Headline

Trump’s New Tariffs Target Canada, Mexico, China

Published

9 months ago

February 1, 2025

President Donald Trump is set to impose fresh tariffs on Saturday on major US trading partners — Canada, Mexico, and China — threatening disruption across supply chains from energy to automobiles.

Trump has promised 25 per cent tariffs on Canada and Mexico, citing their alleged failure to curb illegal immigration and the flow of fentanyl into the US.

He has also pledged a 10 per cent tariff on imports from China, the world’s second-largest economy, accusing it of involvement in synthetic opioid production.

Trump has frequently expressed his enthusiasm for tariffs and has hinted that Saturday’s action could be the first step in further trade disputes.

This week, the US president vowed to impose duties on the European Union.

He has also promised tariffs on semiconductors, steel, aluminium, copper, pharmaceuticals, as well as oil and gas.

Trump returned to his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida for the weekend with no public events on his official schedule. On Saturday morning, he headed to the golf course.

Canadian public broadcaster CBC reported on Saturday that Ottawa has been informed to expect 25 per cent across-the-board US tariffs, although energy imports would face a lower rate of 10 per cent.

These tariffs are expected to take effect on Tuesday, according to CBC.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is set to hold a press conference at around 6:00 pm (0000 GMT), two Canadian government sources told AFP.
Growth Concerns
Imposing sweeping tariffs on three key US trading partners carries risks for Trump, who secured victory in the November election partly due to public dissatisfaction over the cost of living.

Higher import costs would likely “dampen consumer spending and business investment,” said EY chief economist Gregory Daco.

He expects inflation to rise by 0.7 percentage points in the first quarter of this year due to the tariffs, before gradually easing.

“Rising trade policy uncertainty will heighten financial market volatility and strain the private sector, despite the administration’s pro-business rhetoric,” he added.

Trump’s supporters have downplayed fears that tariff hikes will fuel inflation, suggesting his planned tax cuts and deregulation measures could instead boost economic growth.

Democratic lawmakers have criticised Trump’s plans, with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer stating on Friday: “I am concerned these new tariffs will further drive up costs for American consumers.”

Canada and Mexico are major suppliers of US agricultural products, with imports from each country amounting to tens of billions of dollars per year.

Tariffs would also severely impact the auto industry, as US light vehicle imports from Canada and Mexico in 2024 accounted for 22 per cent of all vehicles sold in the country, according to S&P Global Mobility.

The research group also noted that automakers and suppliers manufacture components throughout the region, meaning tariffs would likely increase vehicle costs.
Ready to Respond
Canada and Mexico have signalled they are prepared if Trump proceeds with his tariff plan.

Trudeau stated on Friday that Ottawa is ready with a “purposeful, forceful” response.

Doug Ford, premier of Ontario—Canada’s economic powerhouse—warned on Saturday that “the impact of these tariffs will be felt almost immediately,” predicting job losses and a slowdown in business.
Canada should “hit back hard and hit back strong,” he said at a local election campaign event.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum previously stated that her government would await any announcement “with a cool head” and had prepared contingency plans.

However, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt on Friday dismissed concerns of a trade war.

Hiking import taxes on crude oil from countries like Canada and Mexico could have “huge implications for US energy prices, especially in the US Midwest,” noted David Goldwyn and Joseph Webster of the Atlantic Council.

On Friday, Trump said he was considering a lower tariff rate on oil.
“We think we’re going to bring it down to 10 per cent,” he told reporters.
Nearly 60 per cent of US crude oil imports come from Canada, according to a Congressional Research Service report.

Canadian heavy oil is refined in the United States, and regions reliant on it may struggle to find an alternative supply.

While Canadian producers would bear some impact of the tariffs, US refiners would also face higher costs, said Tom Kloza of the Oil Price Information Service.

AFP

Related Topics:#Trump Canada China Mexico

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Headline

Morocco Jails Student One Year Over Gen Z Protest

Published

15 hours ago

October 17, 2025

Editor

A student arrested during Morocco’s youth-led protests has been sentenced to one year in prison, his lawyer told AFP on Friday.

The case marks the first publicly known prison sentence linked to the kingdom’s Gen Z demonstrations, which have been held near-daily between late September and last week to demand social and political reforms.

The student was charged with “participating in an unauthorised and unarmed gathering” and “insulting the judicial police by providing false information”, lawyer Mohamed Nouini said.

