not part of the EU, is not planning to consider retaliatory tariffs.

    “My focus is on making sure we don’t get to that stage,” he said.

    Denmark’s defense minister and Greenland’s foreign minister are expected to meet NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte in Brussels on Monday, a meeting that was planned before the latest escalation.

    ___

    Associated Press writers Josh Boak in West Palm Beach, Florida; Emma Burrows in Nuuk, Greenland; and Bill Barrow in Atlanta contributed to this report.

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  • Global shock and panic over Trump’s threats on Greenland


    Global shock and panic over Trump’s threats on Greenland – CBS News









































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    NATO allies are reacting to President Trump’s threats of tariffs against nations that oppose his mission to take over Greenland. CBS News’ Willie James Inman and Holly Williams report.

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  • EU Warns of Downward Spiral After Trump Threatens Tariffs Over Greenland

    BRUSSELS, Jan 17 (Reuters) – European ‌Union ​leaders on Saturday ‌warned of a “dangerous downward spiral” over ​U.S. President Donald Trump’s vow to implement increasing ‍tariffs on European allies ​until the U.S. is allowed to ​buy ⁠Greenland.

    “Tariffs would undermine transatlantic relations and risk a dangerous downward spiral. Europe will remain united, coordinated, and committed to upholding its sovereignty,” European Commission ‌President Ursula von der Leyen and EU Council President ​Antonio Costa ‌said in posts ‍on ⁠X.

    The bloc’s top diplomat Kaja Kallas said tariffs would hurt prosperity on both sides of the Atlantic, while distracting the EU from its “core task” of ending Russia’s war in Ukraine.

    “China and Russia ​must be having a field day. They are the ones who benefit from divisions among allies,” Kallas said on X.

    “Tariffs risk making Europe and the United States poorer and undermine our shared prosperity. If Greenland’s security is at risk, we can address this inside NATO.”

    Ambassadors from the European Union’s ​27 countries will convene on Sunday for an emergency meeting to discuss their response to the tariff threat.

    (Reporting by Bart Meijer ​and Phil Blenkinsop, Editing by Mark Potter and Chris Reese)

    Copyright 2026 Thomson Reuters.

    Photos You Should See – January 2026

    Reuters

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  • Canada agrees to cut tariff on Chinese electric vehicles in break with the U.S.

    Breaking with the United States, Canada has agreed to cut its 100% tariff on Chinese electric cars in return for lower tariffs on Canadian farm products, Prime Minister Mark Carney said Friday.

    Carney made the announcement after two days of meetings with Chinese leaders. He said there would be an initial annual cap of 49,000 vehicles on Chinese EV exports to Canada, growing to about 70,000 over five years. China will reduce its total tariff on canola seeds, a major Canadian export, from 84% to about 15%, he told reporters.

    Carney said China has become a more predictable partner to deal with than the U.S., the country’s neighbor and longtime ally.

    “Our relationship has progressed in recent months with China. It is more predictable and you see results coming from that,” Carney said.

    Carney hasn’t been able to reach a deal with President Trump to reduce some tariffs that are punishing some key sectors of the Canadian economy and Mr. Trump has previously talked about making Canada the 51st state.

    The prime minister, speaking outside against the backdrop of a traditional pavilion and a frozen pond at a Beijing park, said meetings in China have been historic and productive.

    Earlier Friday, he and Chinese leader Xi Jinping pledged to improve relations between their two nations after years of acrimony.

    Xi told Carney in a meeting at the Great Hall of the People that he is willing to continue working to improve ties, noting that talks have been underway on restoring and restarting cooperation since the two held an initial meeting in October on the sidelines of a regional economic conference in South Korea.

    “It can be said that our meeting last year opened a new chapter in turning China-Canada relations toward improvement,” China’s top leader said.

    Chinese President Xi Jinping meets with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, Jan. 16, 2026.

    Xie Huanchi/Xinhua via Getty Images


    Carney looks to improve global governance

    Carney, the first Canadian prime minister to visit China in eight years, told Xi that better relations would help improve a global governance system that he described as “under great strain.”

    Later, he said at the news conference that the system may give way at least in part to country-to-country or regional agreements rather than the global ones that have underpinned economic growth in the post-World War II era.

    “The question is: What gets built in that place? How much of a patchwork is it?” he said.

    The new reality reflects in large part the so-called America-first approach of Mr. Trump. The tariffs he has imposed have hit both the Canadian and Chinese economies. Carney, who has met with several leading Chinese companies in Beijing, said ahead of his trip that his government is focused on building an economy less reliant on the U.S. at what he called “a time of global trade disruption.”

    A Canadian business owner in China called Carney’s visit game-changing, saying it re-establishes dialogue, respect and a framework between the two nations.

    “These three things we didn’t have,” said Jacob Cooke, the CEO of WPIC Marketing + Technologies, which helps exporters navigate the Chinese market. “The parties were not talking for years.”

    Canada had been aligned with U.S. on tariffs

    Canada had followed the U.S. in putting tariffs of 100% on EVs from China and 25% on steel and aluminum under former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Carney’s predecessor.

