China says ‘market has spoken’ after US tariffs spark selloff
BEIJING – China said on Saturday “the market has spoken” in rejecting U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs, and called on Washington for “equal-footed consultation” after global markets’ dramatic reaction to the trade levies, which drew Chinese retaliation. Several Chinese commerce…
Italy says counter-tariffs would be wrong response to U.S. tariffs
CERNOBBIO, Italy – Italian Economy Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti warned on Saturday against the imposition of retaliatory tariffs on the United States in response to U.S President Donald Trump’s announcement of sweeping tariffs on trade partners. Speaking at a business forum…
Trump administration drops Biden’s proposal of Medicare weight-loss drug coverage
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services said on Friday it did not move forward with a proposal put forth by the Biden administration for Medicare coverage of weight-loss drugs such as Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy. U.S.-listed shares of Novo fell…
Rite Aid weighs repeat bankruptcy filing, WSJ reports
U.S. pharmacy chain Rite Aid is weighing a possible repeat bankruptcy after its recent financial restructuring failed to put the drugstore chain on a sustainable path, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday. The company has also been pursuing a…
Walmart denies ABC News report it could join investor group to buy TikTok
Walmart on Friday denied a report from ABC News that it was considering joining a group of investors to buy short video app TikTok. Earlier on Friday, ABC News reporter Selina Wang said in a post on X that the…
Musk and OpenAI jury trial to begin in spring next year
OAKLAND – Billionaire Elon Musk’s lawsuit against OpenAI will go to a jury trial in spring 2026, the federal judge presiding over the case decided on Friday. Last month, OpenAI and Musk agreed to fast-track a trial over OpenAI’s for-profit…
US Energy Dept identifies thousands of staff at risk of DOGE cuts, AP reports
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Energy Department has identified thousands of staffers it has deemed as non-essential, including at its office that manages the country’s nuclear weapons arsenal, who would not be protected in a second round of cuts, an Associated…
Emerging economies brace for Trump tariff ‘turning point’
SINGAPORE/LONDON -Emerging economies worldwide are bracing for sliding currencies and a possible deterioration of their sovereign credit after U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs brought levies on U.S. imports to their highest levels in 100 years. The worse-than-expected tariff blitz hits…
Market warning lights flash amber after Trump tariff shock
LONDON -Global markets have been sucked into a downdraft after U.S. President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs, setting investors’ go-to warning lights flickering but not yet flashing red. S&P 500 companies have shed $5 trillion in stock market value, an all-time…
Protesters rally across Spain against housing crisis, tourist flats
MADRID – Hundreds of thousands marched across 40 Spanish cities on Saturday to protest against soaring rents and a lack of affordable homes in a country that enjoys Europe’s fastest economic growth and yet suffers from a severe housing shortage…
US Supreme Court backs Trump on teacher training grant cuts
The U.S. Supreme Court allowed President Donald Trump’s administration to proceed with millions of dollars of cuts to teacher training grants – part of his crackdown on diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives – in a setback on Friday to eight…
Fed’s Powell says larger-than-expected tariffs likely to boost inflation, slow growth
WASHINGTON -President Donald Trump’s new tariffs are “larger than expected,” and the economic fallout including higher inflation and slower growth likely will be as well, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said on Friday, while cautioning it was still too soon…
Exclusive-SpaceX, ULA expected to clinch multibillion-dollar contract in key Pentagon launch program
WASHINGTON -Elon Musk’s SpaceX and United Launch Alliance are expected to each win a U.S. Space Force rocket launch contract on Friday worth billions of dollars to send some of the Pentagon’s most sensitive satellites into space over the next…
Shell-shocked markets brace for more tariff tumult
NEW YORK -Tariff-stunned markets face another week of potential tariff turmoil, with fallout from President Donald Trump’s sweeping import levies keeping investors on edge after the worst week for U.S. stocks since the onset of the coronavirus crisis five years…
Oil sinks to pandemic lows; metals, soybeans slump as China retaliates
LONDON/CHICAGO -Oil prices plunged nearly 8% on Friday to the lowest level since 2021, while copper, soybeans and other commodities also fell as China retaliated against U.S. President Donald Trump’s aggressive tariffs. Safe-haven gold was down for a second day,…
