Friday, April 4, 2025

BIG Wrap

Trump tariffs trigger stock selloff as China, EU vow to hit back

(BBC News) Global stocks sunk a day after President Donald Trump announced sweeping new tariffs that are forecast to raise prices and weigh on growth in the US and abroad. Stock markets in the Asia-Pacific region fell for a second day, hot on the heels of the US S&P 500, which had its worst day since COVID caused an economic shock in 2020. Nike, Apple and Target were among big consumer names worst hit, all of...

Greece launches $27-billion rearmament program

(Al Jazeera Media Network) Greece on Wednesday became the first European Union member to take advantage of relaxed spending rules for defence, announcing a $27-billion, multi-year rearmament program. The centrepiece of the program is a multi-layered defence system called the Shield of Achilles, which Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis told parliament was “essentially a dome combining existing air defences with new systems, offering protection on five levels – anti-missile, anti-ballistic, anti-aircraft, anti-ship, anti-submarine and anti-drone”. It was Greece’s...

Trump announces widespread tariffs on ‘liberation day’

(BBC News) President Donald Trump announced a universal 10% tariff on imports into the US in a watershed moment for global trade. The US will hit certain countries with much steeper tariffs, as high as 50%. Trump says the UK will have a 10% tariff on goods, and the EU's rate will be 20% In his announcement at the White House's Rose Garden, Trump calls it "liberation day", and says it will start a...

U.S. slaps sanctions on top Chinese, Hong Kong officials for rights abuses

(Al Jazeera Media Network) The United States has imposed sanctions on six Chinese and Hong Kong officials to punish China for its ongoing crackdown on democracy advocates in financial hub Hong Kong, which was returned to Chinese rule in 1997. The US Department of State announced the sanctions on Monday. They target prominent figures, including Hong Kong Police Commissioner Raymond Siu Chak-yee and Secretary for Justice Paul Lam for playing a role in efforts to...

Le Pen verdict rocks France’s National Rally party

(BBC News) "Incredible." That was the single word uttered under her breath by Marine Le Pen as she stormed out of a Paris courtroom on Monday morning. She left the court early – just before hearing that she was barred from running for office for five years after being found guilty of embezzlement of EU funds – almost certainly ruling her out from standing in the 2027 French presidential election. Without even waiting for the judge...

Netanyahu to visit Hungary despite ICC arrest warrant

(Al Jazeera Media Network) Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is set to visit Hungary this week, despite an International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant issued over alleged war crimes in Gaza. Netanyahu’s trip, announced on Sunday by his office, comes at the invitation of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban. The visit, scheduled from Wednesday to Sunday, comes after Orban dismissed the warrant when it was announced in November. Orban, a right-wing nationalist leader often at odds with...

Trump says he ‘couldn’t care less’ about higher car prices

(BBC News) Donald Trump has said he "couldn't care less" if carmakers raise prices after his 25% tariffs on foreign-made vehicles come into effect. Some analysts have warned that Trump's import charges could lead to the temporary shutdown of some US car production, with increased prices passed on to consumers. But the US president told NBC News on Saturday that he hoped foreign carmakers will raise prices as it meant "people are gonna buy American-made cars –...

Is Sudan’s war merging with South Sudanese conflicts?

(Al Jazeera Media Network) New alliances in Sudan’s civil war risk sparking a regional conflict by drawing in neighbouring South Sudan, analysts tell Al Jazeera. The biggest development was an alliance in February between the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), which established a government to rival Sudan’s current de-facto leadership. The RSF has been at war with Sudan’s army since April 2023 and seeks to increase its control and influence in...

Myanmar junta continues airstrikes after devastating earthquake

(BBC News) Myanmar's military junta has continued to bomb parts of the war-torn country following the major earthquake there on Friday, which has killed more than 1,600 people. The UN has described the attacks as "completely outrageous and unacceptable". Special Rapporteur Tom Andrews told the BBC that it was "nothing short of incredible" that the military was continuing to "drop bombs when you are trying to rescue people" after the earthquake. He called on the military regime,...

Vance’s comments likely to rattle U.S. allies

(BBC News) Vice-President JD Vance's comments at Pituffik Space Base in Greenland were nothing we have not heard before – but are sure to raise eyebrows among some US allies, particularly in Copenhagen. We have heard the assertion that Denmark has been "under-investing" in Greenland's security from Vance, Donald Trump and others – not just about Greenland but European security in general. We also saw shades of that with this week's publication of the now-infamous Signals chat with...