<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/5KGMLDAKZZPMZBFLD6IPJ2HQA4-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-608265" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/5KGMLDAKZZPMZBFLD6IPJ2HQA4-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/5KGMLDAKZZPMZBFLD6IPJ2HQA4-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/5KGMLDAKZZPMZBFLD6IPJ2HQA4-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/5KGMLDAKZZPMZBFLD6IPJ2HQA4-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/5KGMLDAKZZPMZBFLD6IPJ2HQA4.jpg 1200w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">A cargo ship sits outside of the Port of Elizabeth marine terminal seen from Bayonne, New Jersey, U.S., April 9 2025. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



GENEVA, April 11 (Reuters) &#8211; Sweeping tariffs on imports imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump and countermeasures could have a &#8220;catastrophic&#8221; impact on developing countries, hitting even harder than foreign aid cuts, the director of the United Nations trade agency said on Friday.



Global trade could shrink by 3-7% and global gross domestic product by 0.7%, with developing countries the worst affected, the International Trade Centre said.



&#8220;It is huge,&#8221; Pamela Coke-Hamilton, executive director of the International Trade Centre, told Reuters. &#8220;If this escalation between China and the U.S. continues it will result in an 80% reduction in trade between the countries, and the ripple effect of that across the board can be catastrophic.&#8221;



Global markets remained in turmoil on Friday. Trump this week announced a 90-day tariff pause on dozens of countries but hiked the duties on Chinese goods to an effective rate of 145%. On Friday, Beijing increased its tariffs on U.S. imports to 125% in a trade war that threatens to up-end global supply chains.



&#8220;Tariffs could have a much more harmful impact than the removal of foreign aid,&#8221; Coke-Hamilton said, warning that developing economies risk sliding back on the economic gains they made in recent years.



Some of the world&#8217;s least developed countries, including Lesotho, Cambodia, Laos, Madagascar and Myanmar, may look to improve regional trade relations to absorb the loss of some of the U.S. market for their exports, the ITC&nbsp;said.



Bangladesh, the world’s second largest apparel exporter, could lose $3.3 billion in annual exports to the U.S. by 2029 if the U.S. tariff of 37% stays after the pause, ITC data found. It may look to European markets as an alternative as they still hold growth potential, Coke-Hamilton suggested.



The projections by the International Trade Centre, the joint agency of the World Trade Organization and the United Nations, which seeks to help countries develop through exports, are based on data it gathered before Trump&#8217;s 90-day pause and subsequent hikes on duties on Chinese imports.



(Reporting by Olivia Le Poidevin; Editing by Friederike Heine, Ludwig Burger and Frances Kerry)

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Impact of tariffs on developing countries could be ‘catastrophic’, says UN trade agency

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="4987" height="3325" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/AVUKD6NDQRNW5H4WASP4IO5AFM.avif" alt="" class="wp-image-608214"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao attends a meeting with global business leaders at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China, March 28, 2025. REUTERS/Florence Lo/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



BEIJING, April 11 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;China&#8217;s Commerce Minister Wang Wentao had discussions with his Saudi Arabian and South African counterparts to exchange views on responding to the United States&#8217; &#8220;reciprocal tariffs&#8221;, the Chinese ministry said on Friday.



The conversations took place over separate video calls on Thursday in which China discussed strengthening bilateral economic and trade cooperation with Saudi Arabia and South Africa.



Wang also spoke to Saudi Arabia&#8217;s Commerce Minister Majid bin Abdullah al-Qasabi about enhancing cooperation with countries within the Gulf Cooperation Council, while G20 and BRICS&#8217; roles were brought up in his conversation with South Africa&#8217;s Parks Tau.



The Chinese commerce ministry&#8217;s statements did not elaborate on the discussions.



(Reporting by Liz Lee, Yukun Zhang and Shanghai newsroom; Editing by Jacqueline Wong)

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China speaks with Saudi Arabia, South Africa about response to US tariffs

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="593" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/GMDZRSA6BRKDPKJ2BPS5RJ25YA-820x593.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-607969" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/GMDZRSA6BRKDPKJ2BPS5RJ25YA-820x593.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/GMDZRSA6BRKDPKJ2BPS5RJ25YA-300x217.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/GMDZRSA6BRKDPKJ2BPS5RJ25YA-124x90.jpg 124w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/GMDZRSA6BRKDPKJ2BPS5RJ25YA-768x556.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/GMDZRSA6BRKDPKJ2BPS5RJ25YA-1536x1111.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/GMDZRSA6BRKDPKJ2BPS5RJ25YA-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">The Fitch Ratings logo is seen at their offices at Canary Wharf financial district in London,Britain, March 3, 2016. REUTERS/Reinhard Krause</figcaption></figure>



JOHANNESBURG, April 10 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Pressure from U.S. aid freezes and global trade tension is unlikely to result in widescale credit downgrades in Africa, Fitch Ratings said on Thursday.



The impact of tariffs on Africa is limited, Fitch said, due to the region&#8217;s export composition and weaker integration into global supply chains compared to a region such as Asia.



But Sub-Saharan Africa has been one of the largest recipients of funds disbursed by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) which was frozen by executive order of U.S. President Donald Trump.



Nonetheless, South Africa, Namibia and Ivory Coast remain relatively shielded from recent events, Paul Gamble, head of Middle East/Africa in Fitch’s Sovereign Ratings Group, said.



And Nigeria and the Seychelles both hold positive credit outlooks from Fitch Ratings &#8211; an indication that a rating is expected to be raised in the future &#8211; thanks to ongoing reforms, he told a webinar.



&#8220;The reforms that we&#8217;ve seen really put the region in a better position to absorb some of these shocks,&#8221; Gamble.



&#8220;The impact for the ratings looks manageable.&#8221;



However, the freeze on U.S. foreign aid was not without negative consequences, Fitch said.



Some of the poorest nations were at risk for having projects come to an abrupt end and would see fiscal stability come under pressure. Ethiopia received U.S. assistance worth around 80% of its foreign exchange reserves, with Mozambique, Uganda, and Lesotho also seen at risk.



&#8220;African-owned multilateral banks might become more important institutions in this shifting landscape,&#8221; Arnaud Louis, senior director at Fitch, said on the webinar.



Gamble also pointed to Washington&#8217;s pivot to strategic investments in minerals in Africa as potentially becoming a new sphere for the trade tensions as it could intensify competition on the continent with China.



&#8220;Africa will be a playing field for U.S.-China tensions,&#8221; said Gamble. The U.S. interest is becoming &#8220;more opportunistic, transactional&#8221; focusing on access to minerals and rare earths rather than broad-based development, he said.



The Trump administration has said it wants to invest billions of dollars in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Congo&#8217;s minerals, which are used in mobile phones and electric cars, are currently dominated by China and its mining companies.



