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The latest outbreak of bird flu is wiping out chicken flocks and driving higher prices for eggs in the United States. While retailers and consumers are feeling the pinch, but at least one small farmer sees an opportunity – if he can get his hands on some healthy chickens. VOA’s Veronica Balderas Iglesias reports.
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U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping are set soon to hold a high-stakes phone call on the tit-for-tat tariffs each has imposed on the other country’s exports.

Trump’s new 10% tariff on Chinese goods took effect at midnight Monday, with China quickly announcing it would impose 15% tariffs on U.S. coal and liquified natural gas, as well as 10% tariffs on crude oil, agricultural machinery and some automobiles.

Trump on Monday retreated for a month from imposing 25% tariffs on most exports from the United States’ other top-three trading partners, Mexico and Canada. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau agreed to increase efforts to curb the flow of fentanyl, the deadly opioid that has killed several hundred thousand Americans over recent years.

Trump said he imposed the tariff on Chinese exports to pressure China to take action to prevent fentanyl smuggling into the U.S., which identified China as a major source of the precursor chemicals used by Mexican drug cartels to manufacture fentanyl.

China said it has taken steps to crack down on the industry and other illicit drug trade.

“China hopefully is going to stop sending us fentanyl, and if they’re not, the tariffs are going to go substantially higher,” Trump said.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Trump’s call with Xi “is being scheduled and will happen very soon.”

The U.S. and China, the world’s two biggest economies, engaged in an escalating trade war in 2018 during Trump’s first term in office when he repeatedly raised tariffs on Chinese goods, and Beijing responded each time.

This time, China is much better prepared, analysts say. The country announced numerous measures that go beyond tariffs and cut across different sectors of the U.S. economy. China is also more wary of upsetting its own fragile and heavily trade-dependent economy.

China’s tariffs and other moves

China’s State Council Tariff Commission said in a statement announcing its levy on U.S. products, “The U.S.’s unilateral tariff increase seriously violates the rules of the World Trade Organization. It is not only unhelpful in solving its own problems, but also damages normal economic and trade cooperation between China and the U.S.”

But the impact on U.S. exports could be limited. Although the U.S. worldwide is the biggest exporter of liquid natural gas, it does not export much to China. In 2023, the U.S. exported 173,247 million cubic feet of LNG to China, about 2.3% of its total natural gas exports, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

China imported fewer than 110,000 vehicles from the U.S. last year, although auto market analyst Lei Xing told The Associated Press that the tariffs could be painful for General Motors, which is adding the Chevrolet Tahoe and GMC Yukon to its China lineup, and for Ford, which exports the Mustang and F-150 Raptor pickup.

In addition to the tariff hike, China announced export controls on several elements critical to the production of modern high-tech products.

They include tungsten, tellurium, bismuth, molybdenum and indium, many of which are designated as critical minerals by the U.S. Geological Survey, meaning they are essential to U.S. economic or national security that have supply chains vulnerable to disruption. The export controls are in addition to ones China placed in December on such key elements as gallium.

The Commerce Ministry also placed two American companies on an unreliable entities list: PVH Group, which owns clothing companies Calvin Klein and Tommy Hilfiger, and Illumina, which is a biotechnology company with offices in China.

The listing could bar them from engaging in China-related import or export activities and from making new investments in the country. The ministry said its investigations show the two U.S. companies have “disrupted normal business with Chinese companies, taken discriminatory measures against Chinese companies and severely harmed the legitimate rights of Chinese companies.”

Beijing began investigating PVH Group in September 2024 over what it described as “improper Xinjiang-related behavior” after the company allegedly boycotted the use of Xinjiang cotton.

Illumina competes with the Chinese biotech firm BGI in gene-sequencing.

In a statement, Illumina said it complies with regulations wherever it operates.

“We are assessing this announcement with the goal of finding a positive resolution,” the company said.

Mexico and Canada tariffs

On Monday, Sheinbaum said she would dispatch 10,000 National Guard troops to the U.S.-Mexico border to try to curb the flow of drugs into the United States. 

“Mexico will reinforce the northern border … to stop drug trafficking from Mexico to the United States, in particular fentanyl,” she posted on X after talking with Trump. “The United States commits to work to stop the trafficking of high-powered weapons to Mexico.”

Trudeau said Canada would deploy new technology and personnel along its southern border with the United States to stop the flow of fentanyl.

“I just had a good call with President Trump,” Trudeau said on X. “Proposed tariffs will be paused for at least 30 days while we work together.”

Effects on US consumers

Trump acknowledged Sunday that the new tariffs on the three biggest U.S. trading partners could hit inflation-weary Americans with higher prices for groceries, gasoline, cars and other consumer goods but said the higher tariffs would be “worth the price” to bolster U.S. interests.

U.S. consumers could face higher prices because companies that pay the tariffs to the federal government to import goods from other countries often pass on at least part, if not all, of their higher costs to consumers, rather than absorb the extra expenses themselves.

Some material in this report came from The Associated Press, Agence France-Presse and Reuters.
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Gaborone, Botswana — The government of Botswana and South African diamond firm De Beers say they have reached a new, 10-year sales agreement following talks that had dragged on since 2019. Analysts say the diamond industry is sure to welcome the deal, as Botswana, after Russia, is the world’s second-largest producer of diamonds.

Under terms of the new agreement, Botswana’s government will be allowed to sell 30% of rough diamonds mined through a joint mining venture with De Beers.

The share rises to 50% by the end of the deal in 2035.

Botswana hopes that will reverse a decline in diamond revenue. The government once received $7 billion a year through De Beers, but that figure declined to $4.2 billion in 2023, amid falling diamond sales worldwide.

Addressing journalists on Monday, De Beers CEO Al Cook applauded the new government for ensuring a smooth conclusion to the talks.

Under the previous government, negotiations were often tense, with former President Mokgweetsi Masisi threatening to sever ties with De Beers.

