Business

Subterms

    More stories

    • 88 Shares179 Views

      in US Politics

      Trump’s chaos-inducing global tariffs, explained in charts

      by

      Donald Trump’s announcement of a long slate of new tariffs on the US’s trading partners has caused chaos in global markets and threatens a global trade war and US recession.Long trailed on his election campaign, Trump’s plans were even more sweeping than many had predicted: a baseline 10% tariff on all imports and higher tariffs for key trading partners, including China and the EU.Though the tariffs won’t go into effect for a few more days, global markets have been reeling from the announcement of what’s to come.Here’s a breakdown of what the tariffs are and how they’ve affected the economy since Trump’s announcement.The new tariffsTrump’s new tariffs are twofold. First, all imported goods will be subject to a 10% universal tariff starting 5 April. Then, on 9 April, certain countries will see higher tariff rates – what Trump has deemed “reciprocal tariffs” in retaliation for tariffs the countries have placed on American exports.Keep in mind that tariffs are paid by American companies that are importing goods such as wine from Europe or microchips from Taiwan.Some of the highest tariffs will be put on imports from Asian countries, including China, India, South Korea and Japan. EU exports will also have a 20% tariff.How did the White House calculate its reciprocal tariffs? The administration said that it looked at the trade deficit between the US and a specific country as a percentage, and then considered that to be a tariff. So, for example, the value of US goods that are exported to China are 67% of the value of the Chinese goods that are imported into the US.The White House calls this definition a “tariff” placed on American goods, though a deficit and a tariff are not the same thing.It then halved the “tariff” and used that percentage to represent the new levy that the US would place on goods from that country.Canada and Mexico are notably absent from the list, despite being targets of a proposed 25% tariff. The White House said that goods covered under an existing trade agreement between the two countries will continue to have no tariffs.Targeting key trading partnersTrump and his economic advisers argue that the tariffs will strengthen US manufacturing while also lowering barriers other countries put on American goods. But the US has long been in a trade deficit, importing more goods than exporting.While increasing domestic manufacturing and relying less on foreign suppliers could strengthen the US economy in the long run, economists say that Trump’s tariffs are too aggressive and uncertain for them to actually encourage domestic investment. Instead, companies have said they will pass the cost of the tariffs on to consumers.Fear on Wall StreetMarkets immediately plummeted when exchanges started trading on Thursday morning, as Wall Street reacted to the new levies.Wall Street has been slumping for the last month as Trump introduced new tariffs and teased the ones he announced on Wednesday. All three exchanges went into correction territory in March, meaning that the indexes fell more than 10% from their recent peaks.The tariffs have also hit stock markets abroad. The UK’s FTSE 100 saw its worst day since August 2024, while markets in Japan, Hong Kong and Germany also tumbled.Leaders around the world expressed shock and frustration over the new tariffs. Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, called the tariffs “a major blow to the world economy”.“The global economy will massively suffer,” she said Thursday. “Uncertainty will spiral and trigger the rise of further protectionism. The consequences will be dire.”The new tariffs have also made the US dollar fall in value in relation to other major currencies.The strength of the US dollar is an important measure of how the US economy is seen by investors, relative to other economies. That the dollar has been falling shows that investors see instability in the US economy that is likely to last. More

    • 200 Shares139 Views

      in US Politics

      Global economy will ‘massively suffer’ from Donald Trump tariffs, Ursula von der Leyen warns – Europe live

