Seventy percent of Canadians say they will start looking for ways to avoid buying U.S.-made goods in a threat to ratchet up a trade dispute between Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and U.S. President Donald Trump, an Ipsos Poll showed Friday. The poll also found a majority of Americans and Canadians are united in support of Trudeau and opposition to Trump in their countries’ standoff over the renegotiation of the 1994 North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Amid the spat, Trump pulled out of a joint communique with six other countries last weekend during a Quebec summit meeting of the Group of Seven industrialized democracies and called Trudeau “very dishonest and weak.” Trump was reacting to Trudeau’s having called U.S. steel and aluminum tariffs insulting to Canada. Trudeau has said little about the matter since a Trump Twitter assault. Despite the tensions, 85 percent of Canadians and 72 percent of Americans said they support being in NAFTA, and 44 percent of respondents in both countries said renegotiation of the deal would be a good thing for their country. While the poll showed support for a boycott of U.S. goods in Canada, pulling it off could be difficult in a country that reveres U.S. popular culture and consumer goods over all others. Canada is the largest market for U.S. goods. Trudeau over Trump The poll showed 72 percent of Canadians and 57 percent of Americans approved of the way Trudeau had handled the situation, while 14 percent of Canadians and 37 percent of Americans approved of Trump’s behavior. More than eight in 10 Canadians and seven in 10 Americans worry the situation has damaged …
US Lobsters Are a Target of China’s Threatened Tariffs
A set of retaliatory tariffs released by China on Friday includes a plan to tax American lobster exports, potentially jeopardizing one of the biggest markets for the premium seafood. Chinese officials announced the planned lobster tariff along with hundreds of other tariffs amid the country’s escalating trade fight with the United States. China said it wants to place new duties on items such as farm products, autos and seafood starting July 6. The announcement could have major ramifications for the U.S. seafood industry and for the economy of the state of Maine, which is home to most of the country’s lobster fishery. China’s interest in U.S. lobster has grown exponentially in recent years, and selling to China has become a major focus of the lobster industry. “Hopefully cooler heads can prevail and we can get a solution,” said Matt Jacobson, executive director of the Maine Lobster Marketing Collaborative. “It’s a year-round customer in China. This isn’t good news at all.” A Chinese government website on Friday posted a list of seafood products that will be subject to the tariffs, and it included live, fresh and frozen lobster. The website stated that the items would be taxed at 25 percent. The announcement came in response to President Donald Trump’s own increase in tariffs on Chinese imports in America. The Republican president announced a 25 percent tariff on up to $50 billion worth of Chinese goods on Friday. The news raised alarms around the Maine lobster industry, as China’s an emerging market …
Trump’s Tariffs: What They Are and How China Is Responding
President Donald Trump just imposed tariffs on hundreds of Chinese products — from X-ray tubes to incinerators. And Beijing is striking back by targeting U.S. soybeans, beef, seafood and other products. The punch-and-counterpunch announced Friday in Washington and Beijing moved the world’s two largest economies perilously near a trade war that would inflate prices for consumers, disrupt the flow of goods and perhaps slow a global economy that has been enjoying its healthiest expansion in a decade. “Everybody loses in a trade war,” says Philip Levy, senior fellow at the Chicago Council on Global Affairs and a former White House economic adviser. “You get consumers who are worse off. You get producers who are worse off, farmers who are worse off and you don’t even achieve your goal.” What’s more, the China tariffs come just as the United States is sparring with close allies like the European Union, Canada and Mexico in a separate conflict over trade in steel and aluminum. What did Trump do? The White House on Friday announced plans to slap 25 percent tariffs on more than 1,100 Chinese products, worth $50 billion a year in imports. The administration had originally proposed the tariffs in April, starting with a list of 1,333 Chinese products lines. After receiving public feedback, it removed 515 from the blacklist and added 284 others. Starting July 6, the U.S. will tax the 818 products, worth $34 billion a year in imports, that remained from the original list. It won’t target the 284 …
