WASHINGTON — As U.S. President Donald Trump moves forward with an expanding net of tariffs, including an additional 10% for Chinese imports starting next week, industry insiders and experts say closing existing loopholes and workarounds that companies use to avoid trade taxes is also key.

One practice that so far has helped companies from China — and others — to avoid being hit with tariffs is transshipment, or the transfer of goods to a second country, where the “Made in China” label is switched for another.

Berwick Offray, a ribbon manufacturer in the northeastern state of Pennsylvania, has first-hand experience with the practice. Founded in 1945, the company prides itself on its pledge to keep its products “Made in the USA” and its position as one of the largest manufacturers of ribbons in the world.

Earlier this month, the company sued a U.S. importer, TriMar Ribbon, for allegedly buying ribbons produced in China that were shipped to the United States through India to illegally avoid being subject to tariffs.

Ribbons made in China are cheaper and sold at below market value prices in the United States.

“The current allegations allege that TriMar imported ribbons from China into the United States through transshipment in India, and did not declare the correct country of origin upon entry,” said a notice issued from U.S. Customs and Border Protection, or CBP, when the agency agreed to investigate the case.

Daniel Pickard, an expert on international trade and an attorney at Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney, which represents Berwick Offray, said there have been numerous cases of transshipment, especially when it comes to products from China.

“We have assisted several clients in submitting allegations to CBP against importers of products that have been transshipped from China through third countries such as Thailand, India and Canada,” Pickard told VOA. “Our clients typically are the U.S. manufacturers of those products that are competing against the Chinese imports that are engaged in evasion of duties.”

According to CBP data, there are currently 221 investigations of Chinese-made products suspected of transshipment tariff evasion.

Tariffs and loopholes

In early February, the Trump administration rolled out 10% blanket tariffs on all Chinese goods. On March 4, Chinese imports will face an additional 10% tariff.

While Trump has worked to reduce potential workarounds, including his executive order on reciprocal tariffs on trading partners, U.S. lawmakers have introduced measures to close the loopholes that would allow Chinese products to evade the president’s increased fees.

Republican Senator Rick Scott introduced the Stopping Adversarial Tariff Evasion Act on Jan. 31, aiming to strengthen enforcement mechanisms to ensure foreign manufacturers comply with customs and duties.

The legislation builds on efforts from Congresswoman Ashley Hinson, who introduced a bill in December intended to hold China accountable for tariff evasion by establishing a task force and reporting mechanisms to deal with instances of financial crime.

Jayant Menon, a senior fellow at the ISEAS Yusof Ishak Institute in Singapore, said the second Trump presidency will foster even more efforts to monitor tariff evasion and inspect products for compliance.

“While it is increasingly difficult to determine where a product is really made these days, given increasing globalization and widespread production under global supply chain, increased scrutiny can help with identifying bypass attempts,” Menon said.

“If bypass attempts are suspected, rightly or wrongly, then the country as a whole may be penalized with new tariffs,” he said.

Pickard said he expects more investigations will be launched by the new administration. He also looks forward to more efforts to counter discriminatory practices affecting U.S. companies.

“We anticipate CBP will increase its enforcement efforts as to the widespread customs fraud involving Chinese products,” he said.

Many stakeholders in the industry, Pickard said, are hoping to see these issues met with criminal prosecutions.
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NEW DELHI — The European Union plans to urge India to lower its high tariffs on cars and wine to boost trade, as it seeks to reduce its reliance on China, a senior official from the bloc said, ahead of a visit by the European Commission president to New Delhi.

Echoing U.S. President Donald Trump’s threat of reciprocal tariffs, the official said the EU would press India to cut tariffs on some goods and broaden market access for its products, while offering flexibility on agriculture issues to expedite free trade agreement talks.

“The Indian market is relatively closed, especially to key products of commercial interest to the European Union and our member states’ industries, including cars, wines and spirits,” said the official, who requested anonymity due to the confidential nature of the discussions.

EC President Ursula von der Leyen’s two-day visit from Thursday, accompanied by leaders of EU member nations, coincides with escalating geopolitical tensions, with Brussels and New Delhi set to outline key areas for deeper cooperation under their strategic partnership.

Leyen will meet Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday, followed by discussions with trade minister Piyush Goyal.

The next trade negotiations round is scheduled for March 10-14 in Brussels.

The EU’s call for lower tariffs comes amid Trump’s threats to impose reciprocal tariffs from early April, which has caused anxiety for India’s exporters. Analysts from Citi Research estimate potential losses of about $7 billion annually.

The EU is India’s largest trading partner in goods, with trade nearing $126 billion in 2024, marking an increase of about 90% over the past decade.

Reducing reliance on China

As part of its “de-risking” strategy, the EU aims to strengthen economic and security ties with India, diversify supply chains, and reduce reliance on key products from China.

The EU also views India as a vital ally in addressing security challenges, the official said, including cyber threats and tensions in the South China Sea and Indo-Pacific.

Leyen is also expected to seek India’s support for a “peaceful and just deal” for Ukraine’s security, the official said.

The EU and India could sign an agreement to share classified security information to tackle common threats such as cyber attacks and terrorism, while exploring defense equipment trade.

Despite these potential benefits, trade analysts said the visit may not yield tangible results.

For substantial cooperation, the EU should acknowledge India as a data-secure country, said Ajay Srivastava, founder of the Delhi-based think-tank Global Trade Initiative, and India’s former negotiator on trade talks with the EU.

“While both parties have concerns about China, neither sees it as a top priority,” Srivastava said, adding India is focused on border tensions with China, while the EU is more concerned with the Ukraine-Russia conflict and NATO matters.
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U.S. consumer confidence plunged in February in its biggest monthly decline in more than four years, a business research group said Tuesday.

The Conference Board said its consumer confidence index dropped from 105.3 in January to 98.3 this month, the largest month-to-month decline since August 2021.