(Reporting by Colleen Goko; Editing by Alison Williams)

The Fitch Ratings logo is seen at their offices at Canary Wharf financial district in London

African credit ratings can absorb aid cuts and trade strains, Fitch says

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="461" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/108127404-1744022846334-gettyimages-968561798-_DSC2829-820x461.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-607937" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/108127404-1744022846334-gettyimages-968561798-_DSC2829-820x461.jpeg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/108127404-1744022846334-gettyimages-968561798-_DSC2829-300x169.jpeg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/108127404-1744022846334-gettyimages-968561798-_DSC2829-160x90.jpeg 160w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/108127404-1744022846334-gettyimages-968561798-_DSC2829-768x432.jpeg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/108127404-1744022846334-gettyimages-968561798-_DSC2829-1536x864.jpeg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/108127404-1744022846334-gettyimages-968561798-_DSC2829.jpeg 1600w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">In this photo illustration, a double exposure images shows U.S. President Donald Trump against the EU flag. Sopa Images | Lightrocket | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



The European Union will pause the adoption of its retaliatory tariffs on a swathe of U.S. goods for 90 days, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said, a day after the White House issued a reprieve on most of its own levies.



On Wednesday, EU members voted in favor of the package, which was designed in response to the U.S. 25% tariffs on steel and aluminum launched last month. The duties were due to be finalized in the coming days, with an initial tranche set to come into effect on April 15. The full list of targeted items has not yet been published, though a draft document seen by CNBC in March listed products spanning clothing, poultry, grains, machinery and more.



“We took note of the announcement by President Trump. We want to give negotiations a chance,” von der Leyen said on Thursday.



“If negotiations are not satisfactory, our countermeasures will kick in. Preparatory work on further countermeasures continues. As I have said before, all options remain on the table.”



As well as Trump’s 25% duties on steel, aluminum and autos, the EU was hit with a 20% U.S. tariff rate on almost all goods as part of the sweeping duties announced last week.



Trump on Wednesday jolted markets when he revealed the reduction of new tariff rates on imports from most U.S. trade partners to 10% for 90 days to allow for trade negotiations.



U.S. stock markets soared on the news, while Asia-Pacific and Europe joined the rally on Thursday. The euro was 1.2% higher against the U.S. dollar at midday London time on Thursday, trading at $1.1079.



In a statement earlier Thursday, von der Leyen said she welcomed the pause of Trump’s full “reciprocal tariff” plan, calling it an “important step towards stabilizing the global economy.”



“Tariffs are taxes that only hurt businesses and consumers. That’s why I’ve consistently advocated for a zero-for-zero tariff agreement between the European Union and the United States,” she said.



As well as negotiating with the U.S. and forming countermeasures, the EU says it is also strengthening and diversifying its other trade relationships and reducing friction in its single market in response to Trump’s actions.



EU relations with the U.S. have soured significantly this year. Trump has repeatedly accused the 27-nation bloc of treating the U.S. “very unfairly” due to the imbalance in their trade in goods.



Across goods, services and investment, trade between the two economies is roughly equal, leading to questions over whether the EU could resort to targeting U.S. services including technology in its response.

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European Union to put countermeasures to U.S. tariffs on hold for 90 days

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="2048" height="1365" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/A6RAHQABDRIGTJNVXZ2UH7TGEQ-scaled.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-451705" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/A6RAHQABDRIGTJNVXZ2UH7TGEQ-scaled.jpg 2048w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/A6RAHQABDRIGTJNVXZ2UH7TGEQ-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/A6RAHQABDRIGTJNVXZ2UH7TGEQ-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/A6RAHQABDRIGTJNVXZ2UH7TGEQ-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/A6RAHQABDRIGTJNVXZ2UH7TGEQ-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/A6RAHQABDRIGTJNVXZ2UH7TGEQ-1536x1024.jpg 1536w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 2048px) 100vw, 2048px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">The headquarters of the African Development Bank (AfDB) are pictured in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, January 30, 2020.REUTERS/Luc Gnago</figcaption></figure>



The United Kingdom says it looks forward to the election of a new leader at the African Development Bank (AfDB) as Akinwumi Adesina’s 10-year tenure ends.



However a spokesperson didn’t say if the country had a particular preference for any of the five candidates vying to lead the Abidjan, Cote D’Ivoire headquartered AfDB, Africa’s biggest development finance bank.



“The selection of the President is important to the Bank’s success and therefore is of key interest to the UK,’’ a spokesperson said in an emailed response to CNBC Africa. “Ultimately, we&nbsp;believe that the selection of this role is a decision for the African region to make collectively. We look forward to continuing to work with the Bank and the next President when their tenure starts next September.”



Ex-World Bank senior official Samuel Maimbo of Zambia is taking on Senegal’s Amadou Hott, ex-special envoy of the bank’s Alliance for Green Infrastructure in Africa, South Africa’s Swazi Tshabalala, a former Vice President, Mauritania’s Sidi Ould Tah, former Director General of the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa and Chad’s former Finance Minister Mahamat Tolli.



To win the presidency, a candidate must get a majority of votes from both the African shareholders who own 60 percent of the bank, and non-African shareholders, who are referred to as non-regional members, who control 40%.



Adesina, a former Nigerian agriculture minister, championed Africa’s agriculture as a unique investment opportunity during his term. He also focussed on providing power to the more than 600 million Africans still without electricity, launching an $8 billion project together with the World Bank in January.



The AfDB, the only African financial institution rated triple A by Moody’s, Standard &amp; Poor’s and Fitch, will select the new leader next month.



Its top five shareholders are Nigeria with 8.2%, followed by the United States at 6.6%, Egypt has 5.6% while Japan owns 5.5% and South Africa holds 5.1%.

The headquarters of the African Development Bank (AfDB) are pictured in Abidjan, Ivory Coast

United Kingdom Looks Forward to Working with Next AfDB President

<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Tariff suspension ‘the first right step,’ Polish finance minister says</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img decoding="async" src="https://image.cnbcfm.com/api/v1/image/108129777-1744272485007-gettyimages-2203945300-BELGIUM_ECOFIN.jpeg?v=1744272514&amp;w=1858&amp;h=1045&amp;vtcrop=y" alt="Andrzej Domanski, Poland's finance minster, during a news conference at the Economic and Financial Affairs Council (ECOFIN) meeting at the European Council headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, on Tuesday, March 11, 2025. EU policymakers are scrambling to ramp up the bloc's defense funding and support for Ukraine after Donald Trump halted aid to Kyiv. Photographer: Simon Wohlfahrt/Bloomberg via Getty Images"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Andrzej Domanski, Poland’s finance minster, during a news conference at the Economic and Financial Affairs Council (ECOFIN) meeting at the European Council headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, on Tuesday, March 11, 2025.  Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



Polish Finance Minister Andrzej Domanski welcomed the U.S. temporary suspension of most reciprocal tariffs.



“The first right step towards de-escalation. Less emotion, more focus on economic growth,” he said in a Google-translated social media post.