“The ruling is unfair, and we will appeal,” he added, arguing that sit-ins did not require authorisation as per a Supreme Court precedent.

The lawyer said his client was arrested on September 30, three days after the protests erupted in the North African country.

According to a report by news website Hespress, citing another lawyer, the student’s arrest was “an unfortunate coincidence” as he was in Casablanca for a family visit.

The other lawyer, Mohamed Lakhdar, told the judge the student had “not insulted” police nor provided false information, telling them he “was just a student”, according to the report.

Hundreds were arrested during the early days of the largely peaceful demonstrations.

Some cities had seen spates of violence and acts of vandalism, while authorities have said three people were killed by police acting in “self-defence” during clashes in a village near Agadir.

The Moroccan Association for Human Rights (AMDH) has said roughly 550 people are facing prosecution on suspicion of joining the protests, with some still in detention.

The organisers of the online-based movement behind the nationwide protests, the GenZ 212 youth collective, remain unknown.

The collective has called for “peaceful sit-ins” on Saturday and demanded the release of those arrested during the demonstrations.

The protest came after the deaths of eight pregnant women during Caesarean sections at a hospital in Agadir.

But protesters have also demanded reforms to the education system and a change of government.
AFP

Headline

Trump Refiles $15bn Defamation Lawsuit Against New York Times

Published

16 hours ago

October 17, 2025

Editor

US President Donald Trump has refiled a $15 billion defamation lawsuit against The New York Times, court documents show, weeks after it was thrown out by a federal judge.

Trump has intensified his long-established hostility toward the media since his return to the White House, and the suit is one of numerous attacks against news organizations he accuses of bias against him.

The Times’ complaint was thrown out in September because District Judge Steven Merryday took exception to its florid writing, repetitive and laudatory praise of Trump, and its excessive 85-page length.

The suit filed Thursday in Florida and seen by AFP runs to less than half the length, at 40 pages.

It takes aim at “false, defamatory, and malicious publications”, highlighting a book and two Times articles.

The lawsuit named the newspaper, three Times reporters and the publisher Penguin Random House as defendants.

It accuses them of making defamatory statements against Trump “with actual malice.”

“The statements in question wrongly defame and disparage President Trump’s hard-earned professional reputation, which he painstakingly built for decades” before entering the White House, the lawsuit says.

The court was asked to grant compensatory damages of not less than $15 billion and additional punitive damages “in an amount to be determined upon trial.”

Trump’s attacks on media outlets have seen him restrict access, badmouth journalists critical of his administration, and bring lawsuits demanding huge amounts of compensation.

In July, Trump sued media magnate Rupert Murdoch and The Wall Street Journal for at least $10 billion after it reported on the existence of a book and a letter he allegedly sent to sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Paramount settled Trump’s lawsuit over election coverage on CBS News’ flagship show “60 Minutes” for $16 million the same month. He had alleged that the program deceptively edited an interview with his 2024 election rival, Kamala Harris, in her favor.

AFP

Headline

Italian Journalist’s Car Bombed, No Casualties

Published

16 hours ago

October 17, 2025

Editor

A bomb destroyed the vehicle of a prominent Italian journalist overnight, without causing casualties, his investigative television news show announced Friday.

Sigfrido Ranucci’s car blew up in an explosion in Pomezia, near Rome, that also damaged the family’s other car and the house next door, according to Report, which broadcasts on RAI public television.

“The force of the explosion was so strong that it could have killed anyone passing by at the moment,” it said in a statement on X.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni strongly condemned what she called a “serious act of intimidation”.

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“The freedom and independence of information are non-negotiable values of our democracies, which we will continue to defend,” she wrote on X.

Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi said he had ordered an increase in the journalist’s security “to the maximum”.

He called the attack a “cowardly and extremely serious act that represents an attack not only on the person but on the freedom of the press and the fundamental values of our democracy”.

The Report show is known for its in-depth investigative reports.

According to the campaign group Reporters Without Borders (RSF), Italy ranks 49th in the world in terms of press freedom.

“Journalists who investigate organised crime and corruption are systematically threatened and sometimes subjected to physical violence for their investigative work,” it said in its latest update.

About 20 journalists currently live under permanent police protection after being the targets of intimidation and attacks, it added.

AFP