      by

      European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen warned this morning that the global economy “will massively suffer” as a result of tariffs imposed by US president Donald Trump last night, as she said the EU was “prepared to respond.”Despite Trump’s direct attack on “pathetic” EU as he imposed 20% tariffs on the bloc, von der Leyen still expressed hopes that the relationship could “move from confrontation to negotiation,” as she warned “there seems to be no order in disorder.”But it wasn’t immediately obvious that there was any genuine prospect of that happening.Instead the EU and the individual member states are now scrambling to consider how to manage the situation.French president Emmanuel Macron has called an emergency meeting with sectors affected by Trump’s tariffs this afternoon.German economic daily Handelsblatt published new estimates this morning that the US tariffs – including 25% on car imports – could cost German carmakers BMW, Mercedes and Volkswagen as much as €11 bn given Germany is the largest EU car exporter to the US. For perspective, it’s just under a third of the total value of German automotive exports to the US at €36.8 bn.But the worry is not only about the immediate impact, but the more long term consequences of last night’s decision.Addressing Europeans directly, von der Leyen said “I know that many of you feel let down by our oldest ally,” as she stressed the need to think about what’s next.Or as Moritz Schularick, president of the Kiel Institute for the World Economy, put it to Handelsblatt:
      “There is this memorable picture of a stick that you can bend and that comes back again and again. But at some point, if you bend too much, the stick breaks.
      I believe that in terms of trust in the United States, something has broken down in recent weeks that will not come back so quickly.”
      It’s Thursday, 3 April 2025, it’s Jakub Krupa here, and this is Europe Live.Good morning. Fasten your seatbelts, it’s going to be a lively one.Rutte opens with expressing condolences about the death of four US soldiers during a Nato training in Lithuania.He then highlights the new US administration’s desire to “break the deadlock” on Ukraine with Russia, and he pointedly says that European allies step up their spending in response to demands from president Trump.Rubio thanks for his condolences and stresses that the troops’ participation in training shows that the “US is in Nato, … as active as it has ever been,” as he criticised “this hysteria and hyperbole” about the US and Nato.The United States President Trump’s made clear he supports Nato. We’re going to remain in Nato. He’s made it clear,” he says.But he adds that the US wants Nato “to be stronger, more viable” and “invest more in national security.”“[Trump] is not against Nato. He is against a Nato that does not have the capabilities that it needs to fulfil the obligations that the treaty imposes upon each and every member state,” he says.He adds that “no one expects that you’re going to be able to do this in one year or two, but the pathway has to be real.”No questions after their statements, so that’s it.Meanwhile in Brussels, US state secretary Marco Rubio is taking part in today’s Nato ministerial meeting.He is appearing at a press conference together the alliance’s secretary general Mark Rutte now.You can follow it below and I will bring you the key lines here.Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni has cancelled all her appointments on Thursday as she wants to focus on the response to Trump’s tariffs, her office said.La Repubblica reported that she had been expected to attend events in Calabria, but decided to stay in Rome instead.Earlier today, I brought you her initial response to Trump’s announcement from last night, as she opposed the decision and vowed to “do everything we can to work towards an agreement with the United States, with the aim of avoiding a trade war that would inevitably weaken the West in favor of other global players.”Meloni was the only sitting European leader to attend Trump’s inauguration in January.Elsewhere, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu is in Hungary today to meet with the country’s prime minister Viktor Orbán, and that’s despite, as AP notes, a warrant for his arrest issued by the world’s top war crimes court.Instead, Netanyahu was welcomed with military honours at the beginning of his four-day trip, and the two leaders will speak together at a press conference in Budapest later this morning.The international criminal court in The Hague, the Netherlands, issued a warrant for Netanyahu’s arrest last year over his government’s actions in the Gaza Strip. Hungary criticised it at the time as “outrageously impudent” and “cynical.”A senior aide to Orbán said today that Hungary would now move to withdraw from the court, “in accordance with the constitutional and international legal framework.”While that’s a more radical move, a number of other countries previously indicated they would allow Netanyahu to visit without arresting him, including Germany and Poland, while France claimed he had “immunity” from the court’s order.I will keep an eye on this story for you and bring you the latest.The tariff issue has put Spain’s far-right Vox party – devoted fans of Trump and his radical agenda – in something of a bind.But, reacting to news of the 20% tariffs on EU products, the party’s leader, Santiago Abascal, has chosen to blame … the EU and his political opponents in Spain.His recent post on X has more than a whiff of diversionary tactics to it. In it, he accuses Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission, Spain’s Socialist prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, and Alberto Núñez Feijóo, leader of the conservative People’s party (PP) of failing to defend the interests of the Spanish people.“The People’s party and the Socialists are dragging us into a suicidal trade war,” he wrote.“Our economy competes on unequal terms because of the ideological bureaucracy of the two-party system. And the only solution they offer is further submission to China, continued wars, and censorship of anyone who speaks out. We must expel this corrupt caste that has only brought ruin and loss of freedoms. And we will do it.”The Spanish Wine Federation (FEV) has described Trump’s imposition of a 20% tariff on EU products as a “significant blow to Spanish wineries”, for whom the US is the second largest export destination, and the No 1 export destination when it comes to sparkling wines.“The tariffs announced by the US are completely unjustified in the specific case of wine, considering that the current tariff gap between the tariffs applied by the EU and the US is minimal,” the FEV’s director general, José Luis Benítez, said on Thursday.Benítez warned that the measure would harm not only Spanish wine-makers but also US consumers, “who consume more wine than they produce”.He also pointed out that the newly announced tariffs would be particularly damaging to small and medium-sized producers, which make up 99% of Spain’s wineries, as they have less capacity to diversify their exports and are more dependent on the main export markets.The US market represents approximately 13% of Spain’s total foreign sales. In 2024, 97m litres of wine were exported for a value of around €390m.German chancellor Olaf Scholz said Trump’s decision was “fundamentally wrong” and undermined the free trade globally, as he warned that all countries “will suffer from these ill-considered decisions.”He said it amounted to “an attack on a trade system that has created prosperity all round the world, itself an American achievement.”Using similar language, German economy minister Robert Habeck said these were “the most disruptive tariff increases in 90 years,” as he warned of potentially “dramatic” effects of the US president’s decisions.Speaking at a press conference in Berlin, Habeck said it was “economically wrong” to say that the existing trading arrangements were “of detriment to the US,” as he called to reject this logic and urged nations in favour of free trade to form a united front in response.Habeck warned that the consequences of these decisions will affect the next federal government and have ramifications “far beyond Germany and beyond Europe.”]The minister also spoke about countermeasures being prepared in response. He said he was not in a position to show them or announce details yet – although he briefly waves the documents at reporters – but he insisted that “good work has been done there” to prepare for this moment.He added that he hoped Trump would buckle under pressure, but “the logical consequence is that he has to feel the pressure” from Germany, Europe and other like-minded countries.Greek finance minister Kyriakos Pierrakakis said that the fresh tariffs imposed by the US government on world trade were a historic shift towards protectionism and a deviation from how the European Union sees economic and social progress, Reuters reported.“As a country, we are in favour of free trade,” Pierrakakis said in a statement. “We hope that this chapter will last as little as possible.”French prime minister François Bayrou told reporters that Donald Trump’s tariffs marked “a catastrophe” for the global economy, and posed “an immense difficulty” for Europe.Speaking on the margins of a meeting in the French Senate, he also said the move will be “a catastrophe for the US and for US citizens.”In comments reported by BFMTV and Le Figaro, Bayrou criticised the US for turning on its allies, as he warned about “serious times” facing Europe and the West.The EU will respond in a “legitimate, proportionate and decisive way” to Donald Trump’s trade tariffs, but its strongest weapon is still “a last resort”, the head of the European parliament’s international trade committee has said.Bernd Lange, a German Social Democrat, said the EU was discussing the use of the anti-coercion instrument, which EU insiders almost inevitably describe as “the big bazooka”.The anti-coercion legislation, which entered into force in 2023, gives the EU wide leeway to impose commerce and investment sanctions against a foreign government deemed to be using trade in an attempt to browbeat countries into changing unrelated policies. The law allows the EU to use ten different kinds of retaliation against a coercive government, notably targeting services. Possible measures could include taxing tech companies, revoking banking licenses and intellectual property rights, blocking companies from public procurementIt was agreed not long after China had imposed trade restrictions on Lithuania over the Baltic state’s friendly policy towards Taiwan.Lange, who helped negotiate the law, said the EU was discussing use of this instrument – “this is of course the bazooka, the strongest measure we could take” – but it would only be used as a last resort.“This is not our first step. Using the ACI, this would really be hard escalation and therefore a last resort, but we have it.”Having renamed Trump’s so-called “liberation day”, as “inflation day”, the MEP said that the EU could target US tech giants in retaliation for tariffs, which is possible even without the anti-coercion law. “Of course if we are really on an escalation ladder, then of course we will have a look to the tech giants as well – I would say this is not the first choice.”The MEP, who travels to Washington next week, still hopes the EU can negotiate its way out of tariffs, but is not optimistic. He described the structure of the US government as “totally unclear” and that only the president and his trade adviser, Peter Navarro, controlled trade, rather than senior officials, such as the US Trade Representative, adding: “That is really a mess.”The EU has some options when considering its response to overnight announcements, including retaliating with tariffs on US goods and services and forming closer ties with other countries.The bloc has already rejected one possible option: fold your cards. But vowing retaliation is only the start.The questions are about what response the EU will have, how quickly it can be marshalled and whether divisions between member states will undermine the tough talk.The EU response will depend on how tightly its 27 member states line up behind a common strategy in a trade war that could trigger economic turmoil and job losses in Europe. An early indication should come on Monday when EU trade ministers meet to discuss the retaliation planned for this month and other measures.Nerves are building. France is worried about the fallout on its wines and spirits industry; Dublin fears an exodus of US multinationals headquartered in Ireland; and the Italian prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, has said the bloc should not act on impulse while the national industry group Confindustria has called for negotiations with the White House.Forging a common line will be critical to new forms of trade retaliation: for example, only a weighted majority of EU countries can decide whether the bloc is facing coercion from the US. That would be an outcome almost no one imagined a decade ago.The German Federation of Business, BDI, has denounced Trump’s tariffs as an “unprecedented attack” on global trade.In a statement issued this morning, it warned that “the European economy must not become a plaything of geopolitical interests” and called for a united response to the 20% tax the 27 countries now face.