Poland has historically been a stalwart U.S. ally in Europe, especially in matters of regional security. As a member of the European Union, Poland was struck with 20% reciprocal tariffs under the White House’s April 2 announcement.



—&nbsp;Ruxandra Iordache



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-european-markets-soar-at-market-open">European markets soar at market open</h2>



European stocks soared at the Thursday market open, with the Stoxx 600 index up by 7.25% by 8:21 a.m. London time.



All sectors were in the green at the start of the session, with banks, autos and health care logging some of the highest hikes, higher by 9.95%, 7.43% and 7.41%, respectively.



—&nbsp;Ruxandra Iordache



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-asean-group-vows-no-trade-retaliation-against-the-u-s">ASEAN group vows no trade retaliation against the U.S.</h2>



The 10-member ASEAN group pledged not to impose any retaliatory measures in response to White House tariffs and to “engage in a frank and constructive dialogue” with Washington on trade relations.



“We regard the U.S. as a longstanding and valued economic partner of ASEAN,” the group said in a statement, adding, “We remain committed to safeguarding ASEAN’s economic interests as well as maintaining strong and mutually beneficial trade relations with the U.S.”



The ASEAN group comprises Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.&nbsp;



—&nbsp;Ruxandra Iordache



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-european-union-welcomes-trump-tariff-reprieve-von-der-leyen">European Union welcomes Trump tariff reprieve: von der Leyen</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img decoding="async" src="https://image.cnbcfm.com/api/v1/image/108129025-17442032332025-04-09t121419z_1722448607_rc2cudaj8nz6_rtrmadp_0_usa-trump-tariffs-eu.jpeg?v=1744266672&amp;w=1858&amp;h=1045&amp;vtcrop=y" alt="European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen reacts as she meets with Iceland's Prime Minister Kristrun Frostadottir (not pictured), in Brussels, Belgium April 9, 2025. REUTERS/Yves Herman"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen looks on as she meets with Iceland’s Prime Minister Kristrun Frostadottir (not pictured), in Brussels, Belgium, on April 9, 2025. Yves Herman | Reuters</figcaption></figure>



European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen welcomed Trump’s decision to pause “reciprocal” tariffs against several nations, adding the bloc “remains committed to constructive negotiations” with the White House.



“It’s an important step towards stabilizing the global economy. Clear, predictable conditions are essential for trade and supply chains to function,” she said in a social media post.



“Tariffs are taxes that only hurt businesses and consumers. That’s why I’ve consistently advocated for a zero-for-zero tariff agreement between the European Union and the United States.”



At the same time, the EU, which on Wednesday voted to approve its first set of retaliatory steps to counter U.S. tariffs on steel and aluminum, is focusing on diversifying its trade partnerships, von der Leyen said.



—&nbsp;Ruxandra Iordache



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity"/>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-trump-unlikely-to-revamp-extreme-tariff-policies-but-the-damage-has-been-done-deutsche-bank">Trump unlikely to revamp extreme tariff policies, but ‘the damage has been done’: Deutsche Bank</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img decoding="async" src="https://image.cnbcfm.com/api/v1/image/108129447-17442258192025-04-09t190936z_1050014360_rc2judaqjkne_rtrmadp_0_usa-trump.jpeg?v=1744225839&amp;w=1858&amp;h=1045&amp;vtcrop=y" alt="U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during an event with the racing champions from NASCAR Cup Series, NTT IndyCar Series, and IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., April 9, 2025. REUTERS/Nathan Howard"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during an event with the racing champions from NASCAR Cup Series, NTT IndyCar Series, and IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., April 9, 2025. Nathan Howard | Reuters </figcaption></figure>



In a note to clients on Wednesday evening, Deutsche Bank Research’s George Saravelos noted that U.S. President Donald Trump had mentioned the bond market during his press conference at the White House that day.



“The administration is finally signalling responsiveness to the very extreme market conditions we highlighted in the morning. At the margin, this should reduce the probability that such an extreme policy mix returns,” Saravelos said.



Stocks on Wall Street surged on Wednesday after Trump announced a 90-day pause on country-specific tariffs, with the exception of new duties on China.



Despite the market response, Saravelos warned that “the damage has been done” by Trump’s reciprocal tariffs policy.



“Even if the tariffs are permanently suspended, damage has been done to the economy via a permanent sense of unpredictability in policy,” Saravelos explained. “The events of the last few weeks will resonate amongst global economic partners during the upcoming negotiations on trade and indeed for many years to come. The desire to build greater strategic independence from the US across all fronts will be here to stay.”



—&nbsp;Chloe Taylor

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Trump tariffs: World reacts as White House issues temporary tariff reprieve; China’s duties kick in

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="640" height="463" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/2PLENK7UEVP6LHO27XU5VACMUU.avif" alt="" class="wp-image-590509"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">South African Rand coins are seen in this illustration picture taken October 30, 2020. REUTERS/Mike Hutchings/Illustration/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



JOHANNESBURG, April 10 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;South Africa&#8217;s rand firmed in early trade on Thursday, recouping some of its recent loss as investors took a breather after U.S. President Donald Trump announced an immediate 90-day tariff pause for many countries.



At 0631 GMT, the rand traded at 19.25 against the U.S. dollar, about 0.4% stronger than its previous close.



The local currency hit a record low of 19.9325 on Wednesday, the day Trump&#8217;s country-specific import tariffs kicked in.



Trump said he would temporarily lower tariffs imposed on dozens of countries including South Africa but kept a 10% blanket duty on almost all U.S. imports.



In addition to Trump&#8217;s tariffs, local politics have also weighed on the risk-sensitive rand, after a contentious budget vote last week threatened the future of the ruling coalition.



The second-biggest party in the coalition, the pro-business Democratic Alliance, voted against key legislation in the budget and challenged the budget process in court.



South Africa-focused investors on Thursday will look out for February domestic manufacturing data due at 1100 GMT for clues on the health of the economy.



Benchmark 2030 government bonds were stronger in early deals, with the yield down 15.5 basis points at 9.15%.



(Reporting by Sfundo Parakozov; Editing by Bhargav Acharya and Christopher Cushing)

2PLENK7UEVP6LHO27XU5VACMUU

South African rand regains some ground after US pauses tariffs

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="461" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/108129074-1744205767394-gettyimages-2208184612-_s019698_miuhqrg1-820x461.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-607852" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/108129074-1744205767394-gettyimages-2208184612-_s019698_miuhqrg1-820x461.jpeg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/108129074-1744205767394-gettyimages-2208184612-_s019698_miuhqrg1-300x169.jpeg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/108129074-1744205767394-gettyimages-2208184612-_s019698_miuhqrg1-160x90.jpeg 160w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/108129074-1744205767394-gettyimages-2208184612-_s019698_miuhqrg1-768x432.jpeg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/108129074-1744205767394-gettyimages-2208184612-_s019698_miuhqrg1-1536x864.jpeg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/108129074-1744205767394-gettyimages-2208184612-_s019698_miuhqrg1.jpeg 1600w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption"> U.S. President Donald Trump holds up a chart while speaking during a “Make America Wealthy Again” trade announcement on April 2, 2025 in Washington, DC. Chip Somodevilla | Getty Images News | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



President Donald Trump on Wednesday dropped new tariff rates on imports from most U.S. trade partners to 10% for 90 days to allow trade negotiations with those countries.