With U.S. consumer spending accounting for about 70% of the world’s largest economy, the three major stock indexes on Wall Street all fell on news of the report. The tech-heavy NASDAQ dropped by more than a percentage point.

The Conference Board said in a statement, “Views of current labor market conditions weakened. Consumers became pessimistic about future business conditions and less optimistic about future income. Pessimism about future employment prospects worsened and reached a 10-month high.”

Separately, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent contended Tuesday that the U.S. economy is more fragile under the surface than economic indicators suggest, and he vowed to “reprivatize” growth by cutting government spending and regulation.

In his first major economic policy address, Bessent told a group at the Australian Embassy in Washington that interest rate volatility, enduring inflation and reliance on the public sector for job growth have hobbled the American economy, despite general national economic growth and low unemployment.

Bessent blamed “prolific overspending” under former President Joe Biden and regulations that have hindered supply-side growth as the main drivers of “sticky inflation.”

“The previous administration’s over-reliance on excessive government spending and overbearing regulation left us with an economy that may have exhibited some reasonable metrics but ultimately was brittle underneath,” he said.

Bessent said that 95% of all job growth in the past 12 months has been concentrated in public and government-adjacent sectors, such as health care and education, jobs offering slower wage growth and less productivity than private-sector jobs.

Meanwhile, he said jobs in manufacturing, metals, mining and information technology all contracted or flatlined over the same period.

“The private sector has been in recession,” Bessent said. “Our goal is to reprivatize the economy.”

Consumers had appeared increasingly confident heading toward the end of 2024 and spent generously during the holiday season. But U.S. retail sales dropped sharply in January, with unusually cold weather throughout much of the U.S. taking some of the blame.

Retail sales fell 0.9% last month from December, the Commerce Department reported last week. The decline, the biggest in a year, came after two months of robust gains.

With inflation remaining a concern for consumers and uncertainty about President Donald Trump’s plan to impose new or stiffer tariffs on imports from other countries, policymakers at the country’s central bank, the Federal Reserve, have taken a cautious approach on whether to further cut its benchmark interest rate.

The Fed left its key borrowing rate alone at its last meeting after cutting it at the previous three.

“Consumers’ confidence has deteriorated sharply in the face of threats to impose large tariffs and to slash federal spending and employment,” Pantheon Macroeconomics chief Samuel Tombs wrote in a note to clients.

Some information in this report came from The Associated Press, Reuters and Agence France-Presse.
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Ongoing freezes in federal funding are impacting the U.S. agricultural industry. VOA’s Kane Farabaugh has more from the Midwestern state of Wisconsin.
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WASHINGTON — U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent traded policy complaints with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng on Friday, with Bessent telling Beijing to do more to curb fentanyl trafficking and rebalance its economy, and He voicing concerns about President Donald Trump’s new tariffs, the two governments said.

The top economic officials from the world’s two largest economies agreed to keep up communications, the Treasury said in a readout of the introductory video call.

“Secretary Bessent expressed serious concerns about the PRC’s counternarcotics efforts, economic imbalances, and unfair policies, and stressed the Administration’s commitment to pursue trade and economic policies that protect the American economy, the American worker, and our national security,” the Treasury said, using the acronym for China’s official name, the People’s Republic of China.

Earlier, Chinese state media reported that He expressed concerns to Bessent over U.S. tariffs and trade restrictions on China during the call.

The two sides had an “in-depth” exchange of views on important issues in China-U.S. economic relations, and both agreed to keep communicating on matters of mutual concern, according to a readout released by Chinese state media.

He, the lead China-U.S. trade negotiator on the Chinese side, and Bessent recognized the importance of bilateral economic and trade relations, the readout said.

More tariffs

China and the United States are seeking to manage their relationship as they stand on the precipice of a renewed trade war.

Trump imposed 10% tariffs on all Chinese goods in early February, citing China’s failure to stanch fentanyl trafficking.

Beijing retaliated by imposing targeted tariffs of up to 15% on some U.S. imports, including energy and farm equipment, and put several companies, including Google, on notice for possible sanctions.

Trump has also planned further reciprocal tariffs for all countries that tax U.S. imports, a move that is likely to further escalate global trade tensions. During his election campaign, Trump threatened 60% tariffs on all Chinese imports.

Trump said earlier this week he expected Chinese President Xi Jinping to visit the U.S., without giving a timeline for such a trip.

Bessent said on Thursday he would tell his Chinese counterpart that China needed to rebalance its economy and rely more on domestic consumption for growth and less on investment and exports.

“They are suppressing the consumer in favor of the business community,” Bessent told Bloomberg Television.

Similar arguments

The U.S. had a $295.4 billion goods trade deficit with China in 2024, down from a peak of $418.2 billion in 2018, the year Trump began imposing new tariffs on some $370 billion of Chinese imports.

But last year’s deficit rose $16.3 billion from 2023 as Chinese exporters rushed to beat a new round of Trump tariffs.

Bessent’s predecessor, former Treasury secretary Janet Yellen, met several times with He in recent years and lodged similar complaints about China’s state-led economic policies.

She argued during a trip to China last year that those policies were leading to excess production capacity that was threatening the viability of firms in the U.S. and other market economies, a warning that laid the groundwork for former President Joe Biden’s steep tariff hikes on electric vehicles, semiconductors and solar products.

He and other Chinese officials never accepted U.S. excess capacity assertions, arguing that China’s EV and other key industries are simply more competitive.
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SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA — South Korean officials have asked the Trump administration to exclude their country from U.S. plans to impose aggressive tariffs on trade partners, emphasizing that Seoul is already applying low duties on American products under the free trade agreement between the two nations.