      “The announced tariffs are an unprecedented attack on the international trading system, free trade, and global supply chains. The rationale for this protectionist escalation is incomprehensible. It threatens our export-oriented companies and jeopardizes prosperity, stability, jobs, innovation, and investment worldwide.
      The European Union can only act as a united front. This applies to the 27 member states as well as across sectors. The EU has its own instruments for an effective counter-reaction, which it can use decisively. We support the Commission’s strategy of remaining willing to negotiate, aware of Europe’s strengths, and responding flexibly to potential offers.
      German industry has always relied on fair competition, open markets, and cooperative relations with the United States. The EU must now strengthen its alliances with other major trading partners and should coordinate its response with them. A coordinated response is also necessary to counter diversion effects in international trade.”
      Elsewhere, Danish prime minister Mette Frederiksen continues her three-day trip to Greenland amid escalating tensions with the US over the future status of the island.Arriving yesterday, she said “it is clear that with the pressure put on Greenland by the Americans, in terms of sovereignty, borders and the future, we need to stay united.”“I have but one wish and that is to do all that I can to take care of this marvellous country and to support it at a difficult time,” Frederiksen said.She had a dinner with the new Greenlandic prime minister, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, last night, and today gets on with a full programme of meetings likely to touch on the future shape of Danish-Greenlandic relations and economic cooperation.Frederiksen also met with the outgoing prime minister Múte B. Egede who will remain a prominent figure in the new government formed after last month’s snap elections in Greenland.The talks will be a first test for Nielsen’s new administration on whether it can formulate new demands to Copenhagen and get things done in the face of US interest in the island.Frederiksen’s visit comes just days after a highly controversial trip by US vice-president JD Vance, who came over to the US Pituffik Space Base only to directly criticise Denmark for “not doing a good job at keeping Greenland safe,” and accusing it of “underinvesting in the people of Greenland and … in the security architecture” of the island.Earlier this week, Washington Post reported that the Trump administration was studying the potential costs involved should the US succeed in its plans of taking control over Greenland, including whether it could put together a more attractive financial package to compete with Denmark.The paper said that officials were also looking at what revenue to the US Treasury could be gained from the island’s natural resources.I will keep an eye on what comes out of Frederiksen’s meetings.European stock markets are now open and they’re reacting exactly as you would expect them to.The pan-European Stoxx 600 index has fallen 1.5% at the start of trading, to its lowest level in over two months.Germany’s DAX fell almost 2.5% at the start of tading in Frankfurt, while in Paris the CAC 40 is down 2.2% and Spain’s IBEX lost 1.5%.You can follow all the latest business reaction here:Norwegian prime minister Jonas Gahr Støre expressed alarm over “bad news” on US tariffs warning they were “very serious,” with Norway hit by a 15% levy on its goods imported to the US.But Støre told public broadcaster NRK that “there is an opening for negotiations here, the Americans say, and we will use that in every possible way that we can,” Reuters reported.Støre also said he would travel to Brussels on Monday to meet with senior EU officials, including European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen to discuss further steps.UK prime minister Keir Starmer told business chiefs that “clearly there will be an economic impact” from Donald Trump’s tariffs, as he insisted the government would react with “cool and calm heads,” PA news agency reported.He said “nothing is off the table” when it comes to the UK response.Starmer said the government will now focus on making decisions “guided only by our national interest” and on “putting money in the pockets of working people,” as he stressed “one of the great strengths of this nation is our ability to keep a cool head.”Here are some further quotes from Starmer, via PA:
      “Today marks a new stage in our preparation. We have a range of levers at our disposal and we will continue our work with businesses across the country to discuss their assessment of the options.”
      “Our intention remains to secure a deal, but nothing is off the table.”
      “We must rise to this challenge and that is why I’ve instructed my team to move further and faster on the changes I believe will make our economy stronger and more resilient.”
      “Because this Government will do everything necessary to defend the UK’s national interest, everything necessary to provide the foundation of security that working people need to get on with their lives.”
      “That is how we have acted and how we will continue to act: with pragmatism, cool and calm heads, focused on our national security.”
      Our political editor, Pippa Crerar, noted that Downing Street, which had been expecting a 20% rate to be imposed on the UK, expressed relief to have escaped the higher rate with lower, 10% tariffs.Keir Starmer’s more conciliatory approach to the Trump administration appeared to have paid off, she said.European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen warned of “dire consequences” for millions of people, as she said tariffs would “hurt consumers around the world.”She said there was “no clear path through the complexity and chaos that is being created as all US trading partners are hit,” but she insisted the EU’s unity “is our strength” and the bloc would be prepared to respond with calibrated countermeasures.Outgoing German economy minister Robert Habeck stressed the need for a united EU response, saying the bloc should leverage the fact it has the largest single market in the world.“Europe’s strength is our strength,” he said, adding he hoped for “a negotiated solution.”Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni called the introduction of US tariffs “wrong” as she vowed to “do everything we can to work towards an agreement with the United States, with the aim of avoiding a trade war that would inevitably weaken the West in favor of other global players.”“In any case, as always, we will act in the interest of Italy and its economy, also by discussing with other European partners,” she added.Swedish prime minister Ulf Kristersson said he “deeply regreted” the US decision, saying “we don’t want growing trade barriers” as he lauded the benefits of free trade.But he said the government was ready to respond and work with the EU to “take every opportunity to reverse these developments.”“We want to find our way back to the path of trade and cooperation together with the US,” he stressed.Irish prime minister Micheál Martin said that tariffs “benefit no one,” as he warned they are “bad for the world economy, they hurt people [and] businesses.”“My priority, and that of the government, is to protect Irish jobs and the Irish economy, and we will work with our companies … to navigate the period ahead,” he said.He said he would work with EU partners to “get on a negotiation with the US to limit the damage.”Martin also highlighted “the added value and the strength that Ireland has given to so many US companies” based there.Polish prime minister Donald Tusk posted a brief update on social media, saying: “Friendship means partnership. Partnership means really and truly reciprocal tariffs. Adequate decisions are needed.”Finnish prime minister Petteri Orpo said the tariff decisions were “concerning,” as he warned “there are no winners in a trade war.”“Businesses, consumers, and economic growth suffer. The EU is ready to respond and negotiate. We support this effort. Finland is prepared as part of the Union,” he said.European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen warned this morning that the global economy “will massively suffer” as a result of tariffs imposed by US president Donald Trump last night, as she said the EU was “prepared to respond.”Despite Trump’s direct attack on “pathetic” EU as he imposed 20% tariffs on the bloc, von der Leyen still expressed hopes that the relationship could “move from confrontation to negotiation,” as she warned “there seems to be no order in disorder.”But it wasn’t immediately obvious that there was any genuine prospect of that happening.Instead the EU and the individual member states are now scrambling to consider how to manage the situation.French president Emmanuel Macron has called an emergency meeting with sectors affected by Trump’s tariffs this afternoon.German economic daily Handelsblatt published new estimates this morning that the US tariffs – including 25% on car imports – could cost German carmakers BMW, Mercedes and Volkswagen as much as €11 bn given Germany is the largest EU car exporter to the US. For perspective, it’s just under a third of the total value of German automotive exports to the US at €36.8 bn.But the worry is not only about the immediate impact, but the more long term consequences of last night’s decision.Addressing Europeans directly, von der Leyen said “I know that many of you feel let down by our oldest ally,” as she stressed the need to think about what’s next.Or as Moritz Schularick, president of the Kiel Institute for the World Economy, put it to Handelsblatt:
      “There is this memorable picture of a stick that you can bend and that comes back again and again. But at some point, if you bend too much, the stick breaks.
      I believe that in terms of trust in the United States, something has broken down in recent weeks that will not come back so quickly.”
      It’s Thursday, 3 April 2025, it’s Jakub Krupa here, and this is Europe Live.Good morning. Fasten your seatbelts, it’s going to be a lively one. More