Research on Dogs May Help Explain Human Responses to Food
Researchers in Hungary who found that normal and overweight dogs behaved differently in tasks involving food say the dogs’ responses were similar to those that might be expected from normal and overweight humans. The study suggested dogs could be used as models for future research into the causes and psychological impact of human obesity, the authors of the paper from Budapest’s ELTE University said. Researchers put two bowls — one holding a good meal, the other empty or containing less attractive food — in front of a series of dogs. The study found that canines of a normal weight continued obeying instructions to check the second bowl for food, but the obese ones refused after a few rounds. “We expected the overweight dog to do anything to get food, but in this test, we saw the opposite. The overweight dogs took a negative view,” test leader Orsolya Torda said. “If a situation is uncertain and they cannot find food, the obese dogs are unwilling to invest energy to search for food — for them, the main thing is to find the right food with least energy involved.” The behavior had possible parallels with overweight people who see food as a reward, said the paper, which was published in the Royal Society Open Science journal. …
Record-Setting US Astronaut Whitson Retires
U.S. astronaut Peggy Whitson, who has spent more time in space than any other American, retired Friday. During her career, Whitson logged 665 days in space over three missions, the equivalent of about one year and 10 months outside the Earth’s atmosphere. Whitson was also the first woman to command the International Space Station, holding the position twice, and the oldest woman ever to fly in space. “It’s been the greatest honor to live out my lifelong dream of being a @NASA Astronaut,” Whitson wrote on Twitter. She thanked “all who have supported me along the way” and said “my journey at NASA has been out of this world!” Whitson, 58, is a biochemist who grew up in Iowa. She joined NASA as a researcher in 1986 and became an astronaut in 1996. Whitson completed her last spaceflight in September 2017, after spending close to 10 months in space. During that mission, Whitson and the other crew members aboard the space station pursued hundreds of experiments in biology, biotechnology, physical science and Earth science. Only Russian male astronauts have spent more time in space than Whitson. The world record belongs to Russia’s Gennady Padalka, who spent 879 days in space. While not in space, Whitson also broke barriers at NASA operations. She served as chief of the astronaut corps from 2009 to 2012, becoming both the first woman to hold the position and the first nonmilitary head of the corps. “Peggy Whitson is a testament to the American spirit,” NASA Administrator Jim …
Suicide Is Not Just a US Problem, It’s a Global Issue
By now, you have probably heard that suicide rates in the United States have increased sharply over the past two decades. There was a lot of media coverage after fashion designer Kate Spade and celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain took their own lives. Their suicides happened around the same time that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a report showing a 25 percent increase in suicide in the U.S. since 1999. Suicide is now the 10th leading cause of death in the U.S. Deborah Stone, a behavioral scientist at the CDC, said the increase wasn’t surprising, as researchers have been seeing these rates going up for a long time. “The data really speak volumes that the problem is getting worse, and what is really needed is suicide prevention,” Stone told VOA. Risk factors She said the risk factors are similar to the risk factors for homicides or mass killings. A person has relationship problems, including conflicts with a spouse or partner, is a victim of bullying, breaks up with or loses a loved one. Substance abuse can also be involved. In 2016, there were 64,000 overdose deaths in the U.S. Some of the deaths were not intentional, but some were. Homelessness, loss of a job, and financial problems are also risk factors, as are health problems. Stone said both physical and mental health problems make people more vulnerable to committing suicide. The report said almost half of those who committed suicide had a known mental health condition, but more …
Antarctica Losing Ice Faster Than Thought
Once again, hard facts support the claim that the planet is getting warmer. According to a new report, published in the scientific journal Nature, Antarctica is losing ice so fast that by the end of this century, the sea level could rise as much as 16 centimeters. This may not sound like much, but scientists say the trend is alarming. VOA’s George Putic has more. …
