Author: News Room

As President Trump ratcheted up new tariffs on goods from China to 125 percent this week, the mood in the dusty streets and small factories of southeastern China was a mixture of anger, worry and resolve.Thousands of export-oriented small factories in or near Guangzhou, the commercial hub of southeastern China, have played a central role in the country’s rapid economic development over the past half century. Quick to supply almost any manufactured product at a low cost, they employ millions of migrant workers from all over China.Now many of these small factories, cornerstones of the Chinese economy, are confronting difficult…

President Trump began his Wednesday with some advice for those rattled by his steep tariffs.“BE COOL,” Mr. Trump told his followers on social media after the markets opened. Just a couple of minutes later he wrote, “THIS IS A GREAT TIME TO BUY!!!”Hours after that, Mr. Trump sent the markets soaring when he paused the levies for 90 days. The S&P 500 climbed several percentage points in a matter of minutes and was on its way to its best day since the recovery of the 2008 financial crisis.Soon after Mr. Trump’s pause, Democrats and government ethics experts asked the perhaps…

Following President Trump’s decision to pause punishing tariffs on dozens of countries, markets in Asia reacted predictably: Stocks soared in the countries that were spared.In early trading on Thursday, benchmark indexes rose more than 9 percent in Taiwan, 8 percent in Japan and 5 percent in South Korea. All three Asian economies were among the U.S. trading partners given a 90-day reprieve from Mr. Trump’s so-called reciprocal tariffs.While the U.S. allies won’t immediately face the 24 percent to 32 percent tariffs the Trump Administration had previously threatened, they will still be subject to a lower rate of 10 percent. That…

For years, the U.S. government has warned travelers they will soon need a Real ID to board domestic flights, only to keep postponing the deadline. But “soon” appears to be real this time.As of May 7, a standard driver’s license or state ID will no longer pass muster at airport security checkpoints, the Department of Homeland Security says. Passengers will instead need to present a security-enhanced, star-emblazoned Real ID or another approved form of identification like a passport.The change, nearly 20 years in the making, is meant to enhance security by setting a more consistent standard for state-issued documentation, according…

President Trump on Wednesday abruptly reversed course on steep global tariffs that have roiled markets, upset members of his own party and raised fears of a recession. Just hours after he put punishing levies into place on nearly 60 countries, the president said he would pause them for 90 days.But Mr. Trump did not extend that pause to China, opting instead to raise tariffs again on all Chinese imports, bringing those taxes to a whopping 125 percent. That decision came after Beijing raised its levies on American goods to 84 percent on Wednesday afternoon in an escalating tit-for-tat between the…

The battle of billionaires in space between Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk has entered a new arena: satellite internet.Amazon, the company that Mr. Bezos started as an online bookseller three decades ago, is now a merchandising behemoth, the owner of the James Bond franchise, a seller of electronic gadgets like Echo smart speakers and one of the most powerful providers of cloud computing.So perhaps it is not a surprise that Amazon is now launching the first few of thousands of satellites known as Project Kuiper to provide another option for remaining connected in the modern world. The market for beaming…

The House of Representatives on Tuesday approved resolutions striking down a $5 cap on most bank overdraft fees and overturning a rule that would have given a federal regulator greater oversight powers over payment apps run by large technology companies.The overdraft fee limit was struck down 217 to 211, with Representative Ryan Mackenzie of Pennsylvania as the lone Republican to join the Democrats’ dissent.The rule granting the government supervision over technology companies’ payment apps was overturned 219 to 211, on party-line votes, with Republicans voting to eliminate the rule and Democrats united in opposition.The Senate approved parallel resolutions last month,…

The 25 percent tariff Canada began collecting on cars and trucks imported from the United States early Wednesday is not just the country’s latest act of retaliation against tariffs imposed by President Trump on Canadian exports. The estimated 8 billion Canadian dollars a year, about $5.7 billion, that those levies are expected to generate will also bankroll help for companies and workers now under economic threat from the United States.With no obvious or immediate end in sight to Mr. Trump’s tariffs push, Canada is now turning its attention on how to lessen the impact of the job losses, plant closings…

Delta Air Lines on Wednesday became one of the largest American companies to warn that President Trump’s escalating trade war was weighing on its business and the global economy.Speaking before Mr. Trump reversed many of the tariffs he had just imposed on most countries, Delta’s chief executive, Ed Bastian, said a recession was possible as companies pulled back spending. “Everyone’s being prepared for uncertainty,” he told CNBC, “if that continues, and we don’t get resolution soon, we will probably end up in a recession.”Mr. Trump’s announcement helped send Delta stock up over 20 percent on Wednesday and prompted a broad…

For the second year in a row, Trader Joe’s has brought a Black Friday-like frenzy to its stores. But instead of lining up for a new video game console or Taylor Swift vinyl, customers are waiting their turn to buy miniature tote bags bearing the grocery chain’s logo for $2.99.Some people camped out in front of stores hours before they opened, while others sent friends to grab the exclusive item for them. On a few occasions, people appeared to wrestle or get into physical altercations over the 11-by-13-inch canvas bags, videos on social media showed.Kevin Burgoon, an employee at a…