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.

China pledged to retaliate against Donald Trump’s latest tariff threat and mobilized state organs to send a message of resilience, raising the risk of a prolonged trade war between the world’s two largest economies, Bloomberg News reported. “The US threat to escalate tariffs on China is a mistake on top of a mistake,” the Chinese Ministry of Commerce said in a Tuesday statement, hours after the US president vowed to impose additional import taxes.

Panama’s top auditor said Hong Kong-based CK Hutchison owes hundreds of millions of dollars in unpaid fees and failed to get necessary clearances for two key Panama Canal ports, dealing a blow to plans by U.S. asset manager BlackRock to buy the ports as part of a $22.8 billion transaction, the Wall Street Journal reported. BlackRock’s acquisition of the ports situated at each end of the Panama Canal, along with some 40 other ports around the world, has become a flashpoint between the U.S. and China as the two superpowers are also squaring off in an escalating trade war.

Wall Street lenders are postponing leveraged-finance deals as investors shy away from risky transactions while global markets have been shaken in the wake of U.S. President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs, Bloomberg News reported. In the past several days, banks have pushed at least two leveraged-loan sales to the sidelines. They involve funding for HIG Capital LLC’s planned purchase of Canadian firm Converge Technology Solutions Corp. and a dividend to ITG Communications LLC owner Oaktree Capital Management. Lender commitments for both deals were due last week.

President Donald Trump on Monday threatened to impose an additional 50 percent tariff on China, escalating the tit-for-tat retaliation with Beijing that followed the White House’s sweeping import tax rollout last week, Politico reported. “If China does not withdraw its 34% increase above their already long term trading abuses by tomorrow, April 8th, 2025, the United States will impose ADDITIONAL Tariffs on China of 50%, effective April 9th,” Trump said in a Truth Social post. China was a primary target of Trump’s sweeping “Liberation Day” tariffs announced last week.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney announced a limited set of counter measures against U.S. tariffs on Thursday while calling President Donald Trump's protectionist moves a tragedy for global trade, Reuters reported. Carney said that the Canadian government will copy the U.S. approach by imposing a 25% tariff on all vehicles imported from the United States that are not compliant with the U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade deal. The new measure will apply to C$35.6 billion ($25.3 billion) worth of imports, a government spokesperson said.

Canada’s unemployment rate climbed to 6.7 per cent in March, up from 6.6 per cent the month before, as the economy lost 33,000 jobs, Statistics Canada said on Friday, the Financial Post reported. The job losses were the largest decrease in employment since January 2022. Nearly 1.5 million people were unemployed in March, up 36,000 from the previous month and 167,000 from a year ago. Employment fell in the wholesale and retail trade, information, culture and recreation, agriculture, manufacturing and construction sectors.

The Spanish government will provide 14.1 billion euros ($15.66 billion) worth of measures to help its economy weather the impact of the new U.S. tariffs, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said on Thursday, Reuters reported. The new tariffs announced by U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday have rattled markets and drew condemnation from world leaders facing an abrupt end of an era of trade liberalisation that has shaped the global order for decades. Spain, which like other European Union members was hit by U.S.

China has taken steps to restrict local companies from investing in the U.S. in a move that could give Beijing more leverage for potential trade negotiations with the Trump administration, Bloomberg News reported. Several branches of China’s top economic planning agency, the National Development and Reform Commission, have been instructed in recent weeks to hold off on registration and approval for firms that are looking to invest in the US, the people said, asking not to be identified discussing sensitive issues.

U.S. President Donald Trump's planned tariffs will be negative across the world, with the damage depending on how far they go, how long they last and whether they lead to successful negotiations, European Central Bank head Christine Lagarde said on Wednesday, Reuters reported. The Trump administration on Wednesday is set to announce "reciprocal tariffs" targeting nations that have duties on U.S. goods. That move would come after it slapped new import levies on products from Mexico, China and Canada - the top U.S. trading partners - as well as on goods including steel and autos.