The talks made more progress once President Duma Boko took over in November.

Elodie Daguzan, executive director at the World Diamond Council (WDC), told VOA the organization is happy to see the sides finally reach a deal.

“The World Diamond Council is thrilled about this development which underscores the importance of long-term, stable partnerships in the diamond sector. Botswana has been a leading example of how responsible diamond mining, through successful collaboration with the private sector, can drive sustainable growth,” she said.

Daguzan said the agreement will bolster an industry beset by challenges that include consumer worries over so-called “blood diamonds” and overall cautious consumer spending.

“We believe it will provide much-needed confidence to members of our industry, who are currently navigating a particularly challenging market and seeking signs of stability. At WDC, we remain committed to supporting frameworks that ensure the ethical sourcing, transparency and the continued contribution of diamonds to the well-being of producing nations and communities,” she said.

Hans Merket, a researcher on diamond mining, says it was imperative for Botswana and De Beers to reach an agreement, considering the global supply chain disruptions caused by sanctions on Russian diamonds.

“This agreement between the world’s largest diamond producer after Russia, will therefore be seen as a welcome development, not only to both parties but by the industry at large. Hopefully, it will enable the sector to continue advancing a more positive narrative with diamonds contributing to development and well-being, offering a clear alternative to sanctioned stones from Russia,” he said.

Botswana’s Minister of Minerals, Bogolo Kenewendo, said her government and De Beers will officially sign the agreement before the end of February.

At the end of the new agreement in 2035, there is an option for a five-year renewal.
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New Delhi — With trade likely to emerge as the most contentious issue between India and the United States, New Delhi has signaled that it is moving to allay concerns of U.S. President Donald Trump, who has named India among countries that impose high tariffs.

The government will cut duties on a range of imports that could help increase American imports to India. Those include high end motorcycles and cars potentially benefiting American companies like Harley Davidson.

During an address to Republican lawmakers last week, Trump called India, along with China and Brazil, “tremendous tariff makers.” and pledged to put tariffs on countries that harm U.S. interests. He also had called India a “very big abuser of tariffs,” during his election campaign.

In a phone call between Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi last Monday, the American president had stressed the importance of India moving toward a “fair bilateral trading relationship,” according to a White House statement.

With the United States being India’s largest trading partner, the threat of tariffs is a huge concern for New Delhi. Bilateral trade between the two countries in 2023 totaled almost $120 billion, with a surplus of $30 billion in India’s favor.

“These latest reductions in tariffs signal a policy shift that could enhance U.S. exports in sectors such as automobiles, technology and some components for the space sector,” according to Ajay Srivastava, founder of Global Trade Research Initiative, a think tank based in Delhi. “However, U.S. is a small exporter of these items to India so the benefits to American companies may not be huge.”

Trade is expected to be one of the top issues that will be discussed between Indian Prime Minister Modi and Trump, who are expected to meet this month.

“We don’t want to give anybody any signal that we would like to be protectionist,” Finance Secretary Tuhin Kanta Pandey told Reuters after the cut in duties was announced during India’s annual budget presentation on Saturday. “Our stance is that we don’t want to increase protection.”

But analysts say India’s tariff cuts are unlikely to allay the concerns of the Trump administration, which wants New Delhi to open its markets for a range of goods such as farm products, steel and oil. India’s average tariffs are much higher compared to countries like Japan and China.

The close strategic partnership that India and the U.S. have built in recent years may not stave off friction on trade issues, say analysts.

“Lowering some tariffs is the symbolic approach. We have made some gestures but nowhere near what would satisfy Trump,” according to Manoj Joshi, distinguished fellow at the Observer Research Foundation in New Delhi. “On tariffs, I think the U.S. will put more pressure — after all, if Trump did not carve out exceptions for allies like Canada, why will he do it with India,” he questioned.

In his last week’s phone conversation with Modi, Trump also said that India should be increasing its “procurement of American-made security equipment.”

India has been the world’s largest arms importer in recent years, spending billions of dollars to modernize its military. While Russia was its biggest supplier for decades, Western countries such as France and the United States are now emerging as key suppliers.

“There is scope for India to buy more weapons from the U.S. of which fighter jets could be a component,” according to defense analyst Rahul Bedi. “That would help lower the trade tensions.”

India is in “wait and watch mode” after Trump imposed tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China, say analysts.

“The global trade environment has been plunged into uncertainty. We will just have to wait and see what actions are taken by Mr. Trump vis a vis India,” pointed out trade expert Srivastava. “India will adjust where it can, but it is totally uncharted territory and nobody can really plan for it.”

Friction on trade also erupted during Trump’s previous term as president when he terminated India’s designation as a developing nation that had allowed businesses to export hundreds of products duty-free to the United States. India had retaliated by raising duties on some American products.
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More ships than ever are being abandoned around the world by their owners, according to the United Nations’ labor and maritime organizations, leaving thousands of workers stuck on board without pay or the means to travel home to their families.

Cases have doubled in the past three years, impacting more than 3,000 seafarers across some 230 ships in 2024, according to an Associated Press analysis of U.N. data. Last year’s figures could rise even further given the time that can elapse before vulnerable, frustrated workers reach out to report their plight.

By international guidelines, workers are considered abandoned if shipowners fail to pay two or more months of wages, provide basic supplies or otherwise stop communicating with the crew.

“The only leverage seafarers have sometimes is to stay on a vessel until they get paid,” said Helen Meldrum, a ship inspector with the International Transport Workers’ Federation, which advocates for ship workers’ rights.

It’s a phenomenon rarely visible from shore, and one hitting hardest the smaller shipping companies servicing less profitable trade routes. Many crews reporting a lack of pay are on corroded ships, built decades ago. The top countries for cases last year were the United Arab Emirates, Turkey, Egypt and Saudi Arabia.