Trump announced the pause hours after goods from nearly 90 nations became subject to stiffer, so-called reciprocal tariffs imposed by the United States.



The president also said in a social media post that he was raising the tariffs imposed on imports from China to 125% “effective immediately” due to the “lack of respect that China has shown to the World’s Markets.”



China, which is the U.S.’s third-largest trading partner, earlier Wednesday said it would increase its tariff rate for imports from the U.S. to 84%.



Trump said “more than 75 Countries” contacted U.S. officials to negotiate after he unveiled his new tariffs last week.



Stock market indices rocketed sharply higher Wednesday on Trump’s announcement, reversing four days of losses. The benchmark S&amp;P 500 index leapt by 7%, which puts it on track for its largest single-day gain in five years.



When asked later about the reason for his decision, Trump told reporters, “Well, I thought that people were jumping a little bit out of line.”



“They were getting yippy, you know, they were getting a little bit yippy, a little bit afraid,” Trump said at the White House.



Treasury Secretary Scott Bessett claimed to reporters that Trump had always intended to put the brakes on the wide-ranging tariffs the president announced last week.



“This was his strategy all along,” Bessent said at the White House, where officials, including him, had denied for days that the tariffs would be suspended.



On April 2, Trump had said he would impose a baseline rate of 10% for tariffs on imports from more than 180 countries.



A subset of 90 countries’ imports would be subject to reciprocal tariffs that took effect Wednesday. Those enhanced levies ranged from a low of 11% to a high of 50%.



Financial markets have been in turmoil since Trump announced with plan, with U.S. stock markets suffering four straight days of declines as of Tuesday.



Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-NY, criticized Trump on Wednesday,, saying the president “is feeling the heat from Democrats and across America about how bad these tariffs are.”



“He is reeling, he is retreating, and that is a good thing,” said Schumer.



“This is government by chaos,”&nbsp;Schumer said,&nbsp;“He keeps changing things from day to day. His advisers are fighting among themselves, calling each other names, and you cannot run a country with such chaos, with such unpredictability, with such lack of understanding of what’s going on in the world and the facts.



Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, in a tweet, said that he and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent sat with Trump while he wrote out the announcement on Truth Social, “one of the most extraordinary Truth posts of his Presidency.”



“The world is ready to work with President Trump to fix global trade, and China has chosen the opposite direction,” Lutnick wrote.

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Trump temporarily drops tariffs to 10% for most countries, hits China harder with 125%

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="507" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/RAND-DOLLAR-820x507.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-533970" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/RAND-DOLLAR-820x507.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/RAND-DOLLAR-300x186.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/RAND-DOLLAR-145x90.jpg 145w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/RAND-DOLLAR-768x475.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/RAND-DOLLAR-1536x950.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/RAND-DOLLAR-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">South African bank notes featuring images of former South African President Nelson Mandela (R) are displayed next to the American dollar notes in this photo illustration in Johannesburg August 13 2014. REUTERS/Siphiwe Sibeko/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



JOHANNESBURG, April 9 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;South Africa&#8217;s rand touched a new all-time low against the U.S. dollar on Wednesday, under pressure from global risk aversion over U.S. President Donald Trump&#8217;s tariffs and uncertainty about the future of the local coalition government.



The rand fell as low as 19.9325 to the dollar, weaker than the previous record low of 19.9075 struck in June 2023, data from the London Stock Exchange Group showed.



This is a developing story&#8230;



(Reporting by Tannur Anders; Editing by Alexander Winning)

Photo illustration of South African bank notes displayed next to the American dollar notes in Johannesburg

South Africa’s rand touches new record low against dollar

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="461" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/108126463-1743765627495-gettyimages-2198947496-_ha_0099_eetz0vnk-820x461.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-607599" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/108126463-1743765627495-gettyimages-2198947496-_ha_0099_eetz0vnk-820x461.jpeg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/108126463-1743765627495-gettyimages-2198947496-_ha_0099_eetz0vnk-300x169.jpeg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/108126463-1743765627495-gettyimages-2198947496-_ha_0099_eetz0vnk-160x90.jpeg 160w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/108126463-1743765627495-gettyimages-2198947496-_ha_0099_eetz0vnk-768x432.jpeg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/108126463-1743765627495-gettyimages-2198947496-_ha_0099_eetz0vnk-1536x864.jpeg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/108126463-1743765627495-gettyimages-2198947496-_ha_0099_eetz0vnk.jpeg 1920w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">European flags fly in front of the Berlaymont building. Omar Havana | Getty Images News | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



The European Union on Wednesday voted to approve its first set of retaliatory measures to counter tariffs imposed by the U.S. on steel and aluminum.



The European Commission, the bloc’s executive arm, said duties would start being collected from April 15. The response package was unveiled last month targeting a range of goods.



The 27-nation bloc had warned it would act to protect European business and consumers after U.S. President Donald Trump imposed 25% duties on the metals.



“The EU considers US tariffs unjustified and damaging, causing economic harm to both sides, as well&nbsp;as the global economy. The EU has stated its clear preference to find negotiated outcomes with the&nbsp;US, which would be balanced and mutually beneficial,” the European Commission said.



The EU also faces tariffs of 20% on almost all its U.S. imports, as part of Trump’s targeting of over 180 countries and territories, as announced by the White House leader on April 2.



European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen at the time said the EU was ready to retaliate unless negotiations with the U.S. administration were successful.



“We are prepared to respond,” she said, adding that the EU was preparing for further countermeasures to protect its interests and businesses. But, von der Leyen also called for talks with the U.S., saying it was “not too late to address concerns through negotiations.”



Maros Sefcovic, the EU’s commissioner for trade and economic security, said Monday that the bloc would start collecting a first tranche of tariffs on U.S. imports from April 15, with a second set of measures following on May 15.



The U.S. tariffs are impacting 380 billion euros ($420.45 billion) worth of Europe’s exports to the United States, amounting to around 70% of total exports, Sefcovic said during a press briefing.



“To put it in perspective, that’s over 80 billion euros in duties, an eleven-fold jump from the 7 billion [euros] the U.S. currently collects,” he added.