TikTok deal put on hold after China indicated it would reject deal over tariffs, say sources
A deal to spin off the U.S. assets of TikTok was put on hold after China indicated that it would not approve the deal following President Donald Trump’s reciprocal tariffs announcement, according to two sources familiar with the matter. The…
Nasdaq confirms it is in bear market, ending more than 20% below record close
The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite index confirmed on Friday that it is in a bear market, as it has fallen 22.7% from its Dec. 16 record close, as investors fled riskier assets on fears that tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump…
Family of Venezuelan singer jailed in El Salvador call for due process
CARACAS – Friends and relatives of Venezuelans deported from the U.S. to a maximum security prison in El Salvador have painted their loved ones’ faces in colorful murals on a Caracas street, calling for due process after the U.S. accused…
North Carolina judges open door to tossing 60,000 ballots in high court race
A North Carolina appeals court on Friday sided with a Republican candidate for a seat on the state’s top court who is contesting the results of November’s election by finding that thousands of the ballots cast should not be counted…
U.S. Peace Corps says Musk’s cost-cutting team has arrived at its HQ
Members of Elon Musk’s cost-cutting team arrived at Peace Corps headquarters in Washington, the agency told Reuters, a signal it could become the latest U.S. government unit to face job cuts. “Staff from the Department of Government Efficiency are currently…
TSX confirms correction as it posts biggest decline since March 2020
Canada’s commodity-linked main stock index ended more than 10% below its January 30 record closing high on Friday, confirming a correction, as China’s move to retaliate against U.S. trade tariffs spooked investors globally. The Toronto Stock Exchange’s S&P/TSX composite index…
Tufts student’s immigration arrest case moved to Vermont, not Louisiana, by US judge
The Trump administration on Friday lost a bid to throw out or move to Louisiana a Tufts University student’s legal challenge to her immigration arrest, which sparked protests against the president’s efforts to deport pro-Palestinian activists on American campuses. U.S….
Venezuelan released from ICE detention to donate kidney to ailing brother
CHICAGO – A Venezuelan man was released from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention after one month so that he could reunite on Friday with his ailing brother who needs his kidney donation to save his life. Jose Gregorio…
Mexico reports first human case of H5N1 bird flu
MEXICO CITY – Mexico has detected its first human case of H5N1 avian influenza, also known as bird flu, the health ministry said on Friday. The infection was confirmed on Tuesday in a three-year-old girl living in the northern state…
Judge orders Trump administration to return deported Maryland man to US
A U.S. judge ruled on Friday that the Trump administration must return a Maryland man who was wrongly deported to El Salvador last month back to the United States within three days. U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis in Greenbelt, Maryland,…
China retaliation on US farm goods hits soybeans, bolstering Brazil
BEIJING/SINGAPORE -China’s retaliation on Friday against new U.S. tariffs is poised to accelerate Beijing’s move towards alternative suppliers for agricultural goods including Brazil, a shift that began during the trade war of U.S. President Donald Trump’s first term. Beijing unveiled…
US IRS to cut 25% of its employees, Washington Post reports
The U.S. Internal Revenue Service plans to cut nearly 25% of its workforce in layoffs affecting roughly 20,000 jobs, the Washington Post reported on Friday, citing records and people familiar with the plans. The cuts began on Friday, with the…
Retail investors buy stocks at largest level in 10 years, JPMorgan says
NEW YORK – Retail investors bought $4.7 billion in stocks on Thursday, the highest level over the past decade, JPMorgan said in a note on Friday. The historic “buy-to-dip” move by retail investors included names such as Nvidia, Amazon and…
US junk bond spreads surge to 17-month high on trade war fears
NEW YORK -U.S. high-yield corporate bond spreads surged to 401 basis points as of late Thursday, their highest since November 2023, as global markets swooned over fears that U.S. President Donald Trump’s plan for import tariffs would kick off a…
Trump extends TikTok sale deadline by 75 days, vows to work with China
WASHINGTON -President Donald Trump on Friday extended by 75 days a deadline for Chinese technology company ByteDance to sell U.S. assets of popular short video app TikTok to a non-Chinese buyer or face a ban that was supposed to have…