The worst cases have seen entire crews suffering weeks without adequate food or fresh water — or living on dark ships without electricity. Some workers languish on board for years, such as Abdul Nasser Saleh, whom The Associated Press profiled last year in a story exploring abandonment in U.S. ports and abroad.

The AP found that shipowners often stopped paying workers when their costs skyrocketed, or business dried up. Owners commonly left ships docked in ports where crews lacked immigration paperwork to step foot on land or at anchorages only reachable by boat.

The number of abandonment cases in 2024 surpassed the earlier record set in 2023.

Governments and organizations like Meldrum’s can report abandoned ships to the U.N., which verifies the basic facts and petitions the owner and relevant authorities to find a resolution.

Meldrum has recently been appealing to authorities for help getting proper food, fuel and back-pay for crews on three cargo ships run by a company called Friends Shipping. Workers on board the Sister 12, now moored off the coast of Yemen, have been confined to the ship for more than a year without receiving a paycheck, according to her review.

“They’re essentially imprisoned on these vessels,” Meldrum said. “It goes way beyond exploitation.”

Abdul Razzaq Abdul Khaliq, a Syrian sailor on board the Sister 12, wrote to AP over WhatsApp that the ship was full of insects and the crew had to use seawater for bathing. Photos and videos he shared show the faucets spewing cloudy brown water, rust blanketing the deck and only a few rotting pieces of produce in the pantry.

“(T)here is no food on the ship, there is no water, there is no life,” he wrote.

Friends Shipping, which has offices in Turkey and Dubai, has a pattern of abandonment linked to its fleet. Nineteen of the 22 ships listed on its website have been named in abandonment cases, according to U.N. data, though some of those ships may have since been sold. The company boasts a slogan of “We Make the World Smaller.”

Meldrum said Friends Shipping hires workers who are unaware of the company’s reputation, then leaves them in such dire conditions that many are willing to go home at the first chance — even without pay. A new crew will be staffed, and the same thing happens, she said.

Friends Shipping didn’t respond to AP’s questions about abandonment of their fleet or the welfare of their crews. A person who responded to messages sent to the company’s WhatsApp number in Turkey said that provisions were supplied to the crew on the Sister 12 and all workers on the ship would be disembarked, without providing details.

Despite global treaties on labor rights, there are few avenues for holding owners accountable in an industry where ships are often registered under nondescript shell companies and fly the flags of countries unrelated to their operations.

Flag registries are expected to act as first responders to help repatriate seafarers and ensure they have food and medical care, according to U.N. guidelines. A decade-old amendment to the Maritime Labor Convention signed by more than 90 nations also requires the flag states to vouch for the ships they register by requiring insurance to cover several months of wages if business goes south.

AP’s reporting found many flag states still don’t intervene. Panama, Palau and Tanzania each registered dozens of the ships reported as abandoned in 2024.

The yearslong rise in abandonment cases could mean more seafarers are becoming willing to report abuse by their employers, but the overall figures likely underestimate the true picture of worker exploitation at sea. Cases first spiked amid the global pandemic and have kept rising as shipowners are pinched by inflation and other rising costs.

The ITF, the group that advocates for workers, said it helped workers recover more than $10 million in back pay last year. Inspectors were still fighting for another $10 million they say is owed. 
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WASHINGTON — A humming American economy ended 2024 on a solid note with consumer spending continuing to drive growth, and ahead of what could be a significant change in direction under a Trump administration.

The Commerce Department reported Thursday that gross domestic product — the economy’s output of goods and services — expanded at a 2.3% annual rate from October through December.

For the full year, the economy grew a healthy 2.8%, compared with 2.9% in 2023.

The fourth-quarter growth was a tick below the 2.4% economists had expected, according to a survey of forecasters by the data firm FactSet.

Consumer spending grew at a 4.2% pace, fastest since January-March 2023 and up from 3.7% in July-September last year. But business investment tumbled as investment in equipment plunged after two straight strong quarters.

Wednesday’s report also showed persistent inflationary pressure at the end of 2024. The Federal Reserve’s favored inflation gauge — called the personal consumption expenditures index, or PCE — rose at a 2.3% annual pace last quarter, up from 1.5% in the third quarter and above the Fed’s 2% target. Excluding volatile food and energy prices, so-called core PCE inflation was 2.5%, up from 2.2% in the July-September quarter.

A drop in business inventories shaved 0.93 percentage points off fourth-quarter growth.

But a category within the GDP data that measures the economy’s underlying strength rose at a healthy 3.2% annual rate from July through September, slipping from 3.4% in the third quarter. This category includes consumer spending and private investment but excludes volatile items like exports, inventories and government spending.

Paul Ashworth, chief North America economist at Capital Economics, said that figure “suggests the economy remains strong, particularly given the fourth-quarter disruptions,” including a strike at Boeing and the aftermath of two hurricanes.

President Donald Trump has inherited a healthy economy. Growth has been steady and unemployment low — 4.1% in December.

The economy has proven remarkably resilient after the Fed’s inflation fighters raised rates 11 times in 2022 and 2023 to combat the biggest surge in consumer prices since the 1980s. Instead of sliding into a recession, as most economists predicted, GDP kept expanding. Growth has now topped 2% in nine of the last 10 quarters.

On Wednesday, the Fed left its benchmark interest rate unchanged after making three cuts since September. With the economy rolling along, Fed Chair Jerome Powell told reporters, “we do not need to be in a hurry” to make more cuts. The Fed is also cautious because progress against inflation has stalled in recent months after falling from four-decade highs hit in mid-2022.

The European Central Bank cut its benchmark rate by a quarter point Thursday, underlining the contrast between more robust growth in the U.S. economy and stagnation in Europe, which recorded zero growth at the end of last year.

The U.S. economic outlook has become more cloudy, however. Trump has promised to cut taxes and ease regulations on business, which could speed GDP growth. But his plan to impose big taxes on imports and to deport millions of immigrants working in the United States illegally could mean slower growth and higher prices.