108126463-1743765627495-gettyimages-2198947496-_ha_0099_eetz0vnk

European Union approves first set of retaliatory tariffs on U.S. imports

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="461" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/108127367-1744016460156-gettyimages-2202949274-AFP_36ZD4EZ-820x461.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-607544" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/108127367-1744016460156-gettyimages-2202949274-AFP_36ZD4EZ-820x461.jpeg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/108127367-1744016460156-gettyimages-2202949274-AFP_36ZD4EZ-300x169.jpeg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/108127367-1744016460156-gettyimages-2202949274-AFP_36ZD4EZ-160x90.jpeg 160w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/108127367-1744016460156-gettyimages-2202949274-AFP_36ZD4EZ-768x432.jpeg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/108127367-1744016460156-gettyimages-2202949274-AFP_36ZD4EZ-1536x864.jpeg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/108127367-1744016460156-gettyimages-2202949274-AFP_36ZD4EZ.jpeg 1920w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">The Chinese flag flies in Tiananmen square, as seen from the Great Hall of the People where meetings of the National People’s Congress continued in Beijing on March 6, 2025. Greg Baker | Afp | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



China has pushed back again on U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff policies by hiking its levies on U.S. imports to more than 80%.



Tariffs on U.S. goods entering China will rise to 84% from 34% starting April 10, according to a translation of a Office of the Tariff Commission of the State Council announcement. The hike comes in response to the latest U.S. tariff increase on Chinese goods to more than 100% that began at midnight.



The tit-for-tat escalation of tariffs threatens to crush trade between the world’s two largest economies. According to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, the U.S. exported $143.5 billion of goods to China in 2024, while importing products worth $438.9 billion.



The Trump administration announced a sweeping new tariff policy last week, warning other countries not to retaliate. Some nations, including Japan, have seemed willing to negotiate on tariffs, but China appears to be taking a more hardline stance and quickly announced a countertariff.



After China’s initial response to the April 2 tariff rollout, Trump announced an additional 50% hike, putting the total level for import taxes on Chinese goods at 104%.



“It’s unfortunate that the Chinese actually don’t want to come and negotiate, because they are the worst offenders in the international trading system,” U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Fox Business on Wednesday after China’s latest announcement. “They have the most imbalanced economy in the history of the modern world, and I can tell you that this escalation is a loser for them.”



The U.S. had already imposed new tariffs on China before it rolled out its full trade policy in April. China, along with Canada and Mexico, was hit with new levies at the start of Trump’s second term as part of what the administration said was an effort to stop fentanyl from entering the U.S.



The trade war has spooked investors around the world by increasing the odds of slower economic growth, higher inflation and lower corporate profits, sparking a sharp sell-off in April. The S&amp;P 500 finished Tuesday down nearly 20% from its peak, putting the U.S. large-cap stock index in a bear market. South Korea’s Kospi Index fell into a bear market of its own on Wednesday. Stocks in Shanghai and Hong Kong are also down sharply since the U.S. tariff announcement on April 2.

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China slaps retaliatory tariffs of 84% on U.S. goods in response to Trump

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="461" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/108128682-17441449612025-04-08t204125z_1005197937_rc2wtda2i2uw_rtrmadp_0_usa-trump-820x461.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-607508" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/108128682-17441449612025-04-08t204125z_1005197937_rc2wtda2i2uw_rtrmadp_0_usa-trump-820x461.jpeg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/108128682-17441449612025-04-08t204125z_1005197937_rc2wtda2i2uw_rtrmadp_0_usa-trump-300x169.jpeg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/108128682-17441449612025-04-08t204125z_1005197937_rc2wtda2i2uw_rtrmadp_0_usa-trump-160x90.jpeg 160w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/108128682-17441449612025-04-08t204125z_1005197937_rc2wtda2i2uw_rtrmadp_0_usa-trump-768x432.jpeg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/108128682-17441449612025-04-08t204125z_1005197937_rc2wtda2i2uw_rtrmadp_0_usa-trump-1536x864.jpeg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/108128682-17441449612025-04-08t204125z_1005197937_rc2wtda2i2uw_rtrmadp_0_usa-trump.jpeg 1600w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Photo: via CNBC</figcaption></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-ship-building-to-be-key-negotiating-tool-in-south-korea-u-s-tariff-talks">Ship-building to be key negotiating tool in South Korea-U.S. tariff talks</h2>



Major U.S. ally South Korea, which was slapped with a 25% rate under the latest Trump tariff regime, says ship-building could be a key advantage in negotiations with the White House.



“Since President Trump and the Trump administration are showing great interest in shipbuilding cooperation, we believe that the shipbuilding sector will be a very important negotiating card for us,” South Korea’s Minister of Trade, Industry, and Energy Ahn Duk-geun said on Wednesday, according to Reuters.



This comes after U.S. President Donald Trump and South Korea’s interim leader Han Duck-soo held talks on Tuesday to discuss tariffs.&nbsp;Several nations are looking to negotiate with the U.S to mitigate the effect of the U.S. protectionist trade policy.



—&nbsp;Lily Meckel



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity"/>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-india-s-central-bank-governor-signals-growth-concerns-amid-u-s-tariffs">India’s central bank governor signals growth concerns amid U.S. tariffs</h2>



Speaking after the Reserve Bank of India’s decision to cut interest rates, the central bank’s Governor Sanjay Malhotra said he was “concerned about growth” in India due to the impact of U.S. tariffs.



He pointed out India is better placed than other countries to tackle the tariff-led&nbsp;hikes due to its&nbsp;narrower&nbsp;trade surplus with the U.S. and&nbsp;the&nbsp;lower “reciprocal” tariff rate&nbsp;it received from Washington, compared with other nations.



“My understanding is that the impact of these tariffs on India vis-à-vis some of the other countries [such as] China and some of the other countries,&nbsp;[is]&nbsp;much less,” Malhotra said.



— Lim Hui Jie



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity"/>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-deutsche-bank-downgrades-swathe-of-european-firms-in-tariff-firing-line">Deutsche Bank downgrades swathe of European firms in tariff firing line</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img decoding="async" src="https://image.cnbcfm.com/api/v1/image/108094081-1738161352098-gettyimages-2020858462-FRANCE_PARIS.jpeg?v=1744184433&amp;w=1858&amp;h=1045&amp;vtcrop=y" alt="The Louis Vuitton boutique in the Place Vendome luxury retail area in central Paris, France, on Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2024."/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">The Louis Vuitton boutique in the Place Vendome luxury retail area in central Paris, France, on Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2024. Andrea Mantovani | Bloomberg | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



In a note to clients on Wednesday, strategists at Deutsche Bank downwardly revised target prices for 19 companies.



Many of the companies were in the European luxury and mining sectors. Gucci owner Kering’s target price was slashed by 39.7%, while British luxury giant Burberry’s target price was lowered by 35.7%. French conglomerate LVMH’s target price was cut by 16.5%.



In the mining sector, BHP, Anglo American, Glencore and Rio Tinto were among those with downgraded target prices.



