The World Shipping Council warned that the fees would have unintended consequences

International news via Reuters:

Operators of hulking car carriers are seeking relief from the U.S. Trade Representative’s surprise plan to levy port fees on all foreign-built ships in that segment, including 20 vessels that guarantee transport for the U.S. military during a war or national emergency, three sources told Reuters.

USTR announced the fees on April 17 as part of an ongoing effort to hit certain China-linked ships calling at U.S. ports with fees that would fund a domestic shipbuilding revival and counter China’s dominance on the high seas.

The fees sent a shockwave through the vehicle carrier industry, because they went beyond targeting China-built and China-owned ships.

The fees on vehicle carriers are so broad that they would hit the 20 U.S.-flagged and U.S.-crewed vehicle carriers admitted to the U.S. Maritime Security Program that supports Washington’s military readiness, according to two attorneys, who requested anonymity due to fear of reprisal.

The fees also would heap massive costs on vehicle carrier customers, who have been hurt by 25% auto tariffs imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump.

The levies were not mentioned in the original USTR port fee proposal from February, so unlike operators of other vessels, vessel carriers had no opportunity to give feedback.

“The fee on the car carriers came from nowhere,” one of the attorneys said.

Both said the USTR overreached because the fees are levied on ships made in countries that were not part of the Biden administration’s fast-track investigation that found China unfairly dominates the global maritime, logistics and shipbuilding sectors.

The World Shipping Council, whose members include Swedish vehicle transporter Wallenius Wilhelmsen, warned on April 18 that the fees would hit almost every car carrier and have unintended consequences.

WSC declined to comment further.

The attorneys and one industry group say they have requested meetings with USTR to discuss their concerns. USTR did not immediately comment on whether the body would meet with vessel carrier representatives.

USTR plans to charge foreign-built vehicle carriers $150 for every car the ship has capacity to carry, beginning on October 14. That fee would be $900,000 for a ship that transports 6,000 cars.

MILITARY RISK?

Vehicle carriers are vital to U.S. military readiness because they can transport large equipment such as tanks, aircraft and helicopters.

Companies with ships in the MSP include Florida-based American Roll-On, Roll-Off Carrier Group, a U.S.-flag operator of vehicle carriers that is part of Wallenius Wilhelmsen Group. New York-based Liberty Global Logistics, is another provider. Spokespeople for ARC and Liberty did not immediately respond to requests for comment, while Wallenius Wilhelmsen declined to comment.

A spokesman for Maersk Line Ltd,, the U.S. arm of the Danish container shipping giant which is also part of the MSP, said it is reviewing the most recent information from USTR and preparing for a range of scenarios.

Operators of container ships, fuel tankers and other vessels in the MSP are exempt from port fees.

There are 1,466 vehicle carriers in operation, according to data from Alphaliner.

Just 39 of those ships were built in the United States, Alphaliner said.

Reporting by Lisa BaertleinEditing by Peter Graff and Mark Potter

The U.S. is the largest single shareholder of the World Bank, with just under 16%

International news via Reuters:

The Trump administration cannot determine the mission of the World Bank because the global lender’s goals are based on agreement by many countries, Svenja Schulze, Germany’s minister for economic cooperation and development, told Reuters.

“This is not an American bank, it’s a world bank,” Schulze said in an interview on Thursday on the sidelines of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank spring meetings in Washington.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Wednesday called on the IMF and World Bank to refocus on their core missions of macroeconomic stability and development, arguing they have strayed too far into vanity projects such as climate change.

Certain euphemisms are starting to be used in international institutions, such as “weather developments” instead of “climate change,” and words like “gender” or “climate” or “inclusion” are being avoided.

“That is the founding mission of this bank, to take care of exactly these issues, and therefore we will now have to talk about what the U.S. actually wants,” Schulze said.

The U.S. is the largest single shareholder of the World Bank, with just under 16%.

President Donald Trump’s administration has cancelled billions of dollars in foreign aid, including funding for projects that provide lifesaving care for millions of people in some of the world’s poorest countries.

Schulze noted that these cuts have caused “a very large loss of trust” in developing countries, adding that rebuilding trust and showing that the World Bank and Germany are reliable partners were her goals for this week’s meetings.

Schulze’s Social Democrats will retain control of the German development ministry as part of the coalition agreement reached by the parties forming Germany’s next government. It is not clear who the next minister will be, though Schulze said she would like to remain in the position.