South Korea’s government on Friday said Deputy Trade Minister Park Jong-won made the request while traveling to Washington this week for meetings with unspecified officials from the White House, the Department of Commerce and the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative. The South Korean Trade Ministry didn’t say what Park heard from the Americans.

Park cited how South Korean companies were contributing to the U.S. economy through large-scale business investments and noted that the country was already imposing low duties on free trade partners such as the United States. He called for South Korea to be excluded from U.S. plans to establish reciprocal tariffs with trade partners and raise duties for imported steel and aluminum, the ministry said.

South Korea’s top economic think tank this month slashed its growth forecast for the country’s economy for the second time since November, expressing concern about the impact of U.S. President Donald Trump’s expanding tariffs and other measures aimed at resetting global trade.

The state-run Korea Development Institute projected the national economy to grow by 1.6% in 2025, which was 0.4 percentage points lower than its previous estimate. The group’s economists assessed that Trump’s steel and aluminum tariffs won’t likely have a major impact on South Korea’s economy, as those products account for less than 1% of its exports to the U.S. However, they expressed concern that possible increases in U.S. duties for semiconductors and cars would hurt the country’s trade-dependent economy more.

South Korea’s acting president, Choi Sang-mok, on Friday called a meeting with trade and foreign policy officials to discuss the potential impact of Trump’s trade measures, including reciprocal tariffs and possible product-specific duties for semiconductors, cars and pharmaceuticals.

Choi, who is also South Korea’s finance minister, instructed officials to examine how other major economies, including the European Union, Japan and China, are responding to Trump’s trade policies, and try harder to effectively communicate South Korea’s position to U.S. officials.

South Korea’s trade surplus with the U.S. reached $55.7 billion in 2024. According to the South Korean trade ministry, the country’s tariff rates on U.S. manufacturing imports is around zero percent. 
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U.S. small businesses are waiting to feel the effects of President Donald Trump’s executive order imposing a 25% tariff on imported steel and aluminum. Michelle Quinn reports.
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BEIJING — China has been “doing its best” to push for negotiations with the European Union over its tariffs on Chinese-made electric vehicles, a commerce ministry spokesperson said on Thursday, almost four months after the punitive import curbs took effect.

The bloc voted to increase the tariffs to as much as 45.3% in October after the European Commission — which oversees EU trade policy — launched an anti-subsidy probe into whether Chinese firms benefited from preferential grants and financing as well as land, batteries and raw materials at below market prices.

“China has been doing its best to push for negotiations with the EU,” He Yadong said. “It is hoped that the EU will take notice of the call from industry and promote bilateral investment cooperation through dialogue and consultation.”

China launched its own probes last year into imports of EU brandy, dairy and pork products.

He told reporters China’s anti-dumping probe into Europe’s pork products and anti-subsidy investigation into the 27-strong bloc’s dairy trade were still ongoing, when asked how the cases were progressing.

“We will conduct the investigation in an open and transparent manner in accordance with Chinese laws and regulations and World Trade Organization rules,” he added. China’s commerce ministry in December decided to extend its anti-dumping investigation into EU brandy imports by three months to April 5.
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NAIROBI, KENYA — Milk and egg vendor Caroline Mukundi has lost a lot of her stock in her years of selling fresh food at a Nairobi market.

Mukundi said she had no way to keep food fresh, and the cost of refrigerating was out of reach.

“The food would go bad,” she said, and she would have to throw it away. “It was a big challenge for me.”

Mukundi said her situation turned around when she acquired a solar-powered refrigerator.

The refrigerators, named Koolboks and manufactured in Kenya, are fitted with ice compartments that can chill food even without a source of power. The devices can keep food cool for up to four days without electricity, even with limited sunlight.

Customers can buy the refrigerators on a customized payment model, said Natalie Casey, chief business officer at the Koolboks startup company.

“They can be between 1,500 and 3,000 US dollars, because it includes not only the appliances but also the solar panels and battery storage to enable the continuous cooling,” she said. “We’ve decided what might be more accessible to them is to first pay a down payment between 20 and 35% of the total, and the customer can pay in installments of up to 24 months.”

Koolboks has sold about 7,000 solar-powered refrigerators.

Conventional refrigerators for businesses can cost anywhere from $11,000 to $100,000 or more, said Dorothy Otieno, program manager at the Center for Environmental Justice and Development.

“Some businesses, especially small businesses, are not able to afford it,” she said.

“We are looking at, for example, how businesses can be supported to get access to [the Koolboks refrigerators], especially for communities that are not able to afford,” she said.

The refrigerator was among dozens of innovations showcased at the recent Africa Tech Summit in Nairobi. The conference’s founder, Andrew Fassnidge, told VOA that such creations are crucial to solving local problems on the continent.

“What’s interesting with … Koolboks refrigeration is, if we look at the Covid vaccine, one of the biggest issues at the time was refrigeration, and it’s still an issue in most markets,” he said.

Koolboks markets a refrigerator specifically for vaccines.

The refrigerators could have an impact on climate change, too.

A 2024 survey by the U.N. Environmental Program showed Kenya has a high level of food waste, with annual waste ranging from 40 to 100 kilograms per person.

Environmentalists say high levels of organic waste worsen climate change, so preventing food waste can have an impact.
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Tokyo — Global shares traded mixed on Monday as investors continued to watch economic data and policy moves from U.S. President Donald Trump, as both are likely to impact upcoming central bank moves.

France’s CAC 40 dipped nearly 0.1% in early trading to 8,171.59, while Germany’s DAX added 0.4% to 22,560.00. Britain’s FTSE 100 edged up 0.1% to 8,742.97.

U.S. markets are closed on Monday for a holiday.

In Asia, Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 rose in early trading after the Cabinet Office reported that the economy grew at a better-than-expected annual rate of 2.8% in October-December, underlined by steady exports and moderate consumption. But the benchmark quickly fell back and then recovered to be little changed, finishing up less than 0.1% at 39,174.25.