    • 163 Shares169 Views

      in US Politics

      Asian countries riven by war and disaster face some of steepest Trump tariffs

      by

      Developing nations in south-east Asia, including wartorn and earthquake-hit Myanmar, and several African nations are among the trading partners facing the highest tariffs set by Donald Trump.Upending decades of US trade policy and threatening to unleash a global trade war, the US president announced a raft of tariffs on Wednesday that he said were designed to stop the US economy from being “cheated”.“This is one of the most important days, in my opinion, in American history,” said Trump on Wednesday. “It’s our declaration of economic independence.”He hailed the moment as “liberation day”, but the tariffs are likely to be met with loud protests from some of the world’s weakest economies. One expert said Trump was likely to be targeting countries that received investment from China, regardless of the situation in that country. Chinese manufacturers have previously relocated to countries such as Vietnam and Cambodia not only due to lower operating costs, but also to avoid tariffs.The tariffs come as many countries in south-east Asia are already grappling with the fallout from the cuts to USAID, which provides humanitarian assistance to a region vulnerable to natural disasters and support for pro-democracy activists battling repressive regimes.Cambodia, a developing economy where 17.8% of the population live below the poverty line, according to the Asian Development Bank (ADB), is the worst-hit country in the region with a tariff rate of 49%. More than half of the country’s factories are reportedly Chinese-owned, with the countries exports dominated by garments and footwear.Next worse-hit is the landlocked south-east Asian nation of Laos, a country heavily bombed by the US during the cold war, with 48%. According to the ADB, Laos has a poverty rate of 18.3%.Not far behind is Vietnam with 46% and Myanmar, a nation reeling from a devastating earthquake on Friday, and years of civil war following a 2021 military coup, with 44%.Indonesia, the biggest economy in south-east Asia, faces a 32% tariff rate, while Thailand, the second-largest, has been hit with a rate of 36%.Major US rival and trading partner China has been hit with a 34% reciprocal tariff, on top of the 20% levy already imposed.Dr Siwage Dharma Negara, a senior fellow at the ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute in Singapore, said the tariffs on south-east Asian nations were intended to hurt China.“The administration thinks that by targeting these countries they can target Chinese investment in countries like Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Indonesia. By targeting their products maybe it will affect Chinese exports and the economy,” he said.“The real target is China but the real impact on those countries will be quite significant because this investment creates jobs and export revenue.”Tariffs on countries such as Indonesia, he said, would be counterproductive for the US, and the detail of how they would be applied remained unclear.“Some garments and footwear [companies] are American brands like Nike, or Adidas, US companies that have factories in Indonesia. Will they face the same tariffs as well?” he said.Stephen Olson, a former US trade negotiator, said countries in south-east Asia would be forced to reconsider their relationships with Washington. “A closer tilt towards China could be the result. It’s hard to have constructive, productive relations with a country that has just dropped a ton of bricks on your head,” said Olson, a visiting senior fellow at the ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute.“The world’s largest importer has now essentially hung a sign on its border saying ‘closed for business’,” he added. “We are now faced with two plausible scenarios: Either the impacted trade partners hold firm and retaliate in the hope that Trump will be forced to back down, or they look to cut deals with Trump in order to avoid the tariffs. It is unlikely that either scenario will end well.”Other nations among the hardest hit are several nations in Africa, including Lesotho – a country that Trump claimed “nobody has ever heard of” – with 50%, Madagascar with 47% and Botswana with 37%. Lesotho, a small mountainous kingdom surrounded by South Africa, has the second-highest level of HIV infection of the world, with almost one in four adults HIV-positive.In south Asia, Sri Lanka is facing a 44% tariff. In Europe, Serbia faces a 37% rate.In addition to the reciprocal tariffs on a few dozen countries, Trump will impose a 10% universal tariff on all imported goods. That tariff will go into effect on 5 April, while the reciprocal tariffs will begin on 9 April.The US president has justified the changes by saying they are retribution for countries that have long “cheated” America, and the levies will bring jobs back to the US.But economists have warned the sweeping changes will raise costs, threaten jobs, slow growth and isolate the US from a system of global trade it pioneered, and furthered over several decades.“This is how you sabotage the world’s economic engine while claiming to supercharge it,” said Nigel Green, the CEO of global financial advisory deVere Group.“The reality is stark: these tariffs will push prices higher on thousands of everyday goods – from phones to food – and that will fuel inflation at a time when it is already uncomfortably persistent.” More