Trump said last week that he would lower oil prices and then “demand” lower interest rates – a topic he said he’d take up with Powell. But the Fed chair deflected questions about Trump’s comments Wednesday and said he’d had no contact with the president.

Trump has also tried to reshape the federal government, offering buyouts to workers and issuing a memo Monday night freezing federal grants, then rescinding the memo Wednesday after a public outcry.

Citing the “squeeze” on the federal government, Ashworth wrote in a commentary, “we wouldn’t be surprised to see a reversal in the first quarter. As a starting point, we expect first-quarter GDP growth to slow marginally below 2%.”

Thursday’s GDP release was the first of three Commerce Department estimates of October-December growth.
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TAIPEI, TAIWAN — The Lunar New Year, also called the Chinese New Year or the Spring Festival in China, is traditionally celebrated with tables piled with food and red envelopes filled with cash for children.

In past years, smoke from outdoor fire pits filled the air throughout the morning and afternoon, as people burned paper money to ensure that even the ancestors can feel the financial boon that the biggest holiday of the year usually brings to the living.

In recent years, however, China’s economic slowdown has altered the atmosphere of Chinese New Year. Facing increasing financial burdens, young people are reexamining long-held traditions as they welcome the Year of the Snake, opting for more frugal alternatives during this year’s eight-day-long national holiday.

A 30-year-old legal worker from Shanghai, who did not want to use his name for fear of reprisal, told VOA that stores selling trinkets and supplies for the holiday appeared unusually deserted.

He said people appear to be forgoing large purchases, which manifests mostly in the custom of giving money-filled red envelopes — the color symbolizes good luck and prosperity in the new year.

“As with goods purchased for the new year, red envelopes have become more simple and less thick,” the Shanghai resident said.

He told VOA he usually gives his niece an envelope with around $140 inside, but this year, he plans to give her $90.

Talk on social media

Frustration with the economy is being expressed on social media — young people are saturating online threads with images and comments describing the pressure and criticism they will encounter during the holiday.

An account on RedNote called “I don’t give a damn about the banana” posted a series of funny images detailing the levels of anxiety young, unmarried and unemployed people will face during the holiday.

“You haven’t earned any money but you still have to give the younger kids a red envelope,” the user wrote, over a picture of a woman giving a small bill to a cat.

Many others offer advice to ease fears of being scrutinized by the family.

“Unique-me” wrote on the Chinese social media platform Weibo: “Now the economy is not good, it’s good to just have an income. If you are in a difficult situation, you can admit that you don’t make much. There is no need to be generous. Just show your appreciation. Those who have opinions about you because of the size of your red envelope, let them have opinions.”

Faced with economic woes, some local governments are advocating frugality. Baise City, Guangxi, suggested that the amount of money in a red envelope should not exceed $3.

The initiative also encourages the younger generation to give their elders “blessing gifts” with commemorative significance or emotional value instead of red envelopes.

This move has attracted widespread attention, with many social media users expressing their support for the program’s positive impact on financial and mental health. Some suggested that blessing gifting be promoted nationwide.

Workplace anxiety

The size of red envelopes exchanged in the workplace and increasing leniency on new year vacation day allowances have stoked fears of job insecurity among employees.

“The economic downturn is not only reflected in my meager salary, but also in the red envelopes given by the boss every year,” “Life with Greed” said on Weibo.

A user called “Let’s try to be happy” commented on Weibo: “My company is in a slump. New Year gifts have not been issued. In previous years, the maximum New Year holiday was 20 days, but this year it was more than a month. I don’t know what it will be like next year. It feels like it is on the verge of bankruptcy.”

A 39-year-old government worker in Dalian, who spoke to VOA on the condition of anonymity because of security fears, said despite having a family and a stable job, she will limit her holiday spending.

“We have to reduce some unnecessary expenses, such as buying less candy and snacks, and we try to buy simple things outside when worshiping,” the wife and mother said.

The changes in Chinese Spring Festival customs are affected by many factors, but the economy is most critical, said Sun Guoxiang, a professor in the international affairs and business department at Nanhua University in Taiwan.

“The economic downturn has led to a decline in consumption capacity. Young people pay more attention to rational consumption and actual needs, which reduces the relatively high-cost parts of traditional Spring Festival customs,” Sun said, adding that pressure from family about issues that include work, marriage and education cannot be ignored as drivers of this trend.

He said the future of Chinese New Year and how it will be celebrated will depend heavily on China’s development and whether the country can overcome its current economic decline.
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Brussels, Belgium — The EU promised Thursday an “action plan” to help the bloc’s beleaguered auto sector, as it held talks with industry leaders who have sounded the alarm over emissions fines and Chinese competition. 

The European Union is under pressure to help a sector that employs 13 million people and accounts for about seven percent of the bloc’s GDP, as it seeks to revamp the continent’s lagging competitiveness. 

“The European automotive industry is at a pivotal moment, and we acknowledge the challenges it faces. That is why we are acting swiftly to address them,” EU chief Ursula von der Leyen said, promising an “action plan” by early March.  

Chaired by the European Commission president, the so-called “strategic dialogue” brought together carmakers, suppliers, civil society groups and trade unions. 

Representatives of 22 industry “players” including Volkswagen, BMW, Mercedes and Renault, were in attendance, the commission said. 

The get-together comes as the commission embarks on a pro-business shift, with firms complaining its focus on climate and business ethics has resulted in excessive regulations. 

On Wednesday, it unveiled a blueprint to revamp the bloc’s economic model, amid worries that low productivity, high energy prices, weak investments and other ills are leaving the EU behind the United States and China. 

The car industry has been plunged into crisis by high manufacturing costs, a stuttering switch to electric vehicles (EV) and increased competition from China. 

Announcements of possible job cuts have multiplied. Volkswagen plans to axe 35,000 positions across its German locations by 2030. 