Росія та Саудівська Аравія домовилися разом «балансувати ринок» нафти
Росія та Саудівська Аравія повідомили про домовленість про розширення співпраці на ринках нафти та газу. Це сталося після того, як ці країни об’єдналися в межах угоди між членами і нечленами ОПЕК (Організації країн-експортерів нафти), яка допомогла збільшити ціни на нафту. За офіційними даними, президент Росії Володимир Путін та саудівський принц-мусульманин Мухаммад бін Салман, а також міністри енергетики обох країн провели переговори в Москві 14 червня, перед початком першого матчу чемпіонату світу з футболу. Міністр енергетики Саудівської Аравії Халід аль-Фаліх та його російський колега Олександр Новак вказали у спільній заяві, що два найбільші виробники нафти в світі продовжуть свої зусилля з управління ринком, прагнучи «до збалансованого ринку, який підтримується надійною та достатньою пропозицією». Угода 2016 року про заморожування видобутку нафти була укладена в умовах різкого падіння цін на нафту, що спричинило економічний спад у нафтовидобувних країнах. На початку 2016 року котирування нафти впали нижче 30 доларів за барель. Але після відновлення і стабілізації в 2017 році на рівні близько 50 доларів за барель у цьому році вони підскочили до майже 80 доларів. Очікується, що наступна зустріч ОПЕК відбудеться 22 червня у Відні, а Росія, Казахстан та іншими партнери, які не є членами ОПЕК, приєднаються до переговорів наступного дня. …
Trump OKs Plan to Impose Tariffs on Billions in Chinese Goods
President Donald Trump has approved a plan to impose punishing tariffs on tens of billions of dollars worth of Chinese goods as early as Friday, a move that could put his trade policies on a collision course with his push to rid the Korean Peninsula of nuclear weapons. Trump has long vowed to fulfill his campaign pledge to clamp down on what he considers unfair Chinese trading practices. But his calls for billions in tariffs could complicate his efforts to maintain China’s support in his negotiations with North Korea. Trump met Thursday with several Cabinet members and trade advisers and was expected to impose tariffs on at least $35 billion to $40 billion of Chinese imports, according to an industry official and an administration official familiar with the plans. The amount of goods could reach $55 billion, said the industry official. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity in order to discuss the matter ahead of a formal announcement. Stage set for retaliation If the president presses forward as expected, it could set the stage for a series of trade actions against China and lead to retaliation from Beijing. Trump has already slapped tariffs on steel and aluminum imports from Canada, Mexico and European allies, and his proposed tariffs against China risk starting a trade war involving the world’s two biggest economies. The decision on the Chinese tariffs comes in the aftermath of Trump’s summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. The president has coordinated closely with China on …
Thanks to People, Many Animals Become Nocturnal
Lions and tigers and bears are increasingly becoming night owls because of us, a new study says. Scientists have long known that human activity disrupts nature. Besides becoming more vigilant and reducing time spent looking for food, many mammals may travel to remote areas or move around less to avoid contact with people. The latest research found even activities like hiking and camping can scare animals and drive them to become more active at night. Presence has consequences “It suggests that animals might be playing it safe around people,” said Kaitlyn Gaynor, an ecologist at the University of California, Berkeley, who led the study. “We may think that we leave no trace when we’re just hiking in the woods, but our mere presence can have lasting consequences.” Gaynor and her colleagues analyzed 76 studies involving 62 species on six continents. Animals included lions in Tanzania, otters in Brazil, coyotes in California, wild boars in Poland and tigers in Nepal. Researchers compared how much time those creatures spent active at night under different types of human disturbance such as hunting, hiking and farming. On average, the team found that human presence triggered an increase of about 20 percent in nighttime activity, even in animals that aren’t night owls. Results were published Thursday in the journal Science. Robust study The findings are novel because “no one else has compiled all this information and analyzed it in such a … robust way,” said Ana Benitez Lopez of Radboud University in the Netherlands, who …
