Headlines

China on Wednesday announced an additional 50% retaliatory tariff on all U.S. imports, bringing the total tariff level to 84%, NPR.org reported. The measures are a response to President Trump's latest round of tariffs, which went into effect overnight, and include a 104% levy on Chinese goods. The Chinese finance ministry says the new charges will take effect at midnight in China, or Wednesday noon Eastern time. "The US's practice of escalating tariffs on China is a mistake on top of a mistake," the ministry said in a statement announcing the fresh round of levies. China calls on the U.S.

European Union member states voted Wednesday to approve retaliatory tariffs on $23 billion in goods in response to U.S. President Donald Trump’s 25% tariffs on imported steel and aluminum, as the largest U.S. trading partner described them as “unjustified and damaging," the Associated Press reported. The tariffs will go into effect in stages, with some on April 15 and others on May 15 and Dec. 1. The EU executive commission didn’t immediately provide a list of the goods. Members of the 27-country bloc repeated their preference for a negotiated deal to settle trade issues.

U.S. trade tariffs could lead to layoffs in French industries worst affected by the steep duties, a government minister warned, the Wall Street Journal reported. Job losses are “a risk,” industry minister Marc Ferracci told radio station France Inter on Wednesday. “If the U.S. tariffs are made to last, there will be an impact on jobs,” he said. “In terms of numbers, it’s difficult to assess the impact,” which will depend on exporters’ ability to translate tariff costs into higher prices, or absorb them into their margins, he said.

Risks of a hit to the global economy and further sharp falls in financial markets have grown due to U.S. President Donald Trump's import tariffs and the UK is exposed to the fallout, the Bank of England said, Reuters reported. "The probability of adverse events, and the potential severity of their impact has risen," the BoE's Financial Policy Committee said on Wednesday. A major shift in global trade could damage the financial system by weakening economic growth, the FPC said in a summary of a two-day meeting which ended on Tuesday.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) lowered its key repo rate on Wednesday for a second consecutive time and changed its monetary policy stance signaling room for more cuts ahead, as it seeks to boost the sluggish economy in the face of fresh U.S. tariffs, Reuters reported. India became the second central bank after the Reserve Bank of New Zealand to cut interest rates since the wide-ranging trade levies were announced. The tariffs have raised the risk of a global slowdown and a U.S.

The European Central Bank should lower its key interest rate in response to the recent rise in U.S. tariffs, the head of the Bank of France said in an interview published today, the Wall Street Journal reported. U.S. President Trump last week imposed additional tariffs of 20% on imports from the European Union, adding to new duties on automobiles, aluminum and steel. Economists say that is likely to weaken growth in the eurozone as exports cool. “There is still room for rate cuts,” Francois Villeroy de Galhau told French newspaper Le Monde.

South Korea on Wednesday announced emergency support measures for its auto sector, seeking to reduce the blow of U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs on a sector that has seen years of sharply rising exports to the United States, Reuters reported. The measures include financial support for the auto industry as well as tax cuts and subsidies to boost domestic demand, while the government also vowed efforts to negotiate with the U.S. and help expand markets. Trump has announced a 25% tariff on imported cars and light trucks starting on Thursday.

China’s electric vehicle boom is masking lopsided economic gains, with manufacturing hubs that rely on foreign carmakers falling behind cities that are home to hugely popular domestic brands like BYD Co., Bloomberg News reported. No city exhibits how quickly the tide can turn better than Guangzhou, where auto manufacturing accounts for about a quarter of economic output. The capital of Guangdong, China’s wealthiest province, was the country’s biggest car producer for five years running, buoyed by state-owned Guangzhou Automobile Group Co.’s joint ventures with Toyota Motor Corp.

As MG Non-Life Insurance was declared insolvent this week, its ripple effects could now adversely influence the pre-arranged sale of KDB Life to JC Partners, a major shareholder of MG Non-Life, the Korea Times reported. During its regular meeting on Wednesday, the Financial Services Commission (FSC) decided to designate MG Non-Life as an insolvent financial institution, given that its debt exceeded its capital by 113.9 billion won ($92.9 million).

A subsidiary of a Hong Kong conglomerate that is embroiled in U.S.-China tensions over its Panama Canal port assets denied allegations Wednesday that it had failed to pay about $1.2 billion to the Central American country, the Associated Press reported. Panama’s comptroller authority announced on Monday that an audit of Panama Ports Company found irregularities in the renewal of a 25-year port concession in the interoceanic canal. The authority's accusations came the same day as U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's arrival in the country to participate in a security conference.