On a quarter-to-quarter basis, the world’s fourth-largest economy grew 0.7% for its third straight quarter of growth. Japan marked its fourth straight year of expansion, eking out 0.1% growth last year in seasonally adjusted real gross domestic product, which measures the value of a nation’s products and services.

In other regional markets, Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 slipped 0.2% to 8,537.10. South Korea’s Kospi surged 0.8% to 2,610.42. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng reversed course, to slip less than 0.1% to 22,616.23, while the Shanghai Composite added 0.3% to 3,355.83.

Markets around the world are nervously watching what upward pressure may come from tariffs that Trump has announced recently. But analysts now think Trump may ultimately avoid triggering a punishing global trade war.

His most recent tariff announcement, for example, won’t take full effect for at least several weeks. That leaves time for Washington and other countries to negotiate.

The Federal Reserve’s goal, as well as that of the Bank of Japan, is to keep inflation at 2%.

In energy trading, benchmark U.S. crude added 28 cents to $71.02 a barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, rose 34 cents to $75.08 a barrel.

In currency trading, the U.S. dollar declined to 151.90 Japanese yen from 152.25 yen. The euro cost $1.0472, down from $1.0495.
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It’s a chicken-and-egg problem: Restaurants are struggling with record-high U.S. egg prices, but their omelets, scrambles and huevos rancheros may be part of the problem.

Breakfast is booming at U.S. eateries. First Watch, a restaurant chain that serves breakfast, brunch and lunch, nearly quadrupled its locations over the past decade to 570. Eggs Up Grill has 90 restaurants in nine southern states, up from 26 in 2018. Florida-based Another Broken Egg Café celebrated its 100th restaurant last year.

Fast-food chains are also adding more breakfast items. Starbucks, which launched egg bites in 2017, now has a breakfast menu with 12 separate items containing eggs. Wendy’s reintroduced breakfast in 2020 and offers 10 items with eggs.

Reviews website Yelp said 6,421 breakfast and brunch businesses opened in the United States last year, 23% more than in 2019.

In normal times, producers could meet the demand for all those eggs. But an ongoing bird flu outbreak, which so far has forced farms to slaughter nearly 159 million chickens, turkeys and other birds — including nearly 47 million since the start of December — is making supplies scarcer and pushing up prices. In January, the average price of eggs in the U.S. hit a record $4.95 per dozen.

The percentage of eggs that go to U.S. restaurants versus other places, like grocery stores or food manufacturers, is not publicly available. U.S. Foods, a restaurant supplier, and Cal-Maine Foods, the largest U.S. producer of shell eggs, did not respond to The Associated Press’ requests for comment.

But demand from restaurants is almost certainly growing. Foot traffic at U.S. restaurants has grown the most since 2019 for morning meals, 2019, according to market research firm Circana. Pre-lunchtime hours accounted for 21% of total restaurant visits in 2024.

Breakfast sandwiches are the most popular order during morning visits, Circana said, and 70% of the breakfast sandwiches on U.S. menus include eggs.

Eggs Up Grill CEO Ricky Richardson said breakfast restaurants took off after the COVID pandemic because people longed for comfort and connection. As inflation made food more expensive, customers saw breakfast and lunch as more affordable options for eating out, he said.

The growth in restaurant demand reverses a pattern that emerged during the pandemic, when consumers tried to stock up on eggs for home use but restaurants needed fewer of them because many of them had to close for a time, according to Brian Earnest, a lead economist for animal proteins at CoBank.

U.S. egg consumption declined for more than five decades before reaching a low of 247 per person in 2008, according to data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. As nutritional research and marketing established eggs as an inexpensive protein source instead of heart-clogging cholesterol bombs, per capita consumption of egg products grew to the equivalent of 292 fresh eggs in 2019, the data shows.

“Consumers think eggs are really fresh, so if you’re making something with eggs, you know it’s fresh,” Earnest said.

Before the pandemic reduced demand and bird flu outbreaks impacted supplies, the USDA had forecast that Americans would continue eating more eggs. By 2023, the most recent year for which annual data is available, they were down to 249 eggs per person.

Other trends have impacted the economics of eggs. To address animal rights concerns, McDonald’s and some other companies have switched to 100% cage-free eggs, which limits the sources they will buy from. Ten states, including California and Colorado, have passed laws restricting egg sales to products from cage-free environments.

“It makes the market much more complicated than it was 20 years ago,” Earnest said.

The higher prices are hitting restaurants hard. Wholesale egg prices hit a national average of $7.34 per dozen last week, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. That was 51% higher than at the beginning of the year. Wholesale costs may be higher than retail prices since grocers use eggs as a loss leader to get customers in the door.

Some chains, like Waffle House, have added a surcharge to help offset the cost of eggs. Others may turn to egg substitutes like tapioca starch for some recipes or cut egg dishes from the menu, said Phil Kafarakis, the president and CEO of the International Foodservice Manufacturers Association.

First Watch President and CEO Chris Tomasso said eggs are critical for the chain’s brand and are found in the majority of its offerings, whether at the center of the plate or as an ingredient in batters. So far, he said, the company has been able to obtain the eggs it needs and isn’t charging extra for them.

First Watch is also increasing portion sizes for non-egg items like meat and potatoes, Tomasso said.

Richardson, of Eggs Up Grill, said he recently met with franchisees to discuss adding a surcharge but they decided against it.

“Eggs have always been and will continue to be an important part of American diets,” Richardson said.
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London — China’s demand for road and air transport fuels may have passed its peak, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said Thursday, citing data showing that the country’s consumption of gasoline, gasoil and jet fuel declined marginally in 2024. 

Combined consumption of the three fuels in China last year was at 8.1 million barrels per day (bpd), which was 200,000 bpd lower than in 2021 and only narrowly above 2019 levels, the IEA said in a monthly report. 