Emissions fines 

Carmakers have been calling for “flexibility” on the steep emission fines they could face in 2025 — something the bloc’s new growth blueprint said should be in the cards. 

“Penalizing immediately the industry, financially, is not a good idea, because the industry is in trouble and… has to restructure itself, which will cost a lot of money,” Patrick Koller, CEO of French parts producer Forvia, said ahead of the meeting. 

“When you look back, we have heavy industries which disappeared from Europe completely, because of lack of competitiveness.”  

To combat climate change, the EU introduced a set of emission-reduction targets that should lead to the sale of fossil-fuel-burning cars, being phased out by 2035. 

About 16 percent of the planet-warming carbon dioxide (CO2) gas released into the atmosphere in Europe comes from cars’ exhaust pipes, the EU says. 

As of this year, carmakers have to lower the average CO2 emitted by all newly sold vehicles by 15 percent from 2021 levels, or pay a penalty — with tougher cuts further down the road, according to advocacy group Transport & Environment. 

The idea is to incentivize firms to increase the share of EVs, hybrids and small vehicles they sell compared to, for instance, diesel-guzzling SUVs.  

But some manufacturers complain that is proving harder than expected as consumers have yet to warm to EVs, which have higher upfront costs and lack an established used-vehicle market. 

“We want to stick to the objective… but we can smoothen the way,” von der Leyen said on Wednesday.  

Critics say lifting the fines would unfairly penalize producers who have invested to comply and remove a key incentive to speed up electric transitions.  

Sales and tariffs

EV sales slid 1.3 percent in Europe last year, accounting for 13.6 percent of all sales, according to the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA), an industry group. 

A senior EU official said incentives for businesses to buy electric are an option.  

“Company fleets” account for more than half of new cars purchased in Europe, the official said.  

The 27-nation bloc could also seek to improve a patchy charging network, modernize grids to allow for faster charging, bring down energy costs, cut regulations and loosen China’s grip on battery production, analysts say. 

Meanwhile, the market share of Chinese electric cars has ballooned in the EU, to reach 14 percent in the second quarter of 2024.  

Brussels has imposed extra import tariffs on China-made electric vehicles of up to 35.3 percent after concluding Beijing’s state support was unfairly undercutting European automakers. 

The move was opposed by Germany and other EU members, and it is the object of a lawsuit by BMW, Tesla and several Chinese automakers.             
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New York — Wall Street is tumbling Monday on fears the big U.S. companies that have feasted on the artificial-intelligence frenzy are under threat from a competitor in China that can do similar things for much cheaper.

The S&P 500 was down 1.9% in early trading. Big Tech stocks that have been the market’s biggest stars took the heaviest losses, with Nvidia down 11.5%, and they dragged the Nasdaq composite down 3.2%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, which has less of an emphasis on tech, was holding up a bit better with a dip of 160 points, or 0.4%, as of 9:35 a.m. Eastern time.

The shock to financial markets came from China, where a company called DeepSeek said it had developed a large language model that can compete with U.S. giants but at a fraction of the cost. DeepSeek’s app had already hit the top of Apple’s App Store chart by early Monday morning, and analysts said such a feat would be particularly impressive given how the U.S. government has restricted Chinese access to top AI chips.

Skepticism, though, remains about how much DeepSeek’s announcement will ultimately shake the AI supply chain, from the chip makers making semiconductors to the utilities hoping to electrify vast data centers running those chips.

“It remains to be seen if DeepSeek found a way to work around these chip restrictions rules and what chips they ultimately used as there will be many skeptics around this issue given the information is coming from China,” according to Dan Ives, an analyst with Wedbush Securities.

DeepSeek’s disruption nevertheless rocked stock markets worldwide.

In Amsterdam, Dutch chip company ASML slid 8.9%. In Tokyo, Japan’s Softbank Group Corp. lost 8.3% and is nearly back to where it was before spurting on an announcement that it was joining a partnership trumpeted by the White House that would invest up to $500 billion in AI infrastructure.

And on Wall Street, shares of Constellation Energy sank 16.9%. The company has said it would restart the shuttered Three Mile Island nuclear power plant to supply power for Microsoft’s data centers.

All the worries sent a gauge of nervousness among investors holding U.S. stocks toward its biggest jump since August. They also sent investors toward bonds, which can be safer investments than any stock. The rush sent the yield of the 10-year Treasury down to 4.53% from 4.62% late Friday.

It’s a sharp turnaround for the AI winners, which had soared in recent years on hopes that all the investment pouring into the industry would lead to a possible remaking of the global economy.

Nvidia’s stock had soared from less than $20 to more than $140 in less than two years before Monday’s drop, for example.

Other Big Tech companies had also joined in the frenzy, and their stock prices had benefited too. It was just on Friday that Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg was saying he expects to invest up to $65 billion this year, while talking up a massive data center it would build in Manhattan.

In stock markets abroad, movements for indexes across Europe and Asia weren’t as forceful as for the big U.S. tech stocks. France’s CAC 40 fell 0.6%, and Germany’s DAX lost 0.8%.

In Asia, stocks edged 0.1% lower in Shanghai after a survey of manufacturers showed export orders in China dropping to a five-month low.

The Federal Reserve holds its latest policy meeting later this week. Traders don’t expect recent weak data to push the Fed to cut its main interest rate. They’re virtually certain the central bank will hold steady, according to data from CME Group.
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China’s annual mass migration ahead of the Lunar New Year will peak with billions of trips anticipated during this year’s holiday, which begins Tuesday.

An estimated 9 billion trips are expected. This year’s holiday lasts from Jan. 28 through Feb. 4 and marks the arrival of the Year of the Snake. Authorities in China extended the annual break an extra day, so the public holiday will last eight days this year.

During the holiday, travel is expected to pick up domestically and internationally. The government said it expects trips by train to surpass 510 million, with 90 million more traveling by air. Inside the country, most will travel by car.