AT&T to Close Time Warner Deal, But Government May Appeal
AT&T Inc may close its $85 billion deal to buy Time Warner Inc under an agreement reached on Thursday with the U.S. government, which might still appeal a case seen as a turning point for the media industry. AT&T said it could close the deal by Friday. The government has not ruled out an appeal and has 60 days to file. AT&T agreed to temporarily manage Time Warner’s Turner networks separately from DirecTV, including setting prices and managing personnel, as part of the deal approved by Judge Richard Leon late Thursday. The conditions agreed to by AT&T would remain in effect until Feb. 28, 2019, the conclusion of the case or an appeal. Leon of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia ruled on Tuesday that the deal to marry AT&T’s wireless and satellite businesses with Time Warner’s movies and television shows was legal under antitrust law. The Justice Department had argued the deal would harm consumers. U.S. President Donald Trump, a frequent critic of Time Warner’s CNN coverage, denounced the deal when it was announced in October 2016. The fact that Turner, which includes CNN, will be run separately from DirecTV makes a stay unnecessary, said Seth Bloom, a veteran of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division who is now in private practice. In its lawsuit aimed at stopping the deal, filed in November 2017, the Justice Department said that AT&T’s ownership of both DirecTV and Time Warner, especially its Turner subsidiary, would give AT&T unfair leverage against …
Supreme Court Answers Question of Foreign Law in US Courts
Nyet. Non. Nein. No. That’s the answer the Supreme Court gave Thursday to the question of whether federal courts in the United States must accept statements from foreign governments about their own laws as binding. Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg wrote for a unanimous court that a “federal court should accord respectful consideration to a foreign government’s submission,” but is not required to treat it as conclusive. Given “the world’s many and diverse legal systems and the range of circumstances in which a foreign government’s views may be presented,” there is no single formula on how to treat the information a foreign government provides, Ginsburg wrote. Ginsburg said the appropriate weight given to a government’s statement in each case will depend on the circumstances. Among the factors that U.S. courts should weigh in looking at what a foreign government has said about its own law are: the statement’s clarity, thoroughness and support as well as the transparency of the foreign legal system and the role and authority of the statement’s author. Trade case The ruling came in a case that involves trade with China, a class action lawsuit filed by two U.S.-based purchasers of vitamin C: Nacogdoches, Texas-based Animal Science Products and Elizabeth, New Jersey-based The Ranis Company. The companies sued vitamin C exporters in China. They alleged the exporters had violated U.S. antitrust laws by fixing the prices and amounts of vitamin C exported to the United States. The vitamin C exporters argued that Chinese law had required their actions …
Sushi Served With a Secret Ingredient: Microplastic
The beautiful, all-you-can-eat sushi platter you shared with friends last week might have included a special ingredient: plastic. Microplastics — the remnants of plastic bags, takeout containers and straws that almost-but-not-quite disintegrate in the oceans — are found in 3 out of 4 fish, such as squid, cuttlefish and swordfish in markets around the world, say the authors of a February study. “These fish inhabit a remote area, so theoretically they should be pretty isolated from human influences, such as microplastics,” said Alina Wieczorek, lead author of the Frontiers study. “However, as they regularly migrate to the surface, we thought that they may ingest microplastics there,” she said. Food chain pollutants Consumers are waking up to pollutants in their food chain, and scientists are joining them to raise awareness and combat other issues like overfishing. Last week, thousands marched in the United States and 25 other countries for World Oceans Day. Under the hood of a shark costume was Brian Yurasits, director of development at the nonprofit TerraMar Project, which educates and promotes ocean issues. Yurasits circulated with about 3,000 others at the march in the shadow of the Washington Monument and a life-size, inflatable blue whale. Holding a sign that read, “Sharks are friends, not food,” Yurasits emphasized that issues about ocean health “is more than just plastic.” [See our video interview with Yurasits here.] “It’s overfishing, climate change, invasive species and habitat loss,” he said. The youth-led Sea Youth Rise Up advocates for ocean conservation, including reduced single-use plastics such …