“This strongly suggests that fuel use in the country has already reached a plateau and may even have passed its peak,” it said. 

After decades of leading global oil demand growth, China’s contribution is sputtering as it faces economic challenges as well as making a shift to electric vehicles (EVs). 

The decline in China’s fuel demand is likely to accelerate over the medium term, which would be enough to generate a plateau in total China oil demand this decade, according to the Paris-based IEA. 

“This remarkable slowdown in consumption growth has been achieved by a combination of structural changes in China’s economy and the rapid deployment of alternative transportation technologies,” the IEA said. 

A slump in China’s construction sector and weaker consumer spending reduced fuel demand in the country, it said, adding that uptake of EVs also weighed.  

New EVs currently account for half of car sales and undercut around 250,000-300,000 bpd of oil demand growth in 2024, while use of compressed and liquified natural gas in road freight displaced around 150,000 bpd, it said. 
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WASHINGTON — As his trade advisers finalized plans to enact reciprocal measures on every country that charges duties on U.S. imports, President Donald Trump announced Wednesday he will push for lower interest rates alongside his tariff policies.

“Interest Rates should be lowered, something which would go hand in hand with upcoming Tariffs!!! Lets Rock and Roll, America!!!” Trump said on social media Wednesday morning.

To maintain the Federal Reserves’ autonomy from politics, U.S. presidents traditionally avoid even the appearance of meddling in monetary policy and the nation’s interest rates, which is the purview of the central bank.

Trump, however, has not shied from the practice. In a videoconference address to the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, in January, Trump said he would “demand that interest rates drop immediately.”

“I know interest rates much better than they do,” he said of Fed officials. He has ramped up his criticism of Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, whom he appointed in 2017 for a term that ends in 2026.

Trump’s push to lower interest rates is intended to go hand in hand with punitive measures on trading partners.

The president said Wednesday afternoon that he would approve reciprocal tariffs on Wednesday or Thursday.

“We’re going to be doing reciprocal tariffs,” he said. “Very simply, if they charge us, we charge them.”

Reciprocal tariffs are “absolutely a high priority for the president,” White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett told reporters Wednesday, promising “a lot more action on it today.”

Hassett said the White House has begun negotiations with other countries early to lay the groundwork for imposing such tariffs, although he acknowledged the details about which sectors or how they will be implemented is a “work in progress.”

Under World Trade Organization rules, member countries have the right to impose tariffs on imports. Countries negotiate those rates at the WTO to determine the maximum tariff rate a member country can impose on imports from other member countries.

Inflation, looming trade war

U.S. inflation rose to 3% in January, according to government data released Wednesday. Last month, the annual pace was 2.9%.

Trump campaigned on lowering high consumer prices he blamed on his predecessor, Joe Biden. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt again attributed the increase to the previous administration.

“This is an indictment on the Biden administration’s mismanagement of the inflation crisis and their lack of transparency,” she said during her briefing Wednesday.

Trump wants to lower interest rates and inflation, she said. “He believes that the whole of government economic approach that this administration is taking will result in lower inflation.”

However, some economists warn that combining high tariffs and low interest rates will have the opposite effect.

Trump’s plan reflects a “misunderstanding of how the economy works,” said Joseph Gagnon, senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics.

“Tariffs raise prices directly, that is inflationary, but also cutting interest rates is inflationary if you do it excessively,” he told VOA. “Especially with today’s data, cutting interest rates would not be a good idea.”

During testimony Tuesday before the Senate Banking Committee, Powell said the Fed was in no rush to cut interest rates because the economy had stabilized. He noted that inflation, while still above the Fed’s 2% target, was at 2.6% last year, and he said the labor market was cooling without plummeting, with the unemployment rate at 4%.

Gagnon also warned of a looming trade war. Trump already had announced Monday his decision to impose 25% tariffs on all steel and aluminum imports beginning March 12.

The duties will hit top U.S. steel supplier Canada, followed by Brazil, Mexico, South Korea and Germany. Additionally, Canada is the leader in aluminum exports to the American market.

European Union chief Ursula von der Leyen vowed on Tuesday the move “will not go unanswered,” saying it will trigger tough countermeasures from the 27-nation bloc, potentially targeting iconic American industries such as bourbon, jeans and motorcycles. EU trade ministers are meeting Wednesday to determine their next moves.

China, Mexico and Canada

Last week, Trump imposed an additional 10% tariff on Chinese goods, which the White House said was aimed at halting the flow of fentanyl opioids and their precursor chemicals.

On Monday China began slapping retaliatory actions on some American goods, including 15% duties on coal and natural gas imports and 10% on petroleum, agricultural equipment, high-emission vehicles and pickup trucks. The country also immediately implemented restrictions on the export of certain critical minerals, and it launched an antitrust investigation into American tech giant Google.

Trump delayed enacting a 25% tariff on goods from Mexico and Canada for a month — until March 4 — to allow negotiations over his demands for the U.S. neighbors to secure their borders and stop the flow of the illegal drug fentanyl.

The duties could affect about $1.323 trillion in trade imports that come from China, Mexico and Canada, according to U.S. government data. This accounts for 43% of U.S. imports and 5% of the $27 trillion U.S. gross domestic product.

If enacted, the new import taxes on Canada, Mexico and China will increase the average tariff rate from its current level of 3% to 10.7% based on contemporary trade patterns, said Joseph Brusuelas, chief economist at financial advisory firm RSM.

“Should the trade skirmishes escalate to include the European Union and turn into an all-out trade war, expect U.S. economic growth to ease back to 2% as the tariffs drag down growth and employment, stoke inflation and widen the current account deficit, all amid higher interest rates,” he wrote on RSM’s Real Economy Blog.