For trips overseas, travel to Southeast Asia has surged, with ticket volumes to Vietnam, Singapore and Indonesia rising by more than 50%, according to data from the World Travel and Tourism Council. Additionally, demand for travel to Hong Kong has nearly doubled, and Japan is seeing a 58% increase in airline ticket purchases.

While the Lunar New Year is known as a festive time characterized by colorful lanterns, parades and lion dances, it holds more than just cultural significance to Chinese authorities who see the period as an opportunity to boost a sluggish economy.

That is one key reason authorities increased the holiday to eight days. They also launched several efforts to help revive weak consumer spending, such as promoting winter-themed holiday destinations and ensuring affordable airfares, according to officials at a State Council press conference in Beijing.

Despite the efforts, Reuters reported businesses and consumers appear to be spending less than usual during the holiday season, citing concerns over a prolonged property slump and worries over job security.

Throughout the past year, China has implemented a series of measures aimed at addressing those concerns, including stimulus measures such as cutting interest rates, increasing pensions and widening trade-in programs for consumer goods.

One industry that appears to have gotten a boost from the festival season is cinema.

The film industry in China had struggled recently, seeing a 22.6% decrease in total box office revenue in 2024. However, according to data from Maoyan, a Chinese ticketing platform, movie tickets exceeded $55 million by Jan. 23, the fastest presales for the Lunar New Year season.

A large part of that increased demand has been from the film “Legends of the Condor Heroes,” starring Xiao Zhan, an actor and singer who is also a brand ambassador for luxury goods companies such as Gucci and Tod’s.

Shops and restaurants also hope to see an increase in spending that mirrors the film industry over the course of the holiday.

Some information in this report came from Reuters and The Associated Press.
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President Donald Trump laid out his approach to foreign investment to the world’s largest gathering of global business leaders, offering investors a take-it-or-leave-it deal to build in the U.S. or face stiff tariffs. VOA White House Correspondent Anita Powell reports.
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WASHINGTON — U.S. lawmakers introduced a bipartisan bill on Thursday that would revoke China’s preferential trade status with the United States, phase in steep tariffs and end the “de minimis” exemption for low-value Chinese imports.

The bill, introduced by John Moolenaar, the Republican chair of the House of Representatives select committee on China, comes after President Donald Trump issued a memo on Monday asking his cabinet to assess legislation on the Permanent Normal Trade Relations designation for Beijing.

Congress approved PNTR for China in 2000, paving the way for its entry into the World Trade Organization. But the U.S. has routinely found the large role of the state in China’s economy, including hefty government subsidies for strategic industries, to violate the global trade body’s rules.

Trump, who has railed against China’s vast trade surplus with the U.S., has vowed more duties on Chinese goods.

Moolenaar’s Restoring Trade Fairness Act was co-sponsored by Democratic Representative Tom Suozzi and introduced with a companion bill in the Senate. Moolenaar said granting China PNTR had ushered in waves of Chinese imports, depleted U.S. manufacturing and made the U.S. susceptible to economic coercion from its “foremost adversary.”

“This gamble failed,” Moolenaar said in a statement. “This legislation will safeguard U.S. national security, enhance supply chain resilience, and bring manufacturing jobs back to America and our allies.”

China’s embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The path for the bill to become law was not immediately clear, but Republicans hold majorities in both the House and Senate. Lawmakers from both parties say they want to increase U.S. companies’ ability to compete with China.

Waves of U.S. tariffs by Trump in his first term and by the Biden administration had effectively ended PNTR treatment for China.

Nonetheless, the proposed legislation would end annual recertification of the designation and codify minimum 35% tariffs for non-strategic goods and minimum 100% tariffs for strategic goods. The duties would be phased in over five years — 10% in the first year, 25% in the second year, 50% in year four and 100% by year five.

The bill would also end de minimis treatment for certain “covered nations,” including China.

Trump has called for changes to the $800 de minimis duty-free exemption for low-value shipments often blamed for illicit imports of fentanyl precursor chemicals from China.

Critics of de minimis say it contributes to the United States’ trade deficit with China — $279 billion in 2023, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
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ABUJA, NIGERIA — Nigerian authorities said this week that the nation’s new partnership status with the BRICS bloc could unlock critical opportunities in trade, investment and agriculture.

Nigerian President Bola Tinubu’s special adviser told Lagos-based Channels Television that the partnership, which became official Friday, is pivotal to promoting trade, investment, food security, infrastructure development and energy security.

The adviser, Daniel Bwala, said the pact enables Nigeria to forge deeper strategic relationships with BRICS members beyond traditional bilateral partnerships.

BRICS — an acronym for the founding members of Brazil, Russia, India and China, with South Africa added a year later — is a political and economic bloc. BRICS introduced the “partner country” category in October. Partner nations are a step below full membership.

Economist Emeka Okengwu praised the arrangement.

“Look at the members of BRICS and the economies that they bring to the table. Brazil is probably the biggest producer of livestock and its products globally, then to aircraft, aviation and renewable energy,” Okengwu said. “Look at Russia, India, China and South Africa, Egypt and Ethiopia. These are big populations.

If you put them together, they probably bring 10 times the value of whatever Europe and America can give to you,” he said.

In total, the 10 BRICS member states make up 40% of the global economy and 55% of the global population.

In a statement, Nigeria’s Foreign Affairs Ministry said that the country’s participation in BRICS reflects its commitment to leveraging global economic opportunities to advance national development goals.

Last December, Nigeria intensified efforts to join not only BRICS but also the G20 organization of the world’s major economies and the BRICS New Development Bank.

Okengwu said the partnership will help Nigeria at “being productive, taking goods and services in there, being able to meet global standards and being competitive.”

“It would’ve been horrible if Nigeria was not in BRICS and then we would’ve been left hanging with all these challenges we’re having with our neighbors in the Sahel,” Okengwu said.

Despite the optimism, analysts say Nigeria faces significant hurdles.