“We want to continue investing in development,” she said. “Investment in development policy is also part of our security policy. It’s not just foreign policy and defence, but also development.”

Germany provided 30 billion euros ($34.16 billion), or 0.67% of its gross national income, for development aid in 2024, but failed to meet the agreed United Nations target of 0.7% of GDP, the Official Development Assistance (ODA) quota.

The agreement reached by the incoming German coalition includes an “appropriate reduction in the ODA quota,” which comes after years in which the budget was constantly reduced, according to the agreement.

($1 = 0.8781 euros)

Reporting by Maria Martinez; Editing by Paul Simao

China has yet to officially communicate publicly on any exemptions

International news via Reuters:

China has exempted some U.S. imports from its 125% tariffs and is asking firms to identify critical goods they need levy-free, according to businesses notified, in the clearest sign yet of Beijing’s concerns about the trade war’s economic fallout.

The dispensation, which follows de-escalatory statements from Washington, signals that the world’s two largest economies were prepared to rein in their conflict, which had frozen much of the trade between them, raising fears of a global recession.

Beijing’s exemptions – which business groups hope would extend to dozens of industries – pushed the U.S. dollar up slightly and lifted equity markets in Hong Kong and Japan.

“As a quid-pro-quo move, it could provide a potential way to de-escalate tensions,” said Alfredo Montufar-Helu, a senior adviser to the Conference Board’s China Center, a think tank.

But, he cautioned: “It’s clear that neither the U.S. nor China want to be the first in reaching out for a deal.”

China has not yet communicated publicly on any exemptions.

A Friday statement by the Politburo, the Communist Party’s elite decision-making body, focused on efforts to maintain stability at home by supporting firms and workers most affected by tariffs.

The readout, which followed the Politburo’s regular monthly meeting, showed that Beijing was also ready to hunker down and fight a trade war of attrition if needed to outlast Washington in enduring the pain from the breakdown of their relationship.

A Ministry of Commerce taskforce is collecting lists of items that could be exempted from tariffs and is asking companies to submit their own requests, according to a person with knowledge of that outreach.

The ministry said on Thursday it had held a meeting with more than 80 foreign companies and business chambers in China to discuss the impact of U.S. tariffs on investment and the operation of foreign firms in the country.

“The Chinese government, for example, has been asking our companies what sort of things are you importing to China from the U.S. that you cannot find anywhere else and so would shut down your supply chain,” American Chamber of Commerce in China President Michael Hart said.

Hart added some member pharmaceutical companies had reported being able to import drugs to China without tariffs. He believed the exemptions were drug-specific, not industry-wide.

The chief executive of French aircraft engine maker Safran said on Friday it had been informed last night that China had granted tariff exemptions on “a certain number of aerospace equipment parts” including engines and landing gear.

The tariff exemptions under consideration by Beijing could provide cost relief for companies in China and take pressure off U.S. exports at a time when the Trump administration has shown signs of wanting to make a deal with Beijing.

The European Union Chamber of Commerce in China also said it had raised the issue of tariff exemptions with the commerce ministry and was awaiting a response.

“Many of our member companies are significantly impacted by the tariffs on critical components imported from the U.S.,” President Jens Eskelund said.

A list of 131 categories of products said to be under consideration for tariff exemptions was circulating on Chinese social media platforms and among some businesses and trade groups on Friday. Reuters could not verify the list, which included items ranging from vaccines and chemicals to jet engines.

Huatai Securities said the list corresponded to $45 billion worth of imports to China last year.

China’s customs agency and Ministry of Commerce did not reply to requests for comment. China’s foreign ministry said it was not familiar with tariff exemption plans, redirecting queries to “relevant authorities”.

LASTING FIGHT

While Washington has said the trade stand-off with China is economically untenable and already offered tariff exemptions to some electronic goods, China has repeatedly said it is willing to fight to the end unless the U.S. lifts its 145% tariffs.

But China’s economy headed into the trade war with rising unemployment, deflationary pressures and heightened concern that a mounting backlog of unsold exports could drive domestic prices even lower.

While China ran a trillion-dollar trade surplus in 2024, it also relies on the United States for key imports, including the petrochemical ethane needed to make plastics, and some drugs.

Big pharmaceutical companies including AstraZeneca and GSK have at least one manufacturing site in the U.S. for drugs sold in China, according to Chinese government data.

