“”Trivium Packaging, a manufacturer of steel and aluminum containers…has shelved any expansion plans in the US for now, and the only hiring happening at its five US plants is to fill in staff losses due to attrition” because of the increased cost of the imported metal on which it relies, according to an April 17 Bloomberg report. Trivium was just one of the companies profiled in the article that “are putting hiring and expansion plans on hold while they come up with short-term plans to cope with the tariffs.”
Consumers are also changing their behavior in response to the trade war. Americans initially flocked to buy cars to beat anticipated price hikes. Purchases slowed as the expected price increases materialized, spurring the Trump administration this week to carve out some tariff relief for automakers.
But the same factors driving concerns about prices and availability regarding cars affect every other industry. According to the Federal Reserve’s latest Beige Book report on economic conditions, “uncertainty around international trade policy was pervasive” and “non-auto consumer spending was lower overall.”
Additionally, “several Districts reported that firms were taking a wait-and-see approach to employment, pausing or slowing hiring until there is more clarity on economic conditions” and “there were scattered reports of firms preparing for layoffs.”
Importantly, added the Beige Book analysis, “firms reported adding tariff surcharges or shortening pricing horizons to account for uncertain trade policy. Most businesses expected to pass through additional costs to customers.”
Basically, businesses and consumers alike are slowing spending and taking a wait-and-see attitude as they anticipate higher prices and economic disruption from the Trump administration’s protectionist policies. Americans expect the tariffs to be painful and they’re not happy about it.”
“”Well, they did sign up for it, actually. And this is what I campaigned on,” Trump said of the tariffs during an interview with ABC News that aired Tuesday.”
“The results were both bizarre and, for the students, terrifying. Students with years-old DUIs, misdemeanor gambling charges, traffic violations and other minor infractions learned their immigration status had been canceled. In some instances, the schools told the students they could face immediate deportation. And as lawsuits began to pile up, the Justice Department compounded their fear further, with government lawyers saying they couldn’t verify whether those students remained in the country legally.
Judges recoiled at the lack of information, ordering the administration in several individual cases to undo the damage and restore the students’ records to the immigration database, known as SEVIS. On Friday, the administration said it would restore the canceled records and no longer terminate students’ files based solely on information pulled from the FBI’s criminal record system.”
“He’s insisting on one-on-one talks with China’s leader, Xi Jinping — and this has stifled other diplomatic efforts to halt the worsening trade war between the two global powers.
The president won’t authorize White House delegates to engage with Chinese officials in Beijing about a detente, according to two former senior State Department officials and an industry official, who were granted anonymity to discuss sensitive ongoing discussions. The Senate has yet to confirm an ambassador to China; Trump has not appointed anyone else to lead talks with Beijing; and the White House isn’t reaching out to the Chinese embassy to begin discussions.
The absence of any substantial outreach has frozen meaningful communications between the two countries and threatened the likelihood of a near-term solution.”
“Car companies, toy manufacturers, farmers, retail groups and others who face significant cost increases from President Donald Trump’s steep new tariffs on China are all ramping up their lobbying of the administration to press for carve-outs and assistance.
But, with no formal process in place to submit their requests, and no direct line to the one decision-maker who matters, most businesses and industries are hitting a wall, so far. And those in the business world with connections to the White House figure it’s likely to stay that way until an industry can demonstrate to the president there’s a true crisis at hand.”
“By law, Clayton will be allowed to serve as interim U.S. attorney for 120 days. If the White House doesn’t nominate anyone else by the end of that interim period, the judges of the federal district court in Manhattan could vote to appoint him to remain in the job. He could then serve until the Senate confirmed a nominee — and if Trump wanted Clayton to remain in the job, the president could simply not nominate anyone else.”