    • 238 Shares109 Views

      in UK Politics

      Tariffs live: Trump unveils 10% reciprocal tariff on imports from UK and 20% on EU in global trade shake-up

      by

      Trump says America has been ripped off and raped for decadesDonald Trump slapped a 10 per cent tariff on US imports of UK goods as he set out sweeping trade levies hitting countries across the world.The US president said his “liberation day” announcement was a “declaration of economic independence”.Mr Trump confirmed that from 5am on Thursday a 25 per cent tariff would be imposed on all foreign cars imported to the US – a move which experts fear could cost 25,000 jobs in the British car industry.And he indicated tariffs of 10 per cent would apply to other products from the UK – the same level as the global “baseline” he was setting for countries around the world.Other blocs with higher tariffs on US goods were hit with tougher import taxes, including 20 per cent for the European Union.Sir Keir Starmer’s government hopes to strike an economic deal with the White House which will mitigate the impacts. But chancellor Rachel Reeves acknowledged the UK would not be “out of the woods” even if a deal could be reached.Mr Trump predicted “foreign presidents, prime ministers, kings, queens, ambassadors and everyone else” would soon be calling him to ask for exemptions from the tariffs. Analysis: Trouble ahead if Starmer fails to have UK tariff liftedThe prime minister will face some brickbats for failing to win a carve-out from tariffs with what many see as a fawning approach to Donald Trump, writes David Maddox, The Independent’s political editor.But as the world digests the stunning news of reciprocal tariffs unleashed around the globe, Sir Keir Starmer can take some satisfaction from his work and have hope that for the UK at least there is a quick resolution to this nightmare.As Downing Street was quick to point out, the 10 per cent minimum tariff being imposed on the UK is much better than others, most notably the EU. This literally is the difference between saving and losing many thousands of jobs.There have been positive noises from Downing Street that despite issues around free speech concerns from the US, the UK and America are close to a trade deal which would even see these tariffs go away.There is though a very much wait-and-see on that.So while Starmer and his ministers can take some satisfaction now from their efforts there is still a lot of work ahead and high stakes. These tariffs wipe out the chancellor Rachel Reeves’ economic headroom.A failure to get rid of them will leave the UK government in a lot of trouble.Jane Dalton3 April 2025 03:00EU manufacturers urged to move to UKAt least one Brexiteer has suggested European manufacturers move their businesses to the UK to benefit from the lower 10% tariff than the 20% in the EU.Jane Dalton3 April 2025 02:30Tariffs will drive up prices globally, warns Chambers of CommerceThe head of the British Chambers of Commerce says the new tariffs will wreak havoc on business communities globally, driving up prices, but that retaliatory tariffs should be only a last resort.Shevaun Haviland, director general, said: “The Government has kept a cool head so far and must continue to negotiate. This is a marathon not a sprint, and getting the best deal for the UK is what matters most.“But no-one will escape the fallout from these decisions, there will be an increased risk of trade diversion, and it will wreak havoc on business communities across the world. Orders will drop, prices will rise, and global economic demand will be weaker as a result. This is a lose-lose situation for everyone.“So, it is vitally important that the government does not give up on negotiations. Tariffs can be lifted at any time and the US has signalled its willingness to do some form of deal with us.“The UK is not without influence, our bilateral trade with the US is worth £300 billion, we have £500 billion invested there and it has £700 billion tied up in our economy. There is a high-level of co-dependency and we are speaking to businesses across the UK on options for Government to consider.”She said decisions on taxes would need to be taken very carefully, and the government should keep everything on the table during talks, but retaliatory tariffs should only be a last resort. “Many firms, especially SMEs, will now be facing difficult decisions and we urge government to do all it can to provide practical support to them.”Jane Dalton3 April 2025 02:00How Trump’s tariff plan will workJane Dalton3 April 2025 01:30No escape for UK as Trump targets ‘foreign cheaters’ in new global trade warJane Dalton3 April 2025 01:00Trump claims US industry ‘reborn’ – full report Jane Dalton3 April 2025 00:28Trade war would weaken West, warns Italian PM Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni said Mr Trump’s new tariffs were wrong, and that she hoped to work with the US and Europe to avoid a trade war that would weaken the West.Belgium EU SummitJane Dalton2 April 2025 23:58Lower levy saving thousands of jobs, No 10 saysThe prime minister’s office hinted at relief that the announcement wasn’t worse.A Downing Street source said: “We don’t want any tariffs at all, but a lower levy than others vindicates our approach.”It matters because the difference between 10% and 20% is thousands of jobs.”We will keep negotiating, keep cool and keep calm. We want to negotiate a sustainable trade deal, and of course to get tariffs lowered. Tomorrow we will continue with that work.”No immediate retaliatory measures are expected from the government as it focuses on trying to strike the hoped-for economic deal with the US.But experts say more than 25,000 UK car manufacturing jobs could be at risk from the 25% tariff on cars. Make UK is calling on the Government to launch a long-term industrial strategy which has advanced manufacturing at its heart (Owen Humphreys/PA) More