VOA’s Celia Mendoza contributed to this report.
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HARARE, ZIMBABWE — Zimbabwe’s government said Wednesday it will compensate foreign investors who lost assets in the country’s controversial land reforms in the early 2000s but were protected by bilateral investment protection agreements.

Zimbabwean Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube said in a statement the government will pay 94 former farmers from countries such as Switzerland, Denmark, Germany, Netherlands and the former Yugoslavia.

The farmers are covered under Bilateral Investment Protection and Promotion Agreements, or BIPPAs, that Zimbabwe signed with the farmers’ countries.

Ncube said $20 million is being paid out of the 2024 budget and another $20 million would come from the 2025 budget.

“This is a very important issue for our arrears clearance and debt resolution process for Zimbabwe, because some of the countries for which we want support, their farmers, their investors, into Zimbabwe were affected by the land reform program in the early 2000s,” Ncube said. “But we’re only targeting those countries where the BIPPAs were ratified properly.”

The aim, he said, is to have cleared the entire $146 million liability for BIPPA farmers by the end of 2028.

“We believe that this is very important for building trust, for honoring our commitments,” he said.

Zimbabwe’s government is aiming to rebuild its financial reputation after requesting debt relief and restructuring from international financial institutions and other countries in 2022.

According to the African Development Bank, Zimbabwe’s total foreign debt is $21 billion — including interest — which it has been failing to service for years.

However, Eddie Mahembe, an independent economist based in Harare, says resettled farmers, not the government, should pay the $146 million, to prevent increasing the country’s debt.

“Why is the government paying for the farms which were allocated to individuals?” Mahembe said. “They are farming. Some are doing tobacco. They’ve been selling their tobacco over the years, and we are seeing … that there is now a move toward giving them title deals. Why is the government assuming that debt?”

Others are concerned that Harare is paying only former farmers of foreign origin. Displaced white Zimbabwean farmers want to be compensated as well, as per a 2020 agreement.

That agreement called for Harare to pay $3.5 billion to the farmers driven off their land under a program backed by then-President Robert Mugabe starting in 2000.

Trevor Gifford, former head of Zimbabwe’s Commercial Farmers Union, said, “Twenty-five years from the start of land reform in Zimbabwe, the majority of displaced title deed holders remain destitute due to the nonpayment of compensation. The government failed to honor its commitment on paying [on time] under the global compensation agreement, which is now expired.”

He said the government’s move to give title deeds to the farmers who took over the land will create confusion and keep away foreign investors.

“The issuing of title deeds on top of existing title deeds, which have still not been paid for in terms of the international norms for land reform, is reckless and does not create any confidence for prospective investments in Zimbabwe,” Gifford said.

Graham Rae was displaced from his farm about 100 kilometers east of Harare and is now farming in neighboring Zambia. He said that until he is compensated, he will not surrender title deeds to the land for which he was dispossessed.

“You can’t steal a car and then sell it to me and think you’ve washed your hands and now it’s a legal car,” Rae said. “It’s still illegal and by the mere fact that I’m buying a stolen car from you, I’m complicit in the theft, so there are going to be lots of problems. I find that fraudulent, I just find that very sad that Zimbabwe has regressed into a basket case where there’s no rule of law, and that the rule really is at the barrel of a gun — if you don’t agree, you disappear.”

For now, the Zimbabwe government says it will issue titles to the resettled farmers so that they can use them to borrow money for capitalization of their businesses.
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The latest offerings for electric vehicles take center stage at the 2025 Chicago Auto Show as some federal tax incentives could end. VOA’s Kane Farabaugh has more.
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New Chinese tariffs on a range of U.S. goods went into effect Monday, following U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision to impose a 10% tariff on Chinese products last week. Tariffs of 25% on steel and aluminum are next.

Despite the tariffs and rising tensions, both sides seem reluctant to launch into a full-on trade war, analysts say.

Beijing has its plate full battling its own internal economic struggles, and for now President Trump has deferred most of his promised tariffs on the world’s second-largest economy.

Last week, The Wall Street Journal reported that Beijing is preparing to offer to return to a so-called “Phase 1” trade deal that was signed during Trump’s first term.

The Trump administration has sent its own signals as well. 

Trump has called for the Office of the United States Trade Representative to review the first phase of the U.S.-China trade agreement and determine whether Beijing has fulfilled its commitments in the contract.

Last week, Jamieson Greer, Trump’s nominee for U.S. trade representative, said he would assess China’s compliance with the first phase of the agreement quickly upon his appointment to ensure the implementation of the deal. Greer also said he would use it as a starting point in relations with China.

What is the Phase 1 deal?

On January 15, 2020, Trump and Chinese Vice Premier Liu He signed the Phase 1 agreement, which laid out several terms for trade between the world’s two biggest economies. The deal called on the United States to cut some of its imposed tariffs on China and included a commitment from Beijing to buy more U.S. products and implement certain reforms.

The 96-page agreement, divided into eight sections, placed a big emphasis on reducing the U.S. trade deficit with China, and protecting domestic industries by cracking down on Chinese trade practices, such as nontariff trade barriers, intellectual property violations and the forced transfer of technology without adequate compensation.

The agreement mandated that China purchase at least $200 billion in U.S. products and services over a two-year period from January 1, 2020, to December 31, 2021. It also required that Beijing stop subsidizing strategic sectors and give fairer treatment to American companies in terms of regulation.

Despite those commitments from China, data from a report published in 2022 by the Peterson Institute for International Economics in Washington showed that Beijing did not reach its purchase target.

The report also showed that Beijing has completed 57% of the spending laid out in the agreement, a total that is lower than the level of China’s purchase of goods from the United States before the U.S.-China trade war.

Although China was not expected to fully meet its commitments, the agreement did have some benefits for Washington, as it helped decrease Washington’s trade deficit with Beijing.

