Tom Howell Jr.

Bessent, Trump talk up trade deal with China, cheering markets

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Wednesday said the U.S. and China can reach a "big deal" if Beijing is serious about rebalancing its economy toward satisfying domestic demand instead of flooding the world with cheap goods.

April 23, 2025

Bessent says U.S. won’t retreat from world, eyes ‘big deal’ with China

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Wednesday promoted President Trump's tariff plan as an overdue mission to make global trade fairer and combat China's flood of cheap exports.

April 23, 2025

Wall Street rallies on Trump’s softer approach to Powell, China

Wall Street rallied Wednesday after President Trump softened his rhetoric on Fed Chairman Jerome Powell and China.

April 23, 2025

White House claims ‘a lot of progress’ on trade as IMF cuts growth forecast

The White House on Tuesday said it's making "a lot of progress" in reducing trade barriers through bilateral deals with nations, pointing to over a dozen written proposals and a recent breakthrough with India.

April 22, 2025

Trump to make two-day trip to Rome for funeral of Pope Francis

President Trump will depart Washington on Friday morning to attend Pope Francis' funeral in Rome over the weekend, the White House confirmed Tuesday.

April 22, 2025

IMF downgrades growth forecast for U.S., pointing to ‘negative shock’ from tariffs

The International Monetary Fund slashed its 2025 growth forecast for the U.S. economy to 1.8%, a 0.9-point decrease from January, spurred by President Trump's trade actions and policy uncertainty.

April 22, 2025

Vance says trade upheaval will pay off for U.S., partner nations like India

President Trump's effort to rebalance global trade will cause "profound changes" but will ultimately produce "great benefits" for Americans and partner nations such as India, Vice President J.D. Vance said Tuesday.

April 22, 2025

Trump ramps up attacks on Powell while China flexes, markets fall again

Wall Street markets cratered again Monday as investors reacted to President Trump's decision to dial up attacks on Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome H. Powell, even dubbing him a "major loser," and trade talks faced an uncertain path to success.

April 21, 2025

VP Vance, Indian Prime Minister Modi set the table for bilateral trade deal

Vice President J.D. Vance and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi used a personal meeting Monday to finalize a roadmap for a future bilateral trade deal between their countries.

April 21, 2025

Trump ramps up attacks on Fed chair as ‘major loser,’ stocks fall again

President Trump escalated his attacks on Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell Monday, dubbing him a "major loser" who is dragging his feet on lowering interest rates.

April 21, 2025

China says it will punish countries that use U.S. trade talks to ostracize Beijing

China on Monday threatened to retaliate against any nation that agreed to isolate Beijing as part of trade negotiations with the Trump administration.

April 21, 2025

Pope Francis, who died after a cerebral stroke led to heart failure, is mourned worldwide

Pope Francis died on Easter Monday after a cerebral stroke led to heart failure, a seismic and emotional development for the Catholic Church, political leaders and culture writ large.

April 21, 2025

Trump White House launches web page on COVID-19 lab leak

The Trump White House is leaning heavily into the lab-leak theory on the origins of COVID-19 with a web page that outlines evidence of a spillover from a virology center in Wuhan, China, instead of nature.

April 18, 2025

Trump says U.S. might have to ‘take a pass’ on Ukraine-Russia peace talks

President Trump said Friday he needs to hear "very shortly" from Russia and Ukraine about whether they are ready to broker a peace deal or else the U.S. will "take a pass."

April 18, 2025

Into the woods: Trump says U.S. should rely on its own lumber

The U.S. construction market consumes at least 50 billion board feet of lumber annually, but domestic production meets only 70% of that demand. The U.S. closes the gap by importing the rest, mainly from Canada.

April 18, 2025

Trump threatens to fire Fed Chair Jerome Powell: ‘Not happy with him’

President Trump on Thursday said Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell will be "out of there" if he decides to fire him from his post, striking a harsh tone with the central bank at home while he struck an upbeat note about trade deals with the European Union and China.

April 17, 2025

Trump confident he can strike China deal

President Trump on Thursday said he's hopeful the U.S. will strike a trade deal with China despite an impasse between the world's largest economies over tit-for-tat tariffs.

April 17, 2025

Trump says Fed Chair Powell’s ‘termination cannot come fast enough’

President Trump on Thursday told the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates and even called for the "termination" of Chair Jerome Powell.

April 17, 2025

Trump, U.S. officials meet with first-in-line Japan on tariff relief

President Trump said Wednesday he met with a delegation from Japan to negotiate "trade fairness" as nations try to avoid the reimposition of hefty U.S. tariffs.

April 16, 2025

HHS says one in 31 children have autism; Kennedy vows to get answers by fall

Autism is "running rampant" in the U.S., with an estimated one in 31 children experiencing the disorder compared to one in 36 two years earlier, the Department of Health and Human Services said Wednesday.

April 16, 2025