The country’s struggling economy and inadequate infrastructure raise concerns about its capacity for meaningful growth through BRICS. There’s also concern about how Nigeria will balance its alliances with Western nations while deepening ties with BRICS.

However, Ndu Nwokolo, an economist with Nextier, suggested the challenge is manageable.

“It’s about how smart you are to benefit from everybody,” Nwokolo said. “With what we’re seeing by some of the pronouncements of [U.S.] President [Donald] Trump, Nigeria may benefit from it because already Trump is talking about increasing taxes [tariffs] even within ally states.

“So, if he’s going to do that with countries we think are traditional partners, so who’s telling you that he will not do more with countries that he considers outsiders,” he said. “So, we’re looking at a situation where countries that are not originally traditional allies of America will try to pull together, and Nigeria may benefit from that.”
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Many American voters are hopeful that President Donald Trump’s second term, which began on Jan. 20, will usher in a period of economic prosperity — much like they felt during his first term.

However, the economy he is inheriting this time around is markedly different from the one he inherited eight years ago, pre-pandemic. And he faces new challenges.

While former President Joe Biden has defended his handling of the country’s economic recovery — pointing to strong job growth and falling inflation — high prices persist. A large national debt, climate change and some of Trump’s own policy proposals may further complicate efforts to boost the economy.
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President Donald Trump will issue a broad trade memo on Monday that stops short of imposing new tariffs on his first day in office but directs federal agencies to evaluate U.S. trade relationships with China, Canada and Mexico, a Trump administration official said.

After weeks of intense global speculation over which duties Trump would impose immediately after being sworn in as U.S. president, news that Trump would take more time on tariffs drove a relief rally in global stocks and a dive in the dollar against major currencies.

Trump mentioned no specific tariff plans in his inaugural address but repeated his intention to create the External Revenue Service, a new agency to collect “massive amounts” of tariffs, duties and other revenues from foreign sources.  

“I will immediately begin the overhaul of our trade system to protect American workers and families,” Trump said. “Instead of taxing our citizens to enrich other countries, we will tariff and tax foreign countries to enrich our citizens.”

Trump added that his policies would make America “a manufacturing nation once again.”

During his election campaign, Trump vowed to impose steep tariffs of 10% to 20% on global imports into the U.S. and 60% on goods from China to help reduce a trade deficit that now tops $1 trillion annually.

He said after his November election that he would sign “all necessary documents” upon taking office to impose an immediate 25% import surcharge on imports from Canada and Mexico if they failed to clamp down on the flow of illicit drugs and migrants entering the U.S. illegally.

Such duties would tear up long-standing trade agreements, upend supply chains and raise costs, according to trade experts.  

The official, confirming a Wall Street Journal report that cited a summary of Trump’s memo, said the new president will instead direct agencies to investigate and remedy persistent trade deficits and address unfair trade and currency policies by other nations.  

The memo will single out China, Canada and Mexico for scrutiny but will not announce new tariffs, the official said. It will direct agencies to assess Beijing’s compliance with its 2020 trade deal with the U.S., as well as the status of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, the official said.

Relief rally

The U.S. dollar slumped broadly on the news against a basket of major trading partners’ currencies, with particularly large upswings in the euro, Canadian dollar, Mexican peso and Chinese yuan. MSCI’s measure of global stock markets rose. U.S. financial markets are closed for the Martin Luther King Jr. Day holiday.

Some industry groups and trade lawyers in Washington had speculated that Trump would invoke the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, a law with sweeping powers to control imports in times of national emergency, to impose immediate tariffs.

But the forthcoming trade memo signals a more methodical approach that would likely involve trade investigations under other legal authorities such as the Section 232 national security trade law and the Section 301 unfair trade practices statute. Trump invoked these laws during his first term, and probes on steel and aluminum and Chinese imports took months to complete.

“It sounds like maybe he’s been listening to the people telling him that immediate tariffs would really hurt the financial markets,” said William Reinsch, a trade expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

But Reinsch and other trade analysts say they still expect Trump to press ahead with a global tariff early in his administration.

“The universal tariff was a core part of the economic plan he ran on, and I think he’s going to do what he said he would,” said Kelly Ann Shaw, a former White House trade adviser during Trump’s first term.

“This is an idea he’s supported for a long time,” Shaw, now with the Hogan Lovells law firm, said in an interview last week.

Past trade playbook  

In his 2017-2021 first term, Trump’s administration used investigations to impose tariffs on steel and aluminum imports and launch duties on some $370 billion worth of Chinese imports, igniting a tit-for-tat tariff war between the world’s two largest economies.

The U.S. and China ended the conflict in 2020 with a deal for Beijing to boost its purchases of U.S. exports from farm goods to aircraft by $200 billion annually but never followed through as the pandemic hit. The forthcoming memo indicates that Trump’s administration will try to push China to keep those commitments.

Trump also had threatened to quit the 1994 North American Free Trade Agreement, blaming it for draining U.S. manufacturing jobs to Mexico and prompting a renegotiation of the trade pact with tighter rules of origin for autos and stronger labor and environmental standards.

Trump won a sunset provision in USMCA that will allow him to renegotiate it again in 2026, and the tariff threats against Mexico and Canada are seen by some trade analysts as a gambit to open those talks early. 
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BEIJING — China recorded one of its slowest rates of economic growth in decades last year, data showed Friday, as leaders nervously eye a potential trade standoff with incoming U.S. President-elect Donald Trump.

Beijing has in recent months announced its most aggressive support measures in years in a bid to reignite an economy that has suffered on multiple fronts, including a prolonged property market debt crisis and sluggish consumer spending.

But the economy grew 5% last year, official data from Beijing’s National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed Friday, slightly above the 4.9% forecast in an AFP survey of analysts.

Still, the figure was lower than the 5.2% recorded in 2023.