“The direct impact of the tariffs is not a huge headwind in our view with … price increases able to offset the profit impact,” Deutsche Bank’s team said in their note. “However, weaker global stock markets and the broader economic uncertainty will weigh on confidence and we see this further postponing a recovery in luxury demand.”



On mining, Deutsche Bank advised investors to “seek selective exposure” in the coming six to 12 months.



“The&nbsp;reciprocal tariffs announced last week have driven the sharpest sell-off in Mining since 2020,” its strategists said. “Our base case now assumes global growth verging on recession over the next two quarters … While there is still the risk of further downside in the near term, mining valuations are approaching trough levels, [and] debt levels are low.”



—&nbsp;Chloe Taylor

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Trump’s reciprocal tariffs plan kicks in, China to see net total tariffs of 104%

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="5000" height="3334" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/WSODY4AV2JNYNIDLTPZFGGWEU4.avif" alt="" class="wp-image-607487"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Labour MP Bambos Charalambous speaks at the House of Commons in London, Britain, November 16, 2022. UK Parliament/Jessica Taylor/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



LONDON, April 9 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;A British lawmaker has introduced a private member&#8217;s bill that would set new rules around debt restructurings in a push to speed up negotiations for poor countries struggling with unsustainable debt.



Bambos Charalambous, who introduced the bill late last year, said support from other members of parliament had grown since the UK and the United States slashed aid spending. He represents the ruling Labour party in parliament, but neither it nor the opposition conservatives have thrown their support behind the bill.



Charalambous said his party may be persuaded to back it and it was being studied by some in governmemt. His effort follows similar proposals in New York state, which supporters say would enable poor nations to emerge faster and stronger from debt distress, while opponents warn they could make future borrowing more expensive.



Lawyers and investors following the debate on both sides of the Atlantic expect debt campaigners to keep pushing until some iteration of the proposals becomes law.



Trillions of dollars in bonds &#8211; accounting for nearly all tradeable sovereign debt issued by developing governments and companies on international capital markets &#8211; are issued under the laws of either New York state or England.



English law governs a disproportionate share &#8211; estimated at up to 90% &#8211; of those bonds issued by the poorest nations, such as Ethiopia and Ghana.



&#8220;It would, number one, compel private creditors to negotiate in good faith, and quickly, with the debt-distressed countries,&#8221; Charalambous told Reuters regarding the bill.



&#8220;And it could be worth billions to (the countries), and that money could be reinvested into health and education projects.&#8221;



Charalambous&#8217;s bill would allow countries to seek debt payment freezes while restructuring negotiations are underway, and also enable a stay on legal proceedings during the process.



It would also cap the claims that private creditors can make via lawsuits after restructurings are concluded, aiming to prevent holdout creditors from blocking or slowing debt deals.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-states-vulnerable">STATES VULNERABLE</h2>



Currently, if a country defaults on its bonds, creditors can go to court in the jurisdiction governing the contract to force repayment; some of Ethiopia&#8217;s bondholders have said they could undertake legal proceedings.



Such court cases typically spark lengthy legal proceedings that can delay or complicate a broader restructuring.



A wave of developing countries, from Ghana to Sri Lanka, have defaulted since 2020, weakened by the COVID-19 pandemic and a global interest rate hiking cycle.



The G20 created an initiative called the Common Framework to try to bring together diverse lenders &#8211; from China to New York investors &#8211; to speed up poor countries&#8217; debt reworks.



But it took Zambia more than three years to restructure its primary debts, and critics say the debt relief it and other nations have secured leaves them vulnerable to future crises.



No iteration of the New York bill has made it to the governor&#8217;s desk, but emerging market bond investors have begun to include clauses in bond deals that would allow them to switch jurisdictions to avoid potential curbs.



(Reporting by Libby GeorgeEditing by Alexandra Hudson)

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UK bill aims to speed debt restructuring for poor countries

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="4000" height="2667" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/4RI6JH2DCRIBTOTEG67K23A2OM.avif" alt="" class="wp-image-591756"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">An American flag and USAID flag fly outside the USAID building in Washington, D.C., U.S., February 1, 2025. REUTERS/Annabelle Gordon/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



WASHINGTON, April 8 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;President Donald Trump&#8217;s administration on Tuesday moved to reinstate at least six recently canceled U.S. foreign aid programs for emergency food assistance, six sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.



The quick reversal of decisions made just days ago underscored the rapid-fire nature of Trump&#8217;s cuts to foreign aid. That has led to programs being cut, restored then cut again, disrupting international humanitarian operations.



USAID Acting Deputy Administrator Jeremy Lewin, who has previously been identified as a member of billionaire Elon Musk&#8217;s Department of Government Efficiency, asked staff in an internal email to reverse the terminations.



He asked to restore awards to the World Food Programme in Lebanon, Syria, Somalia, Jordan, Iraq and Ecuador, five sources familiar with the matter said.



The administration has also resumed four awards to the International Organization for Migration in the Pacific region, two sources familiar with the matter said.



&#8220;Sorry for all the back and forth on awards,&#8221; Lewin said on Tuesday in the internal email seen by Reuters. &#8220;There are a lot of stakeholders and we need to do better about balancing these competing interests — that’s my fault and I take responsibility,&#8221; he added.



Reuters reported on Monday that the Trump administration had ended life-saving aid programs for more than a dozen countries including Afghanistan, Yemen, Somalia and Syria, totaling over $1.3 billion.



According to Stand Up For Aid, an advocacy group of current and former U.S. officials, WFP contracts canceled on Lewin’s orders last weekend for Lebanon, Syria, Somalia and Jordan totaled more than $463 million.



Many of the terminated programs had been granted waivers by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio following an initial round of cuts to foreign aid programs. The State Department said those did not reflect a final decision.



The State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment about restoring the awards.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-death-sentence">A &#8216;DEATH SENTENCE&#8217;</h2>



The decision to restore some aid followed pressure from inside the administration and from Congress, two sources said.



The World Food Programme said on Monday that the U.S. notified the organization it was eliminating emergency food assistance funding in 14 countries, warning: &#8220;If implemented, this could amount to a death sentence for millions of people facing extreme hunger and starvation.&#8221;



The U.S. did not restore aid to Taliban-ruled Afghanistan and to Yemen, most of which is controlled by Islamist militants of the Iran-backed Houthi movement. Washington has been the largest aid donor to both countries, which have suffered years of devastating war.



State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce on Tuesday told reporters that the United States had concerns that WFP funding for Yemen and Afghanistan was benefiting the Houthis and the Taliban.



&#8220;There were a few programs that were cut in other countries that were not meant to be cut that have been rolled back and put into place,&#8221; Bruce said, adding that the administration remains committed to foreign aid.



Among the cuts over the weekend were $169.8 million for the WFP in Somalia, covering food assistance, nutrition for malnourished babies and children and humanitarian air support. In Syria, $111 million was cut from WFP food assistance.