Омелян підписав меморандум з Нyperloop Transportation Technologies про спільну роботу
Міністр інфраструктури України Володимир Омелян та виконавчий директор Нyperloop Transportation Technologies Дірк Алборн підписали меморандум про співпрацю над розробкою і тестуванням цього транспортного проекту в Україні, повідомляє Мінінфраструктури на своєму сайті. «Ми чітко домовилися об’єднати зусилля, по-перше, ми будемо спільно розробляти технологію, по-друге, ми домовилися про спільний пошук інвесторів для цього проекту, він повинен бути комерційно успішним, це не повинна бути чергова ідея, яка дотується урядами. Це має бути абсолютно прозора бізнес-модель, яка генерує прибуток», – заявив Омелян за результатами зустрічі. За його словами, є намір заснувати спільний центр у Києві або Дніпрі, який би займався розробкою нових типів управління логістикою. 22 лютого Омелян заявив про заснування Центру транспортних інновацій Hype.ua. Він додав, що тестовий майданчик для українського Hyperloop збудують у Дніпрі наступного року. Hyperloop – це проект вакуумного потяга, розроблений Ілоном Маском. Це транспортна система, яка складається зі сталевих труб, всередині яких рухається потяг – герметична капсула на аеродинамічній подушці. Швидкість такої капсули може перевищувати 600 кілометрів на годину. …
Розгляд оскарження у справах про топ-корупцію у звичайних апеляційних судах є кроком назад – Ситник
Норма нового закону про антикорупційний суд про можливість розглядати вже розпочаті антикорупційні провадження у апеляційних судах загальної юрисдикції є спробою реваншу та «кроком назад», заявив очільник НАБУ Артем Ситник на конференції Консультативної місії ЄС в Україні про реформу правоохоронних органів. Ситник наголосив, що таку норму виявили у перехідних положеннях закону, який вже підписали президент і голова Верховної Ради. «Мені відомо, що багато депутатів святкувало ухвалення норми про те, що апеляції у справах, розпочатих до запуску Антикорупційного суду, не розглядатиме апеляційна палата цього суду. А це – справи про топ-корупцію, провадження щодо Насірова, Розенблата тощо. Це крок назад. Але це ще не пізно виправити», – заявив він. Таку оцінку згаданій нормі закону дали і деякі депутати парламенту. Зі свого боку, голова Представництва ЄС в Украіні Юґ Мінґареллі відмовився на прохання Радіо Свобода дати оцінку цій нормі та ризиків, пов’язаних із нею. За його словами, Консультативна місія ЄС в Украіні нині вивчає текст ухваленого закону, і лише після цього даватиме оцінку. Ухвалений Верховною Радою та підписаний президентом України закон «Про Вищий антикорупційний суд» 14 червня набрав чинності. Офіційне видання Верховної Ради, газета «Голос України» оприлюднила цей документ 13 червня. Згідно з прикінцевими та перехідними положеннями, «цей Закон набирає чинності з дня, наступного за днем його опублікування». Закон, ініційований президентом України Петром Порошенком, Верховна Рада ухвалила 315 голосами 7 червня, а 9 червня, його підписав голова парламенту Андрій Парубій. Президент підписав документ 11 червня. Ухвалення закону про антикорупційний суд домагалися від України її західні партнери, воно було однією з умов продовження співпраці Києва з Міжнародним …
For Some High-School Students, Graduation is ‘Magic’
Millions of high school students are done. So done. In flowing gowns and square caps, more than 3 million will walk across a stage this month and be handed a diploma, what they’ve been working toward for 12 years. Latavea Cole, a graduating senior at Paul Laurence Dunbar High School in Baltimore, Maryland, wore a black cap decorated with yellow feathers and words that glittered. “Mine says ‘Black girl magic,’” Cole told VOA. “It’s an inspirational thing, and graduating is really just … magic.” Personalized caps Many students personalize their caps with inspirational quotes, feathers and glitter to stand out in a sea of other graduates for family and friends in the grandstands. Some just want to celebrate their hard-won achievement that culminates in filing into a gymnasium and walking across a stage to receive their diplomas. At Dunbar, the high school attended by the late rap artist Tupac Shakur, nearly 200 graduates filed in one by one as the school band played “Pomp and Circumstance,” the traditional music of graduations throughout America. Over half of the caps were vividly decorated, with rhinestones that reflected the gymnasium’s light, and fake flowers mirroring real ones gifted to the graduates by their families. On to college Cole said she will pursue a degree in special education at a nearby community college after leaving Dunbar, which specializes in preparing students for careers in health care. “Dunbar high school is a high school for professional health careers, and it gets you ready for college …