Starting point

Analysts say the agreement may be revisited as a starting point for new trade discussions.

“The two sides need to start somewhere. Phase 1 may at least provide some common language that both sides will be familiar with so as to get that ball rolling,” Chad Brown, senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, explained to VOA in an emailed response Friday.

Denny Roy, a senior fellow at the East-West Center in Hawaii, says the Phase 1 agreement has two advantages for acting as a foundation for U.S.-China trade discussions.

“First, the two sides reached a similar agreement before, so they know it’s feasible,” he told VOA in an emailed response on Friday.

He also explained that using the agreement “suits both sides’ interests.”

“Trump wants to claim he has resolved the bilateral trade imbalance, which he sees as his primary measure of success,” he explained, noting that this agreement supports that narrative.

He added that the deal benefits Beijing by allowing China to avoid making significant structural reforms.

Roy, however, adds that several factors make an agreement between Washington and Beijing difficult.

“A major bilateral economic deal would depend on avoiding a strategic crisis, which might occur over Taiwan or the South China Sea, or an encounter between U.S. and Chinese ships or aircraft that escalates, or something like the spy balloon incident,” he said.

Early in 2023, the discovery of a Chinese spy balloon floating through U.S. airspace delayed a U.S. diplomatic visit to the country by then-Secretary of State Antony Blinken. The ballon was eventually shot down.
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Washington — President Donald Trump moved to substantially raise tariffs on steel and aluminum imports on Monday, canceling exemptions and duty-free quotas for major suppliers Canada, Mexico, Brazil and other countries in a move that could boost the risk of a multifront trade war. 

Trump signed proclamations that raised the tariff rate on aluminum imports to 25% from the previous 10% that he imposed in 2018 to aid the struggling sector. His action reinstates a 25% tariff on millions of tons of steel imports and aluminum imports that had been entering the U.S. duty free under quota deals, exemptions and thousands of product exclusions. 

The proclamations were extensions of Trump’s 2018 Section 232 national security tariffs to protect steel and aluminum makers. A White House official said the exemptions had eroded the effectiveness of these measures. 

Trump also will impose a new North American standard requiring steel imports to be “melted and poured” and aluminum to be “smelted and cast” in the region to curb imports of minimally processed Chinese steel into the U.S. 

The order also targets downstream steel products that use imported steel for tariffs. 

Trump’s trade adviser Peter Navarro said the measures would help U.S. steel and aluminum producers and shore up America’s economic and national security. 

“The steel and aluminum tariffs 2.0 will put an end to foreign dumping, boost domestic production and secure our steel and aluminum industries as the backbone and pillar industries of America’s economic and national security,” he told reporters. 

“This isn’t just about trade. It’s about ensuring that America never has to rely on foreign nations for critical industries like steel and aluminum.” 

Trump first broached the steel and aluminum action on Sunday, adding that he would also announce a further set of reciprocal tariffs later in the week, drawing warnings of retaliation from trade partners.
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ABOARD AIR FORCE ONE — U.S. President Donald Trump said Sunday that he will announce on Monday new 25% tariffs on all steel and aluminum imports into the U.S., which would come on top of existing metals duties in another major escalation of his trade policy overhaul.

Trump, speaking to reporters on Air Force One, also said he will announce reciprocal tariffs Tuesday or Wednesday, to take effect almost immediately.

Trump, during his first term, imposed tariffs of 25% on steel and 10% on aluminum, but later granted several trading partners duty-free quotas, including Canada, Mexico and Brazil.

Former President Joe Biden extended these quotas to Britain, Japan and the European Union, and U.S. steel mill capacity utilization has dropped in recent years.

White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt said that the new tariffs would come on top of the existing duties on steel and aluminum.

Trump on Friday announced that he would impose reciprocal tariffs — raising U.S. tariff rates to match those of trading partners — on many countries this week. He did not identify the countries, but the duties would be imposed “so that we’re treated evenly with other countries.”
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NEW YORK — Thinking about backyard chickens as egg prices soar? Think hard, especially in light of the bird flu outbreak.

Keeping home chickens as a pastime has continued to grow since the pandemic. But if eggs are the goal, remember that it takes planning and investment to raise the chickens and protect against bird flu. Costs might go well beyond the nationwide average of $4.15 a dozen that commercial eggs sold for in December.

“Anyone who’s done an ounce of research will very quickly understand that there are no free eggs, there are no inexpensive eggs in keeping chickens,” said Kathy Shea Mormino, a home chicken blogger and author who has about 50 of the birds at her Suffield, Connecticut, home.

“You’re going to pay more, particularly in your first several years, in your setup and in your birds. And there’s a huge learning curve on how to care for animals that are really unusual pets,” said Mormino, who has kept chickens for 15 years and calls herself the Chicken Chick.

Costs vary wildly, from about $200 to $2,000 for a coop alone. Feeders and waterers range from about $8 to $50 or more, depending on the size and type.

Bird flu has forced farmers to slaughter millions of chickens a month, contributing (along with inflation) to the steep price of commercial eggs and resulting in some scantily stocked stores around the country. The scarcity and high prices are causing some to look for a backyard alternative.

“We’ve seen a real uptick in calls recently from people wanting to start their own backyard flocks. With the egg shortages at grocery stores, many are excited about the idea of raising chickens and taking steps toward sustainability,” said Matthew Aversa, a co-owner of Winding Branch Ranch, a nonprofit sanctuary and farm animal rescue outside San Antonio.

“We adopt out whole flocks. We’re receiving at least a dozen inquiries per week,” he said.

Kate Perz, the animal science coordinator for Cornell Cooperative Extension of Suffolk County, New York, said that unlike other pandemic pastimes, raising home chickens has only grown.

“It’s not always cost-effective,” she said. “You have to really look at how many eggs you’re eating and what the cost of those are versus what you would be spending.”