The growth took place in the face of a “complicated and severe environment with increasing external pressures and internal difficulties,” the NBS said.

The economy was still facing “difficulties and challenges,” officials admitted.

Retail sales, a key gauge of consumer sentiment, rose 3.5% — a major slump from the 7.2% growth seen in 2023 — though industrial output increased 5.8%, from 4.6% the previous year.

However, the 5.4% jump in economic growth seen in the final four months far outpaced the 5% forecast in a Bloomberg survey and was much better than the same period in 2023.

The data provided “mixed messages,” Zhiwei Zhang, president of Pinpoint Asset Management, said.

Beijing’s recent policy shift had “helped the economy to stabilize in (the fourth quarter), but it requires large and persistent policy stimulus to boost economic momentum and sustain the recovery,” he said.

Zichun Huang, China economist at Capital Economics, said she expected growth to “continue accelerating in the coming months.”

“The government’s property support measures seem to be providing some relief, with the pace of house price falls slowing and new home sales showing some recovery,” she said.

Trouble ahead?

The GDP growth rate is the lowest recorded by China since 1990, excluding the financially tumultuous years of the COVID-19 pandemic.

And the analysts surveyed by AFP estimated growth could fall to just 4.4% in 2025, and even drop below 4% the following year.

China has so far failed to rebound from the pandemic, with domestic spending mired in a slump and indebted local governments dragging on growth.

In a rare bright spot, official data showed earlier this week that exports reached a historic high last year.

But gathering storm clouds over the country’s massive trade surplus mean Beijing may not be able to count on overseas shipments to boost an otherwise lackluster economy.

Trump, who will begin his second term next week, has promised to unleash heavy sanctions on China.

“We still expect growth to slow for 2025 as a whole, with Trump likely to follow through on his tariff threats soon and persistent structural imbalances still weighing on the economy,” Huang said.

Beijing has introduced a series of measures in recent months to bolster the economy, including cutting key interest rates, easing local government debt and expanding subsidy programs for household goods.

Confidence ‘crisis’

Observers were closely watching Friday’s data release for signs those measures succeeded in reviving activity.

“With a package of incremental policies being timely rolled out … social confidence was effectively bolstered and the economy recovered remarkably,” the NBS said.

China’s central bank has indicated in recent weeks that 2025 will see it implement further rate cuts, part of a key shift characterized by a “moderately loose” monetary policy stance.

But analysts warn more efforts are needed to boost domestic consumption as the outlook for Chinese exports becomes more uncertain.

“Monetary policy support alone is unlikely to right the economy,” Harry Murphy Cruise of Moody’s Analytics told AFP.

“China is suffering from a crisis of confidence, not one of credit; families and firms do not have the confidence in the economy to warrant borrowing, regardless of how cheap it is to do so,” he wrote.

“To that end, fiscal supports are needed to grease the economy’s wheels.”

One component of Beijing’s newest policy toolbox is a subsidy scheme — now expanded to include more household items including rice cookers and microwave ovens — that it hopes will encourage spending.

But recent data shows that government efforts have not yet achieved a full rebound in consumer activity.

China narrowly avoided a slip into deflation in December, statistics authorities said last week, with prices rising at their slowest pace in nine months.

China emerged from a four-month period of deflation in February, a month after suffering the sharpest fall in prices for 14 years.

Deflation can pose a threat to the broader economy as consumers tend to postpone purchases under such conditions, hoping for further reductions. 
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ISLAMABAD — Pakistan confirmed on Wednesday that the World Bank has pledged to lend $20 billion over the next decade, commencing in 2026 under its Country Partnership Framework, to help address the impoverished country’s acute development challenges.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif applauded what he described as the lender’s “first-ever” pledge of its kind, saying the program is intended to develop child nutrition, education, clean energy and climate resilience to boost private sector growth.

The Country Partnership Framework “reflects the World Bank’s confidence in Pakistan’s economic resilience and potential,” Sharif said on the social media platform X. “We look forward to strengthening our partnership as we align our efforts for creating lasting opportunities for our people.”

The cash-strapped South Asian nation has been struggling to tackle serious economic challenges for several years and is currently relying on a $7 billion bailout loan program from the International Monetary Fund. Persistent political instability in Pakistan, rising militant attacks, and devastating flooding in 2022 have further strained the troubled economy.

“Our new decadelong partnership framework for Pakistan represents a long-term anchor for our joint commitment with the government to address some of the most acute development challenges facing the country,” said World Bank Country Director Najy Benhassine.

The U.S.-based lender stated that the country’s annual commitments under the partnership “are expected to remain in the $1.5 billion to $2 billion range” from 2026 onward. It added that the loans will depend on available funding and the fulfillment of project requirements.

“The pace of economic growth and structural transformation has been long stunted by distortive policies that benefit only a few, who have historically coalesced to oppose growth-oriented reforms as well as increases in progressive public spending in human capital and basic services for the poorest,” the World Bank partnership documented stated.

It added that Pakistan must change its current development model to reduce poverty and achieve shared prosperity on a livable planet.

“We are focused on prioritizing investment and advisory interventions that will help crowd in much-needed private investment in sectors critical for Pakistan’s sustainable growth and job creation,” said Zeeshan Sheikh, International Finance Corporation country manager for Pakistan and Afghanistan.

The ouster of Prime Minister Imran Khan from power in 2022 and his subsequent imprisonment over contested corruption charges have plunged Pakistan into a political crisis that experts say is hampering government attempts to attract domestic and foreign investments.

The World Bank’s document highlights that the South Asian nation, home to over 240 million people, ranks among the top 10 countries most affected by climate change and natural disasters worldwide.

It noted that climate change will increasingly strain livelihoods, food security, productivity, and growth caused by rising extreme heat, air pollution, and altered water availability and precipitation.

“These risks can significantly compromise development in an already fiscally constrained environment and make sustained progress in poverty reduction and human development even more challenging than it is today,” the World Bank stated.
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