    • 188 Shares129 Views

      in US Politics

      Trump goes full gameshow host to push his tariff plan – and nobody’s a winner

      by

      It was Jeopardy!, or The Price Is Right, come to Washington.On an unseasonably chilly day in the White House Rose Garden, Donald Trump stood with a giant chart listing which reciprocal tariffs he would impose on China, the European Union, the United Kingdom and other hapless contestants.The winner?Trump, of course, the maestro of fake populism, watched by a crowd that included men in hard hats and fluorescent construction worker vests.The losers?Everybody else.Sensing a bad headline, Trump hadn’t wanted his “liberation day” to coincide with April Fools’ Day, so he waited until 2 April to enter his fool’s paradise. It turned out to be liberation for his decades-old grievances about the US getting ripped off as Trump stuck two fingers up at the world.“For decades, our country has been looted, pillaged, raped and plundered by nations near and far – both friend and foe alike,” the president said against a backdrop of nine giant US flags on the White House colonnade. “Foreign cheaters have ransacked our factories, and foreign scavengers have torn apart our once beautiful American dream.”He nodded to American steelworkers, car-workers, farmers and craftspeople in the audience. These blue-collar workers have been central to Trump’s political rise. Their industrial towns in the midwest and elsewhere were hollowed out by the trade policies of Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton, which sent thousands of jobs abroad where labour was cheaper.Trump couldn’t quite bring himself to say that “liberation day” represents a final repudiation of Reagan, still a god in Republican circles. But he did drive a stake through the heart of the 1994 North American Free Trade Agreement, or Nafta, describing it as “the worst trade deal ever made”.In 2016’s great revolt against globalization, the forgotten workers could have voted for the leftwing populism of Bernie Sanders, but he lost the Democratic party nomination to Hillary Clinton.Instead, enough went for Trump to make him president, believing his promises that he alone could fix it, end American carnage and get the factories throbbing again. As it turned out, he delivered a $1.5tn bill that slashed taxes for corporations and the wealthy.Many workers duly switched back to the Democrats, with Joe Biden in 2020. He did pour money into manufacturing – for example, with the Chips and Science Act, a bipartisan bill investing $52bn to revitalize the semiconductor industry.Yet in 2024 the pendulum swung again.Somehow a Manhattan billionaire with a criminal record again persuaded blue-collar workers that he was on their side. He claimed he could wave tariffs (taxes on foreign imports), which he has described as the most beautiful word in the English language, like a magic wand.In reality, experts say, it will result in higher prices and slower growth. The Ontario premier Doug Ford called this not liberation day but termination day because of all the jobs that will be lost. Trump playing with tariffs is like a child playing with matches.As he prepared to sign an executive order imposing reciprocal tariffs on about 60 countries, he mused that it was payback time: “Reciprocal: that means they do it to us and we do it to them. Very simple. Can’t get any simpler than that. This is one of the most important days, in my opinion, in American history. It’s our declaration of economic independence.”It was a strange message to hear from the leader of the wealthiest, most powerful country in the world as he slapped tariffs on the likes of Ethiopia, Haiti and Lesotho.“For years, hardworking American citizens were forced to sit on the sidelines as other nations got rich and powerful, much of it at our expense. But now it’s our turn to prosper … Today we’re standing up for the American worker and we are finally putting America first,” he said.View image in fullscreenEven then, Trump claimed he was being kind by not going “full reciprocal”. He summoned his commerce secretary, Howard Lutnick, to bring the chart to the podium and, as if it were a gameshow, began running through the scores on the doors:“China, first row. China, 67%. That’s tariffs charged to the USA, including currency manipulation and trade barriers. So 67%, so we’re going to be charging a discounted reciprocal tariff of 34%. I think in other words, they charge us, we charge them, we charge them less. So how can anybody be upset?“European Union, they’re very tough – very, very tough traders. You know, you think of the European Union, very friendly. They rip us off. It’s so sad to say, it’s so pathetic. Thirty-nine percent. We’re going to charge them 20%, so we’re charging them essentially half.“Vietnam: great negotiators, great people, they like me. I like them. The problem is they charge us 90%. We’re going to charge them 46% tariff.”And so on to Taiwan, Japan (“very, very tough, great people”), Switzerland, Indonesia, Malaysia and Cambodia: “United Kingdom, 10%, and we’ll go 10%, so we’ll do the same thing.”Once he’d gone through the figures, Trump rambled, as he tends to do, as if at a campaign rally: “The price of eggs dropped now 59%, and they’re going down more, and the availability is fantastic. They were saying that for Easter, please don’t use eggs. Could you use plastic eggs? I said, we don’t want to do that.”And: “It’s such an old-fashioned term but a beautiful term: groceries. It sort of says a bag with different things in it. Groceries went through the roof and I campaigned on that. I talked about the word ‘groceries’ for a lot, and energy costs now are down. Groceries are down.”In other words, everything is going great despite Signalgate, despite disappointing election results on Tuesday, despite a falling stock market and sapping consumer confidence. Now, a global trade war, too. The US is about to discover the one thing more dangerous than a politician who believes in nothing is a politician who believes in something stupid. More