Major ethane processors have already sought tariff waivers from Beijing because the U.S. is the only supplier.

Exemptions may be only a tiny step in a long process.

“For those U.S.-manufactured goods that cannot be procured from any other country, I do think there is an interest to exempt them of import tariffs, even if this is done unilaterally,” Montufar-Helu said.

“But for some other goods like energy and agricultural commodities, I think the calculation is very different given that there are other sources that China can tap.”

Reporting by Andrew Silver in Shanghai, Trixie Yap in Singapore, Brenda Goh in Shanghai; Eduardo Baptista in Beijing; Additional reporting by Siyi Liu in Singapore; Tom Westbrook in Singapore; Harshita Meenaktshi in Bengaluru; Writing by Lewis Jackson and Marius Zaharia; Editing by Christian Schmollinger and Saad Sayeed

In his first term, Trump celebrated weapons sales to Saudi Arabia as good for U.S. jobs.

International news via Reuters:

The United States is poised to offer Saudi Arabia an arms package worth well over $100 billion, six sources with direct knowledge of the issue told Reuters, saying the proposal was being lined up for announcement during U.S. President Donald Trump’s visit to the kingdom in May.

The offered package comes after the administration of former President Joe Biden unsuccessfully tried to finalize a defense pact with Riyadh as part of a broad deal that envisioned Saudi Arabia normalizing ties with Israel.

The Biden proposal offered access to more advanced U.S. weaponry in return for halting Chinese arms purchases and restricting Beijing’s investment in the country. Reuters could not establish if the Trump administration’s proposal includes similar requirements.

The White House and Saudi government communications office did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

A U.S. Defense official said: “Our defense relationship with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is stronger than ever under President Trump’s leadership. Maintaining our security cooperation remains an important component of this partnership and we will continue to work with Saudi Arabia to address their defense needs.”

In his first term, Trump celebrated weapons sales to Saudi Arabia as good for U.S. jobs.

Lockheed Martin Corp could supply a range of advanced weapons systems including C-130 transport aircraft, two of the sources said. One source said Lockheed would also supply missiles and radars.

RTX Corp, formerly known as Raytheon Technologies, is also expected to play a significant role in the package, which will include supplies from other major U.S. defense contractors such as Boeing Co, Northrop Grumman Corp and General Atomics, said four of the sources.

All the sources declined to be named due to the sensitivity of the matter.

RTX, Northrop and General Atomics declined to comment. Boeing did not immediately respond to a request for comment. A Lockheed Martin spokesperson said foreign military sales are government-to-government transactions. Questions about sales to foreign governments are best addressed by the U.S. government.

Reuters could not immediately establish how many of the deals on offer were new. Many have been in the works for some time, two of the sources said. For example, the kingdom first requested information about General Atomics’ drones in 2018, they said. Over the past 12 months, a deal for $20 billion of General Atomics’ MQ-9B SeaGuardian-style drones and other aircraft came into focus, according to one of the sources.

Several executives from defense companies are considering traveling to the region as a part of the delegation, three of the sources said.

The U.S. has long supplied Saudi Arabia with weapons. In 2017, Trump proposed approximately $110 billion of sales to the kingdom.

As of 2018, only $14.5 billion of sales had been initiated and Congress began to question the deals in light of the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

In 2021, under Biden, Congress imposed a ban on sales of offensive weapons to Saudi Arabia over the Khashoggi killing and to pressure the kingdom to wind down its Yemen war, which had inflicted heavy civilian casualties.

Under U.S. law, major international weapons deals must be reviewed by members of Congress before they are finalised.

The Biden administration began to soften its stance on Saudi Arabia in 2022 after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine impacted global oil supplies. The ban on offensive weapons sales was lifted in 2024, as Washington worked more closely with Riyadh in the aftermath of Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack to devise a plan for post-war Gaza.

A potential deal for Lockheed’s F-35 jets, which the kingdom has been reportedly interested in for years, is expected to be discussed, three of the sources said, while downplaying the chances for an F-35 deal being signed during the trip.

The United States guarantees that its close ally Israel receives more advanced American weapons than Arab states, giving it what is labeled a “Qualitative Military Edge” (QME) over its neighbors.

Israel has now owned F-35s for nine years, building multiple squadrons.

Reporting by Pesha Magid in Riyadh and Mike Stone in Washington; Editing by Frank Jack Daniel and Michael Perry