President Donald Trump stepped back—slightly. On Tuesday, he signed a new order softening his auto tariffs just days before fresh 25% duties were set to hit imported car parts.
The move offers temporary relief. U.S. carmakers will be able to claim credits worth up to 15% of the value of vehicles assembled domestically, using them to offset import costs. It’s a narrow path to stability in an industry still caught in a whirlwind.
The White House framed it as a measure of support. “We didn’t want to penalise them,” Trump said before heading to Michigan, home of the U.S. auto legacy. But behind the words lies a deeper tension—between protectionist ambition and economic disruption.
Auto firms had been lobbying hard. The tariffs threatened a production model that spans borders—integrating U.S., Mexican, and Canadian supply chains. General Motors, facing the uncertainty head-on, withdrew its annual forecast and delayed its investor call.
Others followed. UPS announced 20,000 job cuts. Electrolux and Kraft Heinz warned that chaotic trade policies are making long-term planning almost impossible. In total, more than 40 companies have adjusted their earnings guidance in just two weeks.
Markets, for now, responded with optimism. A vague signal from Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick—claiming a deal with a foreign partner, pending local approval—helped lift stocks. The S&P 500 closed higher for a sixth straight session.
But the fundamentals are softening. U.S. GDP is expected to have grown by just 0.3% in the first quarter, dragged down by import surges and consumer stockpiling. Trump’s 90-day pause on broader tariffs has done little to calm broader fears.
His administration hopes to finalise 90 trade deals in the same 90 days. But for most businesses, the clock is ticking louder than the promises.
“Every single prediction has been proved wrong,” said Electrolux CEO Yannick Fierling. At this point, markets aren’t asking for precision—they’re asking for clarity.
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Scientists have sequenced the full genome of a man buried in pharaonic Egypt over 4,500 years ago, revealing that about 20% of his ancestry came from Mesopotamia, in a rare discovery linking the two early civilisations.
A federal judge has halted President Donald Trump’s controversial asylum ban at the US-Mexico border, ruling that the move oversteps his executive powers. The decision marks a major legal setback for Trump’s immigration policies and upholds protections for migrants seeking refuge.
Vietnam is set to confirm the purchase of 50 Boeing planes worth $8 billion, alongside agreements to import $2.9 billion in US agricultural products, as part of a wider trade deal. The announcement follows high-level talks between US and Vietnamese officials, signalling strengthened economic ties be
Conservative Romanian MEP Gheorghe Piperea, who submitted the motion, believes the vote is likely to fail but says it sends a powerful symbolic message within the European Union.
The U.S. economy faces a 40% risk of recession in the second half of 2025, JP Morgan analysts said on Wednesday, citing rising tariffs and stagflation concerns.
A magnitude 5.5 earthquake struck off Japan’s Tokara Islands on Wednesday, with no tsunami warning issued but residents advised to remain vigilant.
China has ramped up efforts to protect communities impacted by flood control measures, introducing stronger compensation policies and direct aid from the central government.
The European Commission is set to propose allowing carbon credits from other countries to count towards the EU’s 2040 climate target, according to a leaked internal document.
Severe rain in Venezuela has caused rivers to overflow and triggered landslides, sweeping away homes and collapsing a highway bridge, with five states affected and no casualties reported so far.
The Pentagon says U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear sites have degraded Tehran’s programme by as much as two years, following attacks last month that used heavy bunker-buster bombs.
A CIA review has identified procedural flaws in a 2016 assessment that Russia sought to help Donald Trump win the U.S. presidency, but it did not challenge the core conclusion that President Vladimir Putin directed the influence campaign.
Scientists have sequenced the full genome of a man buried in pharaonic Egypt over 4,500 years ago, revealing that about 20% of his ancestry came from Mesopotamia, in a rare discovery linking the two early civilisations.
A federal judge has halted President Donald Trump’s controversial asylum ban at the US-Mexico border, ruling that the move oversteps his executive powers. The decision marks a major legal setback for Trump’s immigration policies and upholds protections for migrants seeking refuge.
Vietnam is set to confirm the purchase of 50 Boeing planes worth $8 billion, alongside agreements to import $2.9 billion in US agricultural products, as part of a wider trade deal. The announcement follows high-level talks between US and Vietnamese officials, signalling strengthened economic ties be
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