The cuts have been the latest piece of the Trump administration&#8217;s&nbsp;<a href="https://www.reutersconnect.com/all?search=all%3AL2N3QF0Q8&amp;linkedFromStory=true" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">drive to dismantle</a>&nbsp;USAID, the main U.S. humanitarian aid agency.



The administration has canceled billions of dollars in foreign aid since the Republican president began his second term on January 20 in an overhaul that officials described as marked by&nbsp;<a href="https://www.reutersconnect.com/all?search=all%3AL6N3OZ00X&amp;linkedFromStory=true" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">chaos and confusion</a>.



Senate Foreign Relations Committee Democrats on Tuesday wrote a letter to Rubio regarding plans to restructure the State Department, including by folding in USAID, which they said was &#8220;unconstitutional, illegal, unjustified, damaging, and inefficient.&#8221;



(Reporting by Jonathan Landay, Daphne Psaledakis and Humeyra Pamuk; Additional reporting by Patricia Zengerle and Michelle Nichols; Editing by Don Durfee and Cynthia Osterman)

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Trump administration moves to restore some terminated foreign aid programs, sources say

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="4500" height="3000" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/S6AZUG3GPJNWBFZDG42JBIMG74.avif" alt="" class="wp-image-607180"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Fikile Mbalula, the Secretary-General of the African National Congress addresses the media during a press conference at Chief Albert Luthuli House, the headquarters of the African National Congress in Johannesburg, South Africa, April 1, 2025. REUTERS/Ihsaan Haffejee/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



JOHANNESBURG, April 8 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;The African National Congress&nbsp;remains&nbsp;committed to South Africa&#8217;s multiparty government, it said on Tuesday, after its main coalition partner, the Democratic Alliance, voted against the budget and went to court to try to block it.



The deepening schism between the ANC and DA &#8211; South Africa&#8217;s biggest and second-biggest parties &#8211; threatens to sink the country&#8217;s first attempt at coalition rule in its 30-year democratic era and has left investors rattled.



The ANC and DA held separate meetings of their top officials on Monday to discuss how to move on from last week&#8217;s fractious budget vote, which followed weeks of failed negotiations over the bill.



The DA had pushed for a bigger say in economic policymaking during the talks after not getting its way in earlier disagreements over health insurance and education laws.



The ANC, however, did not cede to the DA&#8217;s demands and instead secured the backing of a small party outside the coalition to pass the budget&#8217;s first piece of legislation.



ANC Secretary General Fikile Mbalula told a press conference that the DA had acted as an opposition force by seeking to block several high-profile legislative projects.



&#8220;This dishonesty undermines the very essence of collective governance,&#8221; he said.



But he stopped short of saying the ANC wanted to force the DA out of government&nbsp;and said the ANC&nbsp;would continue talks with the DA.



&#8220;We remain committed to the (coalition government) as a tactical element,&#8221; Mbalula said. &#8220;We remain committed, but its integrity cannot be compromised.&#8221;



Mbalula said that, in addition to the DA, the ANC would talk to its other coalition partners and parties outside the government to try to resolve any remaining disagreements over the budget, whose most contentious element is a plan to&nbsp;increase value-added tax.



DA leader John Steenhuisen said in a statement on Tuesday that his party wanted to discuss power-sharing with the ANC, which he called a natural consequence of the 2024 election&nbsp;in which&nbsp;no single party secured a majority.



&#8220;The electorate sent a clear message: single party rule is over, and no one party gets to dictate our policy direction,&#8221; he said.



The prospect that the pro-business DA could exit the coalition with the former liberation movement of Nelson Mandela and a host of other smaller parties&nbsp;has contributed&nbsp;to a steep fall in the rand&nbsp;ZAR=D3&nbsp;in recent days.



(Additional reporting by Bhargav Acharya and Sfundo Parakozov; Writing by Alexander Winning; Editing by Joe Bavier)

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South Africa’s ANC committed to coalition despite budget disagreements

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="574" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/PHOTO-2025-02-27-16-12-22-1-820x574.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-607126" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/PHOTO-2025-02-27-16-12-22-1-820x574.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/PHOTO-2025-02-27-16-12-22-1-300x210.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/PHOTO-2025-02-27-16-12-22-1-129x90.jpg 129w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/PHOTO-2025-02-27-16-12-22-1-768x538.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/PHOTO-2025-02-27-16-12-22-1.jpg 1280w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /></figure>



South Africa has asked Kenya to support its candidate, Swazi Tshabalala, for the Presidency of the African Development Bank (AfDB).



Kenya’s Cabinet Secretary for Foreign Affairs Musalia Mudavadi and senior ministry officials met Tshabalala at the weekend where a formal request for support was made, Mudavadi’s office said without revealing Kenya’s position.



Tshabalala, a former African Development Bank Senior Vice President is battling four other candidates for leadership of the only African financial institution rated triple A by all three of the world’s rating agencies. She is the only female candidate.



“Leadership is not about gender—it’s about vision, competence, and the courage to transform Africa’s financial future,” Tshabalala said in a statement after the meeting. “My three decades of experience and proven track record at the AfDB position me as a candidate and the right leader to steer this institution toward greater impact”.



Tshabalala served as AfDB Vice President from 2021 until last September when she resigned. Before that she held leadership roles at Old Mutual Employee Benefits, Standard Bank Group and Transnet, South Africa’s transport parastatal. From 2006 to 2014, she served as the CEO of the Industrial Development Corporation.



She says she ready to help transform Africa by prioritising infrastructure development and allowing a greater role for the continent’s private sector if she is elected president next May.



Tshabalala is taking on Zambia’s Samuel Maimbo, who says he has the support of the Southern African Development Community and the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa, Senegal’s Amadou Hott, a former special envoy for the bank’s Alliance for Green Infrastructure in Africa, Mauritania’s Sidi Ould Tah, ex-President of the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa and former Chad Finance Minister Abbas Mahamat Tolli.



African shareholders hold 60 percent of the bank, with the balance owned by non- African shareholders. To win the presidency, a candidate must win a majority of both sets of shareholders. The election will be held at the bank’s annual meetings in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire next month.

PHOTO-2025-02-27-16-12-22 (1)

South Africa Asks Kenya to support AfDB Presidential candidate

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="546" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/108127933-17440569022025-04-07t201357z_142193552_rc27tdaib6pb_rtrmadp_0_usa-trump-tariffs-israel-820x546.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-607109" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/108127933-17440569022025-04-07t201357z_142193552_rc27tdaib6pb_rtrmadp_0_usa-trump-tariffs-israel-820x546.jpeg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/108127933-17440569022025-04-07t201357z_142193552_rc27tdaib6pb_rtrmadp_0_usa-trump-tariffs-israel-300x200.jpeg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/108127933-17440569022025-04-07t201357z_142193552_rc27tdaib6pb_rtrmadp_0_usa-trump-tariffs-israel-135x90.jpeg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/108127933-17440569022025-04-07t201357z_142193552_rc27tdaib6pb_rtrmadp_0_usa-trump-tariffs-israel-768x512.jpeg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/108127933-17440569022025-04-07t201357z_142193552_rc27tdaib6pb_rtrmadp_0_usa-trump-tariffs-israel.jpeg 1520w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">U.S. President Donald Trump gestures during a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (not pictured) in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, U.S., April 7, 2025.  Kevin Mohatt | Reuters</figcaption></figure>



The meaning of the word “reciprocity” is being strained by the Trump administration. Not only did the White House use a bizarre formula to determine the degree of its “reciprocal” tariffs on other countries, but it also refused to return the favor when Vietnam and the European Union offered to remove tariffs on U.S. imports.