    • 138 Shares129 Views

      in US Politics

      Trump announces sweeping new tariffs, upending decades of US trade policy

      by

      Donald Trump announced sweeping tariffs on some of its largest trading partners on Wednesday, upending decades of US trade policy and threatening to unleash a global trade war on what he has dubbed “liberation day”.Trump said he will impose a 10% universal tariff on all imported foreign goods in addition to “reciprocal tariffs” on a few dozen countries, charging additional duties onto countries that Trump claims have “cheated” America.The 10% universal tariff will go into effect on 5 April while the reciprocal tariffs will begin on 9 April.“This is one of the most important days, in my opinion, in American history,” Trump said, in a long-winded speech on the White House lawn. For decades America had been “looted, pillaged and raped” by its trading partners, he said. “In many cases, the friend is worse than the foe.”Over the past few months, Trump has rattled global stock markets, alarmed corporate executives and economists, and triggered heated rows with the US’s largest trading partners by announcing and delaying plans to impose tariffs on foreign imports several times since taking office.But for the start of what appears to be a dramatic shift in American trade policy, one that could cause ricochets in the global economy, Trump tried to sell the tariffs with a celebratory tone.Nine giant US flags flanked Trump onstage in the Rose Garden, as the president spoke in front of his cabinet and a crowd of union workers wearing hard hats and fluorescent construction worker vests. Before Trump came onstage, a marine band played celebratory music to excite the crowd.At one point, Trump paused his speech to throw a Maga hat into the crowd. In the next breath, he announced the 10% universal baseline tariff.In the middle of his hour-long speech, the president displayed a chart that showed the “unfair” fees that countries placed on the US, alongside the new “USA Discounted Reciprocal Tariffs”. China charged the US 67% in “unfair” fees, and said the US would now levy a 34% fee. The EU charges 39% on imports, according to the White House, and will now be levied at 20%. Trump said the UK would be charged 10% – the baseline tariff – equal to the Trump administration’s calculations of the UK’s fees on US imports.Special exceptions were made for Canada and Mexico, though the countries were previously targets of proposed broad tariffs. The White House said that goods covered by an existing trade deal with Canada and Mexico will continue to see no tariffs.Trump said the tariff calculations also include “currency manipulation and trade barriers”, though the White House has not elaborated on how it calculated the new tariffs.It appears Trump has zeroed in on the industry-specific tariffs the countries have placed on American exports. In his speech, Trump criticized policies like the EU’s ban on imported chicken, Canadian tariffs on dairy and Japan’s levies on rice.Trump said the US would charge half of the fees he feels trading partners unfairly impose on the US because the US people are “very kind”. The countries have “placed massive tariffs on [US] products and created non-monetary tariffs to decimate our industries”, Trump said, calling them “common sense reciprocal tariffs”.“Reciprocal: that means they do it to us and we do it to them. Very simple, can’t get any more simple than that,” he said. “This indeed will be the golden age of America,” he said.Trump was ultimately following through with a promise he made during the election: on the campaign trail, Trump floated the idea of a 10% universal tariff on all imported goods.The new tariffs come on top of a lineup of levies that Trump has already implemented: an additional 20% tariff on all Chinese imports and a 25% tariff on all steel and aluminum imports. There is also a 10% tariff on energy imports from Canada.skip past newsletter promotionafter newsletter promotionTrump also announced in March a 25% tariff on all imported vehicles and, eventually, imported auto parts, which will start going into effect on Thursday.“These tariffs are going to give us growth like you’ve never seen before, and it’ll be something very special to watch,” Trump said.Trump has made clear the goals he wants to accomplish through his tariffs: bring manufacturing back to the US; respond to unfair trade policies from other countries; increase tax revenue; and incentivize crackdowns on migration and drug trafficking. But the implementation of his tariffs has so far have been haphazard, with multiple rollbacks and delays, and vague promises that have yet to come to fruitionBut the threats have soured US relations with its largest trading partners. Canada’s prime minister, Mark Carney, has called them “unjustified” and pledged to retaliate. The European Union has said it has a “strong plan” to retaliate. Other retaliatory tariffs could eventually lead to higher prices that would hurt American exporters.The US stock market closed slightly up on Wednesday, ahead of Trump’s announcement, with a slight boost from news that Elon Musk may step away from his role in the White House soon to focus on his businesses.Even with the slight upswing, two of the three major stock exchanges saw their worst quarter in over two years after Monday marked the end of the first quarter.In March, consumer confidence plunged to its lowest level in over four years. Polls have shown that tariffs are unpopular with Americans, including Republicans. Only 28% of people in a poll from Marquette Law School released Wednesday said that tariffs help the economy.The uncertainty around Trump’s tariff policies have increased the likelihood of a recession, according to recent forecasts from economists at Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan and other banks. More

    • 213 Shares139 Views

      in UK Politics

      Trump tariffs latest: Starmer insists UK ‘ruling nothing out’ as president prepares to spark global trade war

      by

      Starmer: UK ‘preparing for all eventualities’ ahead of Trump tariff announcementSir Keir Starmer has said the UK is “preparing for all eventualities” and “ruling nothing out” as global stock markets nervously await the imposition of Donald Trump’s so-called “Liberation Day” import tariffs.Asian and European stocks stuttered on Wednesday morning amid fears from investors and world leaders that Mr Trump’s plans could intensify a global trade war. Germany saw the biggest dip as the DAX fell 1.3 per cent by midday, with the UK’s FTSE100 also down 0.8 per cent.The White House has provided no details about the size and scope of Mr Trump’s trade barriers, which he is set to announce at 9pm, after which reciprocal tariffs on countries imposing duties on US goods will immediately take effect. As analysts at the leading IPPR think-tank warned that tariffs could “completely destabilise the UK car manufacturing industry” and put 25,000 UK jobs at risk, Sir Keir told MPs that a trade war with the US is “in nobody’s interest”.“The country deserves – and we will take – a calm, pragmatic approach,” Sir Keir told the Commons, adding: “Our decisions will always be guided by our national interest, and that’s why we have prepared for all eventualities – and we will rule nothing out.”Reeves argues US tariffs on UK would be ‘less relevant’ to UK than global tariffsRachel Reeves has argued that US tariffs on the UK would be “less relevant” to the UK than global tariffs.The chancellor told the Treasury Committee today: “Obviously we are looking ourselves at a whole range of scenarios and preparing for all different eventualities.”She continued: “The biggest impact comes from global tariffs, not just UK. The next biggest comes from retaliation. Actually the specific tariffs on the UK are less relevant on growth and inflation impact than global impact.”She added: “Even if we are able to secure an agreement with the US, that we very much want to achieve and are working hard to achieve, even if that’s possible, that doesn’t mean we are out of woods and not impacted by tarriffs.”Tara Cobham2 April 2025 15:48Comment | It will take Starmer’s greatest skill to deal with Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’ – but victory is possibleOur political columnist Andrew Grice writes:When Donald Trump confirms that he is imposing tariffs on imports from the UK, it will appear to be a huge setback for Keir Starmer. Yet, the prime minister can still turn a diplomatic defeat into victory.Until recent days, Starmer had high hopes of freeing the UK from the worst effects of Trump’s “Liberation Day.” A hastily struck US-UK “economic prosperity deal,” based on advanced technology and services, was ready to go and would have given the UK a carve-out from most Trump tariffs, UK officials told me.It would have been a coup for Starmer. Instead, his softly softly strategy on Trump will now be called into question – both at home, where he will be accused of not standing up to the US president, and abroad, where natural allies like the EU and Canada will urge the UK to join their retaliation against the US.At some points during the hasty negotiations, US officials hinted they were happy with the outline deal on the table. But the only view that mattered was Trump’s, and even his closest advisers didn’t know which way he would jump.As ever, events are more about Trump’s vanity than the eventual outcome. This is surely why he didn’t sign off on the UK agreement. “He wanted his ‘shock and awe’ moment,” one Whitehall source told me.Read more insights here with Independent Premium:Andy Gregory2 April 2025 15:46Reeves issues warning to Trump: ‘It would not be the right policy to increase tariffs on us’Rachel Reeves has warned “it would not be the right policy to increase tariffs on us” as she is questioned over Donald Trump’s tariffs.The chancellor told the Treasury Committee today: “I do recognise the concerns the US has, their concerns are about a global trade imbalance… The UK is not cause of those problems… So it would not the right policy to increase tariffs on us.”Rachel Reeves has warned ‘it would not be the right policy to increase tariffs on us’ as she is questioned over Donald Trump’s tariffs More

