Plus, women’s rugby gets a boost. On Today’s Episode: Beijing Retaliates After Trump Sets Steep Tariffs on Mexico, Canada and China, by Keith Bradsher and Ana SwansonTrump Suspends Military Aid to Ukraine After Oval Office Blowup, by Erica L. Green, Eric Schmitt, David E. Sanger and Julian E. BarnesIn Speech to Congress, Trump Is Expected to Boast About DOGE Cuts and Ukraine, by Luke Broadwater and Michael D. ShearHow a Plan for Reparations Became a Debt Trap for Marijuana Retailers, by Ashley SouthallU.S. Superstar Ilona Maher and Her Impact in England, by Caoimhe O’NeillxTune in every weekday morning. To get our full audio journalism and storytelling experience, download the New York Times Audio app — available to Times news subscribers on iOS — and sign up for our weekly newsletter.Tell us what you think at: [email protected].
Full Episode
From The New York Times, it's The Headlines. I'm Tracey Mumford. Today's Tuesday, March 4th. Here's what we're covering. Just after midnight, the sweeping new tariffs that President Trump has been threatening against America's largest trading partners kicked in. There's now a new 25% surcharge on products from Canada and Mexico and an extra 10% on goods from China on top of existing tariffs.
President Trump had been framing the tariffs as a national security issue, claiming that Canada and Mexico in particular weren't doing enough to stop migrants and fentanyl from coming into the U.S. Those countries have spent weeks scrambling to show Trump that they were stepping up enforcement. But yesterday, hours before the tariffs started, Trump seemed to move the goalposts.
So what they have to do is build their car plants, frankly, and other things in the United States, in which case they have no tariffs.
He suggested that the only way out of the surcharges would be for auto companies and other manufacturers to relocate to the U.S.
I would just say this to people in Canada or Mexico, if they're going to build car plants, the people that are doing them are much better off building here because we have the market, we're the market where they sell the most.
The tariffs are already sending shockwaves through the economy. The stock market had its biggest drop-off of the year when it became clear they were about to take effect. And economists say Americans will probably see higher prices on a wide range of products. The first place they're going to feel it is the grocery store.
Much of the fresh produce in the U.S., everything from tomatoes to avocados, is imported from Mexico. Prices could start to climb in the next few weeks. Beef, grain, and maple syrup from Canada will also likely get more expensive. And over time, prices could also go up on cars, toys, smartphones, and a whole range of consumer goods.
In response to Trump's tariffs, Canada immediately slapped its own surcharges on American imports. And China also moved quickly to retaliate, putting tariffs on American food and agricultural products and blocking a number of American companies from doing business in China. In another major move from the Trump administration, the president temporarily suspended all U.S.
military aid to Ukraine, three days after he berated Volodymyr Zelensky in the Oval Office. Officials say the suspension will be in place until Trump determines that Ukraine has made a good-faith commitment to peace negotiations with Russia. The order affects more than a billion dollars in arms and ammunition that were on order or even already en route.
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