    China responded by imposing duties of 100% on Canadian canola oil and meal and 25% on pork and seafood. It added a 75.8% tariff on canola seeds last August. Collectively, the import taxes effectively closed the Chinese market to Canadian canola, an industry group has said. Overall, China’s imports from Canada fell 10.4% last year to $41.7 billion, according to Chinese trade data.

    Carney tried to address the concerns of Canadian automakers and autoworkers by saying the initial cap on Chinese EV imports was about 3% of the 1.8 million vehicles sold in Canada annually and that, in exchange, China is expected to begin investing in the Canadian auto industry within three years.

    More than half of the Chinese EVs exported to Canada would have an import price of less than 35,000 Canadian dollars ($25,000) within five years, he said, making them accessible to consumers.

    “We’re building (a) new part of our car industry, building cars of the future in partnership, bringing affordable autos for Canadians at a time when affordability is top of mind, and doing it at a scale that allows for a smooth transition in the sector,” he said.

    “For the exchange of a small piece of the Canadian market, we have a commitment. We are waiting for an investment commitment in Canada. The real leaders of the new industry. So it’s an agreement that will create the future for our industry.”

    China sees an opening under Trump

    China is hoping Mr. Trump’s pressure tactics on allies such as Canada will drive them to pursue a foreign policy that is less aligned with the United States.

    Carney, though, noted Canada’s relationship with the U.S. is much more multifaceted, deeper and broader. Canada and China have different systems and disagree on issues such as human rights, he said, limiting the scope of their engagement even as they seek ways to cooperate on areas of common interest.

    The Canadian leader leaves China on Saturday and visits Qatar on Sunday before attending the annual gathering of the World Economic Forum in Switzerland next week. He will meet business leaders and investors in Qatar to promote trade and investment, his office said.

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  • General Motors CEO Mary Barra on adjusting to

    As General Motors settles into its new Detroit headquarters, the automotive industry is facing challenging times as it contends with rising costs, shifting tariff policies and a fledgling electric vehicle market. GM CEO Mary Barra tells CBS News that, despite those challenges, “I think we’re on a good path” and she is optimistic about the future of her company and the U.S. economy.

    The market for electric vehicles hasn’t quite taken off in the U.S. just yet. Barra told “CBS Evening News” anchor Tony Dokoupil Tuesday that GM is “still committed” to EVs, but thinks a major issue is that the industry was “getting a little ahead of the consumer.” 

    “A vehicle is such a big purchase for a consumer,” she said. “For many of them, it’s the most expensive thing that they buy.” 

    “I think we’re on a good path. I think as there’s more charging infrastructure, as we continue to get the cost of batteries down, I think consumers will pick an electric vehicle, because they’re better,” Barra predicted.

    Asked why the U.S. seems to be unable to compete with China in terms of making affordable electric vehicles, Barra said, “I believe at GM we are.”

    She said U.S. safety standards and other regulatory requirements are higher than they are in China and that China’s auto industry is “heavily subsidized.” 

    “I think we can compete and have a better vehicle, and I think we’re doing that,” she said.

    But the cost of a new vehicle has continued to rise in recent years, and the Trump administration’s aggressive tariff policy has also added to that, Barra said.

    “It had a few-billion-dollar impact last year,” she said of those tariffs. But, she noted, it led to GM making changes, including bringing more production to the U.S., and praised the administration for making “the playing field…a bit more level” for U.S. manufacturers.

    “We worked with the administration and they took the time to understand our industry to make sure there wasn’t unintended consequences so that we could still compete with some of the vehicles coming from other countries,” Barra said. “I think it was a shift that we’re working through to get back. But I think ’26 will be an even better year than ’25, and I think the playing field is a bit more level than it was just, you know, 18 months ago.”

    But consumer sentiment in the U.S. remains pessimistic, polling has shown, and the auto industry is often seen as a bellwether for the larger economy. Barra, however, said of a shaky year for GM and the economy, “we really aren’t seeing it. 

    “We think the market’s gonna be about the same as it was last year,” she told CBS News.

    Barra touted the “tremendous number of vehicles” that GM makes in the U.S., and when asked what it truly means for something to be “American-made” — considering many of the parts are often sourced from overseas — she said “it starts with where the vehicle is designed. Where all the engineering is done.”

    Barra also said more than half of GM’s vehicles are assembled in the U.S. and that a majority of the components are sourced from America. She also said GM is continuing its efforts to fill job positions in the U.S.

    “One of the things we do is we work with the military, and as people are ending their service to our country, putting them in a training program so they can then work in our dealerships,” Barra said. She also said GM has a “very robust apprenticeship program” for its factory workers. 

    Asked about concerns workers may have about automation, Barry said GM has been using robotic assistance to help build its vehicles for decades. 

    “We focus on jobs that are either repetitive and maybe have ergonomic issues, so people get hurt doing them, so we focus on safety and we focus on ergonomics,” Barra said. “We also focus on, there’s certain jobs that people don’t want to do. We focus on that, and we look at how do we make each of our team members more efficient.”

    She also noted there are some instances in which “the precision of the job requires automation.”

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