Health Experts Dispatch Experimental Vaccine to Fight Congo’s Latest Ebola Outbreak
Health experts are dispatching an experimental vaccine in areas of The Democratic Republic of the Congo that are considered ground zero in the fight against Ebola. Their hope is to try to combat the outbreak from the onset. The crucial test is providing hope, in times of uncertainty. VOA’s Julie Taboh has more. …
UNAIDS Chief: Testing is Critical in Combating HIV/AIDS
The head of UNAIDS says testing for the HIV virus is critical in reaching the goal of eliminating the virus by 2030. But the U.N. official tells VOA the effort is hampered in many countries by social taboos and stigma attached to AIDS and other HIV-related diseases. VOA’s Zlatica Hoke has more. …
New Cholera Prevention Tools: Microbes Fighting Microbes
Two promising new ways to prevent cholera are on the horizon. One is an entirely new kind of vaccine. The other is as simple as a cup of yogurt. Both may offer fast, cheap protection from explosive outbreaks of a disease that claims tens of thousands of lives each year. The research has so far only been done in animals. Human studies are yet to come. Cholera declawed Cholera causes such serious diarrhea that it can kill within hours. Current vaccines take at least 10 days to work, don’t provide complete protection and don’t work well for young children. One group of scientists working to create a better vaccine engineered cholera bacteria that are missing the genes that make the microbe toxic. The researchers fed the modified bacteria to rabbits. The microbes colonized the animals’ guts but did not make them sick. When the scientists then fed rabbits normal, disease-causing cholera 24 hours later, most of the animals survived. Those that did get sick took longer to do so than rabbits given unmodified bacteria, or modified bacteria that had been killed. Those animals died within hours. The engineered cholera bacteria provided protection much faster than a conventional vaccine. They acted as a probiotic: colonized the animals’ intestines in less than a day and prevented the disease-causing microbes from getting a foothold. The researchers expect that the modified bacteria will also act like a typical vaccine, stimulating the body’s immune system to fight a future cholera infection. “This is a new …
AP Investigation: Local Fish Isn’t Always Local
Caterers in Washington tweeted a photo of maroon sashimi appetizers served to 700 guests attending the governor’s inaugural ball last year. They were told the tuna was from Montauk. But it was an illusion. It was the dead of winter and no yellowfin had been landed in the New York town. An Associated Press investigation traced the supply chain of national distributor Sea To Table to other parts of the world, where fishermen described working under slave-like conditions with little regard for marine life. In a global seafood industry plagued by deceit, conscientious consumers will pay top dollar for what they believe is local, sustainably caught seafood. But even in this fast-growing niche market, companies can hide behind murky dealings, making it difficult to know the story behind any given fish. Sea To Table said by working directly with 60 docks along U.S. coasts it could guarantee the fish was wild, domestic and traceable — sometimes to the fisherman. The New York-based company quickly rose in the sustainable seafood movement. While it told investors it had $13 million in sales last year, it expected growth to $70 million by 2020. The distributor earned endorsement from the Monterey Bay Aquarium and garnered media attention from Bon Appetit, Forbes and many more. Its clientele included celebrity chef Rick Bayless, Roy’s seafood restaurants, universities and home delivery meal kits such as HelloFresh. As part of their investigation, reporters staked out America’s largest fish market, followed trucks and interviewed fishermen who worked on three …
UN: World Facing ‘Defining Moment’ in Battle Against HIV/AIDS