    • 138 Shares119 Views

      in US Politics

      Trump’s ‘liberation day’ tariffs: what’s at stake for UK and EU?

      by

      The EU and the UK are bracing for a damaging trade war with the US, as Donald Trump is expected to implement his threat to impose tariffs on imports from Europe.For weeks, he has named 2 April “liberation day”, with the unveiling of a tariff plan to reverse what he called “unfair practices that have been ripping off our country for decades”.What tariffs are expected?A 20% blanket tariff on nearly all imports to the US has been drafted by Trump’s aides.However, EU and UK leaders are concerned about the possibility of sectoral tariffs, as well as permanent levies he may impose to counter Europe’s VAT rates, which he considers a de facto tax.Trump, who once challenged the then German chancellor Angela Merkel for not ensuring there were more Chevrolets in Munich, has already announced tariffs on cars starting on 3 April.Will the UK be spared?The relative warmth Trump showed Keir Starmer in the Oval Office last month is unlikely to protect the UK, with tariffs expected on “all countries”. However, the UK has been racing to agree a deal, with the business secretary, Jonathan Reynolds, suggesting that if any country can secure a carve-out, Britain could.On Tuesday, Starmer said businesses did not want a tit-for-tat war. Instead of a “kneejerk” reaction, he would respond in a “calm and collected” manner.He hoped a trade deal, something that eluded a succession of UK governments over decades, would “mitigate” the impact of tariffs. The UK was this time seeking a much narrower “economic prosperity deal” rather than a more comprehensive “free trade agreement”.Although this would be far less expansive in scope, the hope is that it should be quicker to agree.Does Trump really hate Europe?European leaders were alarmed by the attacks on Europe by the vice-president, JD Vance, but Trump has been notably less visceral, confining his interests to defence and the trade imbalance.He has complained that the US was “ripped off by every country in the world” and that he was “not happy with the EU” as a place to do business. His exclusion of the EU in talks over Ukraine has ruptured the higher-level geopolitical transatlantic relationship.How will the EU react?Strongly. The EU has already announced a string of tariffs it plans to introduce on US imports targeting steel and aluminium in kind, as well as textiles, leather goods, home appliances, house tools, plastics and wood.Sources say it is also considering nuclear options, including tariffs on revenues generated in the EU by big tech firms and social media.This could be seen as highly provocative and would put Trump’s allies, such as Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos, in the crosshairs. It would also test the unity of the EU, with Ireland expected to argue against more punitive measures because of the dominance of the US tech sector in Dublin.The EU’s preference is to negotiate so it has decided to delay countermeasures to open a space for talks. Maroš Šefčovič, the European commissioner for trade and economic security, has already met the US commerce secretary, Howard Lutnick, and, although Šefčovič reportedly came home last week “empty handed”, he is operating the Brexit playbook, hoping to build a personal relationship that will provide credit in the bank when they get down to talks.Why not enter immediate negotiations?One EU official said there was no point negotiating with the US at this stage, saying it would be like arguing over rotten fish.“It is not very productive to now start negotiating about removing the tariffs,” the official said. “You put a stinking fish on the table, and then you start negotiating to remove that stinking fish, and then you say: ‘Wow, we have a great result: there’s no stinking fish on the table.’ That is not a very productive conversation.”Trade experts also say negotiations with the US would involve agreeing a strategy between 27 different member states, which could be tricky given the potential for splits between countries, as EU states negotiate trade deals as a unified bloc.What is Trump’s game plan?Trump has been obsessed with tariffs since the 1980s, when he railed against the Japanese buying up real restate in the US, an open economy, but with US investors unable to reciprocate in Tokyo.His goal is to reindustrialise the US and to repatriate jobs and taxes he thinks US companies should be paying at home rather than abroad. While currently at a 21% corporate tax rate, the US for a long time operated at a 35% corporate tax rate, pushing some of its biggest companies to push for lower taxes.To revive local industry, Trump wants to shorten the supply chain and make sure more components are manufactured locally.What does the data on trade show?The US is the largest importer of goods in the world, buying $3tn-worth of products in 2023. Its largest trade deficit is with China, from where it imports $279bn more than it exports, followed by the EU at $208bn.EU-US trade is worth €1.6tn but only three countries – Ireland, Germany and Italy – enjoy a surplus in goods trade.Germany’s trade surplus in goods was €57bn in 2023, according to official US data. In 2023, Germany sold €144bn-worth of goods to the US, of which €22bn was on cars. By contrast, the US sold €87bn-worth of goods to Germany, including €8.25bn-worth of cars.Ireland has the second-largest trade imbalance, a surplus of €50bn largely caused by the export of pharmaceuticals to the US from large US multinationals. But it has been consistently singled out by Trump and is seen as highly exposed.Italyhas a trade surplus of €41bn, selling about €65bn-worth of goods to the US. Packaged medicines and cars account for about €5bn and €4.66bn of all exports respectively.The UK has a more balanced relationship with the US. The US is Britain’s largest single-export market, worth £60.4bn in goods in 2023, accounting for 15.3% of the global total. The UK imported £57.9bn in goods from the US.How is business reacting?The US markets are spooked, with S&P 500 and Nasdaq closing March trade with their worst quarter performance since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.The EU is presenting itself as a safe haven. “I do think investors at the moment are re-evaluating the EU and investing in the European Union. I think there’s a growing appreciation of the value of predictability and order on the global stage,” said Paschal Donohoe, Ireland’s finance minister.So far this year, the pan-European Stoxx 600 index has gained 6.4%, while the US S&P 500 index has lost 5% and had its worst quarter since 2022. More