There are other reasons, of course, to keep chickens at home, not the least of which is the sheer joy of their presence. Mormino and other “chickeneers,” as she calls home enthusiasts, have a coop full of tips on how to get started.

Tend to legal matters

You may be ready to dive right in. Your town may not. Mormino, who wrote The Chicken Chick’s Guide to Backyard Chickens, said the first thing to consider is whether chickens are right for you. After that, don’t assume your county, town or city will allow it.

Look up zoning and building codes yourself if you feel capable. Otherwise, consult an attorney who specializes in municipal law in your area.

Don’t rely on word of mouth or even a town worker to know the ins and outs. Is a building permit required to build a coop? Are roosters banned under noise ordinances? Sometimes, zoning codes are silent on the subject. Don’t assume that’s a green light. Many codes are “permissive use” regulations, Mormino said, essentially meaning that if the code doesn’t say you’re permitted, you’re not!

If chicken-keeping is allowed, is there a limit on how many birds? Are there restrictions on where a coop can be built in relation to neighboring property lines. Most homeowners associations have rules on animal keeping.

Mormino lives in a farming town and had a neighbor who kept three horses and a small flock of chickens, so she assumed they were legal. They weren’t. She called the town clerk’s office to ask whether a building permit was required to build a coop and was told it wasn’t. It was.

In the end, she successfully defended a lawsuit against her (she’s an attorney) and prevailed in a long battle to amend the law, legalizing backyard chickens in her town.

What about bird flu?

Bird flu is highly contagious. It spreads mostly by migrating waterfowl in their droppings. Chickens are far from immune if they spend any time free ranging or in a run without protection from wild fowl droppings.

“There’s a limited number of things that we can do because our birds live where wildlife live,” Mormino said. “People need to know if they have a bird or birds that die suddenly from some of the symptoms, they need to contact the USDA to get the postmortem exam and the birds tested for bird flu.”

Don’t bring sick birds into the house for care. That raises the risk of transmission to humans. Once the virus is confirmed, the entire flock needs to be euthanized, she and Perz said.

Symptoms of bird flu include: sudden death without any clinical signs; swelling of the head, eyelids, comb, wattles or hocks; diarrhea; stumbling or falling down; decreased egg production and/or soft-shelled or misshapen eggs; and coughing and sneezing.

Don’t feed any wildlife in areas where your chickens dwell or roam. Wash hands thoroughly after tending to chickens and dedicate a pair of shoes or boots strictly for use around them.

“The biggest mistake backyard chickeneers make is to bring new chickens into their flock that have lived someplace else. That’s the fastest way to bring disease into your chicken yard,” Mormino said.

Consider your costs

Sarah Penny has turned her 7,000-square-foot home lot in Knoxville, Tennessee, into a beautiful garden and chicken home. She has nine birds and grows more than half the food she and her 13-year-old son eat.

She’s had chickens since 2021 and estimates her startup costs at about $2,500.

Monthly costs vary based on what chickens are fed and how coops are kept. Penny, for instance, uses the deep litter method and composts from her coop, meaning she’s not mucking out her coop more than twice a year.

“But the cost of starting with backyard chickens is definitely quite expensive. I don’t know if a lot of people know that,” Penny said.

Her coop alone, which her family built themselves, cost about $2,000. It had to be outfitted to keep predators out, including rats that tunnel under the ground.

Many people start with buying hatchlings, which just got more expensive to ship via the U.S. Postal Service due to new fees. Raising hatchlings requires a chick brooder involving a separate enclosure, heat lamp, feeders and other supplies.

Penny buys a bag of feed every two weeks for $15 to $20 a bag. There’s also the cost of calcium, such as oyster shells, and grit to aid digestion if chickens are not free-ranging or getting those elements in their feed.

She estimates her monthly costs at about $60, saving a bit by also feeding her chickens healthy human leftovers. She’s careful not to include foods that are toxic for chickens, including onions, potatoes and avocados.

It’s all worth it to Penny.

“We eat a lot of eggs,” she said. “We probably go through a dozen every two days. We bake a lot. We’re an ingredient household, so the majority of our food is cooked from scratch. Eggs are a main staple for our breakfast.”
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VILNIUS — Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania said on Sunday they had successfully synchronized their electricity systems to the European continental power grid, one day after severing decades-old energy ties to Russia and Belarus.

Planned for many years, the complex switch away from the grid of their former Soviet imperial overlord is designed to integrate the three Baltic nations more closely with the European Union and to boost the region’s energy security.

“We did it!,” Latvian President Edgars Rinkevics said in a post on social media X.

After disconnecting on Saturday from the IPS/UPS network, established by the Soviet Union in the 1950s and now run by Russia, the Baltic nations cut cross-border high-voltage transmission lines in eastern Latvia, some 100 meters from the Russian border, handing out pieces of chopped wire to enthusiastic bystanders as keepsakes.

EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, herself an Estonian, earlier this week called the switch “a victory for freedom and European unity.”

The Baltic Sea region is on high alert after power cable, telecom links and gas pipeline outages between the Baltics and Sweden or Finland. All were believed to have been caused by ships dragging anchors along the seabed following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Russia has denied any involvement.

Poland and the Baltics deployed navy assets, elite police units and helicopters after an undersea power link from Finland to Estonia was damaged in December, while Lithuania’s military began drills to protect the overland connection to Poland.

Analysts say more damage to links could push power prices in the Baltics to levels not seen since the invasion of Ukraine, when energy prices soared.

The IPS/UPS grid was the final remaining link to Russia for the three countries, which re-emerged as independent nations in the early 1990s at the fall of the Soviet Union, and joined the European Union and NATO in 2004.

The three staunch supporters of Kyiv stopped purchases of power from Russia following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022 but have relied on the Russian grid to control frequencies and stabilize networks to avoid outages.
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