The head of UNAIDS says the global community is at a “defining moment” in the effort to end the HIV/AIDS epidemic by 2030. “This midpoint is important for us to reflect on what was not working,” Michel Sidibe told VOA, noting this year marks the halfway point to agreed global targets. “It’s about how to deal with vulnerable communities, fragile society.” According to 2016 data, 36.7 million people globally are living with HIV. There were nearly 2 million new infections and 1 million AIDS-related deaths. WATCH: UNAIDS Chief: Testing is Critical in Combating HIV/AIDS But the good news is there has been success in expanding access to critical anti-retroviral drugs (ARVs), which reached nearly 21 million people in 2016, leading to a reduction by one-third in global AIDS-related deaths. Eliminating mother-to-child HIV transmission through childbirth and breast-feeding also has become a real possibility by 2030. This was considered a dream just a few years ago, Sidibe said. “Today, we are seeing after six years that we reduced by almost 61 percent the infection among children — the transmission from mother to child,” Sidibe said. “But we still have 39 percent of babies born with HIV. We want to stop that and we are working very closely with countries who are lagging behind to make sure we have a catch-up plan.” Know your HIV status The UNAIDS executive director says one of the most critical factors in ending the epidemic is making sure people are tested and know their HIV …
US Central Bank Raises Interest Rates
Leaders of the U.S. central bank raised interest rates slightly Wednesday and signaled that rates are likely to go higher as the economy continues to strengthen. At the end of two days of deliberation in Washington, the Federal Reserve set the key interest rate a quarter of a percent higher, at a range between 1.75 and 2 percent. They say the labor market continues to improve, spending is rising, and inflation is rising closer to the modest 2 percent annual rate that experts say helps the economy grow predictably. Fed officials work to maximize employment while maintaining stable prices. With that in mind, they slashed interest rates to nearly zero during the recession in 2008 to boost economic activity. Now, they judge that it is time to continue raising rates because holding rates too low for too long could spark inflation, and such rapidly rising prices could harm the economy. “The economy is doing very well,” Fed Chairman Jerome Powell told journalists. “Most people who want to find jobs are finding them and unemployment and inflation are low.” He said the Fed’s efforts to manage the economy work best when the public is told what is being done, what is being considered, and why certain decisions are made. Consequently, Powell said he will begin holding press conferences more often beginning next year. …
Volkswagen Fined Nearly $1.2 Billion in Emissions Scandal
German authorities fined Volkswagen nearly $1.2 billion Wednesday for its role in a diesel emissions scandal that first surfaced in the United States in 2015. Prosecutors found the German automaker failed to properly monitor its engine development department. The lack of oversight resulted in global sales of nearly 11 million diesel vehicles with illegal emissions-controlling software. U.S. authorities previously imposed billions of dollars in penalties on the automaker, which said Wednesday it would accept the fine announced by prosecutors in the city of Braunschweig. Volkswagen said paying the latest fine would hopefully have “positive effects on other official proceedings being conducted in Europe” against the company and its subsidiaries. …
Trump Assails OPEC for High Oil Prices
U.S. President Donald Trump says oil prices are too high and blames the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries. The 14 oil-producing nations in OPEC — Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait and Venezuela among them — produce about 40 percent of the world’s oil, but about 60 percent of the oil traded on international markets. OPEC’s actions, whether to cut or increase production, often heavily influence the price of oil, and by extension the prices consumers and businesses pay for fuel. OPEC’s oil chiefs struck a deal in 2016 to cut production by 1.8 million barrels a day to reduce the global glut of oil and shore up prices. Since then, oil prices have risen from below $30 a barrel to more than $70. But that rollback in production is set to expire at the end of the year. OPEC has yet to set new production levels beyond that, but the cartel’s oil ministers are meeting again next week in Vienna. Saudi Energy Minister Khaled al-Faleh said in April that the global market can absorb higher oil prices, a remark that drew a swift rebuke from Trump. “With record amounts of oil all over the place, including the fully loaded ships at sea, Oil prices are artificially Very High! No good and will not be accepted!” the U.S. leader tweeted on April 20, although he has no control over what OPEC decides to do. Early in the year, with gas prices at service stations still relatively low, Trump suggested raising …