White House trade advisor Peter Navarro said on CNBC’s “Squawk Box” that it’s Vietnam’s “nontariff cheating that matters,” citing examples such as how Chinese goods are often exported from Vietnam and intellectual property theft. This suggests that the Trump administration sees tariffs not just as a means to address U.S. trade imbalance (which, itself, is already not a good indicator of economic health), but also a way of fundamentally changing the way global trade and manufacturing are being conducted.



Business leaders, many of them steering companies that rely on — and have profited from — the current economic paradigm, are starting to voice their concerns and even vent their displeasure at Trump tariffs. Some are supporters and donors of the Republican Party. With the Trump administration’s idiosyncratic understanding of “reciprocity,” however, it seems unlikely it will repay their goodwill with its own.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-you-need-to-know-today"><a></a>What you need to know today</h2>



Nasdaq rises and Asian shares rebound U.S. markets mostly fell Monday. The S&amp;P 500 lost 0.23% and was briefly in bear market territory — a 20% fall from its recent high — during the trading session. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 0.91%, and swung 2,595 points from low to high, its largest intraday point swing ever recorded. But the Nasdaq Composite edged up 0.1% as investors bought some megacap tech stocks — but Apple was bludgeoned again. Asia-Pacific markets climbed Tuesday, rebounding from heavy losses the previous day. Japan’s Nikkei 225 jumped nearly 6% and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index added 0.3%.



China pledges to ‘fight to the end’ U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday threatened to slap additional 50% tariffs on China — which would bring total duties on Chinese imports to 104% — after Beijing retaliated with its own levies of 34% on all U.S. goods. On Tuesday, China’s Commerce Ministry said it “resolutely opposes” Trump’s additional tariffs and vowed to “fight to the end,” according to a statement translated by CNBC.



White House rejects 0% tariff deals That said, even if China had offered concessions to the United States, the Trump administration might not have budged. White House trade advisor Peter Navarro said Monday that an offer by Vietnam to eliminate tariffs on U.S. imports “means nothing to us because it’s the nontariff cheating that matters.” Trump also rejected the European Union’s offer of “zero-for-zero” tariffs with the U.S. for industrial goods.



Growing fears and dissatisfaction Business leaders are sounding the alarm over the potential fallout from Trump tariffs. BlackRock CEO Larry Fink said Monday that “Most CEOs I talk to would say we are probably in a recession right now.” JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon, in his annual shareholder letter Monday, wrote that tariffs are likely to cause “inflationary outcomes” and “will slow down growth” of an “already weakening” economy. And Home Depot co-founder Ken Langone, a megadonor to the Republican Party, called the 46% import duties on Vietnam “bulls&#8212;.”



[PRO] Waiting for ‘sustained bottom’ DoubleLine Capital CEO Jeffrey Gundlach said on CNBC’s “Closing Bell” Monday that he’s concerned over the lack of bounce in the market, and would hold cash until the S&amp;P 500 hits a “sustained bottom.” Here’s where Gundlach thinks the S&amp;P 500 could end up before it starts to rise again.   



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-and-finally"><a></a>And finally&#8230;</h2>



European and Asian defense stocks have rallied this year. A lack of trust in the U.S. could be driving those gains



While stocks have generally sold off after U.S. President Donald Trump announced his plan for “reciprocal tariffs,” European and Asian arms manufacturers are still posting respectable gains on a year-to-date basis, with some rising over 100%.



Veteran investor and strategist at Quantum Strategy David Roche told CNBC the rise in defense stocks outside of the U.S is due to the reduction in trust of the U.S. as an ally.



After the Trump administration’s rattling of long-held global alliances, countries have poured money into their own defense budgets, sending defense stocks higher. In Germany, lawmakers passed a&nbsp;historic debt reform, paving the way for a huge splurge on defense. U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer has also&nbsp;pledged to hike Britain’s national spending on defense.

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Impact of tariffs on developing countries could be ‘catastrophic’, says UN trade agency

China speaks with Saudi Arabia, South Africa about response to US tariffs

African credit ratings can absorb aid cuts and trade strains, Fitch says

European Union to put countermeasures to U.S. tariffs on hold for 90 days

United Kingdom Looks Forward to Working with Next AfDB President

Trump tariffs: World reacts as White House issues temporary tariff reprieve; China’s duties kick in

South African rand regains some ground after US pauses tariffs

Trump temporarily drops tariffs to 10% for most countries, hits China harder with 125%

South Africa’s rand touches new record low against dollar

European Union approves first set of retaliatory tariffs on U.S. imports

China slaps retaliatory tariffs of 84% on U.S. goods in response to Trump

Trump’s reciprocal tariffs plan kicks in, China to see net total tariffs of 104%

UK bill aims to speed debt restructuring for poor countries

Trump administration moves to restore some terminated foreign aid programs, sources say

South Africa’s ANC committed to coalition despite budget disagreements

South Africa Asks Kenya to support AfDB Presidential candidate

The Trump administration wants more than 0% tariffs

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featured

Impact of tariffs on developing countries could be ‘catastrophic’, says UN trade agency

China speaks with Saudi Arabia, South Africa about response to US tariffs

African credit ratings can absorb aid cuts and trade strains, Fitch says

European Union to put countermeasures to U.S. tariffs on hold for 90 days

United Kingdom Looks Forward to Working with Next AfDB President

Trump tariffs: World reacts as White House issues temporary tariff reprieve; China’s duties kick in

South African rand regains some ground after US pauses tariffs

Trump temporarily drops tariffs to 10% for most countries, hits China harder with 125%

South Africa’s rand touches new record low against dollar

European Union approves first set of retaliatory tariffs on U.S. imports

China slaps retaliatory tariffs of 84% on U.S. goods in response to Trump

Trump’s reciprocal tariffs plan kicks in, China to see net total tariffs of 104%

UK bill aims to speed debt restructuring for poor countries

Trump administration moves to restore some terminated foreign aid programs, sources say

South Africa’s ANC committed to coalition despite budget disagreements

South Africa Asks Kenya to support AfDB Presidential candidate

The Trump administration wants more than 0% tariffs

News Tips

Advertise With Us

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