📌 Tariffs Off Again, Trump’s Ratings Slip, More

President Donald Trump announced a 90-day pause on his tariffs for some countries, sending the stock market upwards.

But there was no reprieve for China. Trump wrote on Truth Social that he is raising tariffs on Chinese goods to 125%, “effective immediately,” citing the “lack of respect China has shown to the world markets.”

The president added, “At some point, hopefully in the near future, China will realize that the days of ripping off the USA, and other countries, is no longer sustainable or acceptable.”

Trump attributed the move to pause the full effect of tariffs to “more than 75 countries” reaching out to the US “to negotiate a solution” to tariffs imposed by the Trump administration this month.

Trump said he has “authorized a 90-day PAUSE, and a substantial lowered Reciprocal Tariffs during this period, of 10%, also effective immediately.” The tariffs on Mexico and Canada are unaffected by the pause, a White House official said.

The European Union said it will delay its retaliatory tariffs on US imports for 90 days.

French President Emmanuel Macron said France “must move toward recognition” of a Palestinian state “in the coming months.”

France is set to chair a two-day UN conference with Saudi Arabia in New York in June aimed at advocating a two-state solution following 18 months of war in Gaza between Israel and Hamas.

"Our goal is … to chair this conference with Saudi Arabia where we could finalize the movement of reciprocal recognition. … I want to participate in a collective dynamic, which must also allow all those who defend Palestine to recognize Israel in turn, which many of them do not.”

Macron added that this would allow France to "be clear in our fight against those who deny Israel's right to exist,” specifically citing Iran, while also reaffirming a commitment "to collective security in the region.”

But formal recognition by Paris of a Palestinian state would represent a significant shift in policy and could risk straining relations with Israel. Nearly 150 countries recognize Palestine as a state, with Ireland, Norway, and Spain all declaring their recognition in May 2024.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, however, continues to reject the two-state solution, arguing that granting statehood would be a "huge reward" following the October 7 Hamas-led attack on Israel.

Americans are behaving like a recession is coming, Ed Bastian, CEO of Delta Air Lines, said as it withdrew its annual forecast.

Corporate and domestic leisure travel has stalled since late February, said Delta, the first major airline to release earnings since widespread tariffs were announced. Bastian said demand has waned because of bad weather, high-profile aircraft incidents, and global economic uncertainties.

“Everyone is going into a defensive posture,” Bastian said. “If that continues and we don't get a resolution soon, we will probably end up in a recession.” Delta reported better-than-expected fiscal first-quarter results but said it would not affirm full-year projections at this time “given current uncertainty.”

Current-quarter revenue is seen between 2% below to 2% above Q2 2024 levels, the company said.

Delta planned to expand its capacity by about 4% in the second half of 2025 but no longer envisions growing. Bastian said business travel was up about 10% before stalling. Price-sensitive consumers are buying fewer domestic tickets, but international travel, summer bookings, and premium ticket sales are strong.

Consumers spent “around 6% below 2024 levels at the start of this year” on airfare, reported Bank of America in an analysis of debit and credit card spending released last month.

Concerns over the economy — specifically inflation and tariffs — seem to be fueling President Donald Trump’s downward trend.

A Quinnipiac University survey conducted April 3–7 and released Wednesday reveals Trump stands at 41% approval and 53% disapproval. The president stood at 46%-43% approval/disapproval in a Quinnipiac poll during his first week in late Jan. and slightly underwater at 45%-49% in mid-February.

Most, but not all, recent national public opinion surveys indicate Trump's approval ratings in negative territory, which is a slide from the president's poll position when he started his second tour of duty in the White House.

On his handling of the economy, the Quinnipiac poll puts Trump at 40% approval and 55% disapproval. Asked how the president is dealing with the issue of trade, only 39% of respondents said they approved, while 55% gave Trump a thumbs down.

On the imposition of tariffs worldwide, nearly three-quarters thought they would hurt the US economy in the short term, while just over half said the move by the president would also hurt the nation's economy in the long term as well.

Asked which economic issue worries voters the most, 47% said the price of food and consumer goods. Quinnipiac analyst Tim Malloy commented: “Democrats, Republicans and independents in equal numbers worry most about the prices of what they eat and what they buy.”

53 international students at four Texas universities have had their legal status changed as immigration policy changes sweep the US.

The University of Texas at Dallas removed 19 students and the University of North Texas took 27 students out from the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System, or SEVIS database, university officials said. Three students at Texas Tech University and four at Texas Women’s University had their visas revoked.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said last month the State Department revoked over 300 visas — most were student visas. Visa revocations prevent re-entering the US but do not immediately end an individual’s status. SEVIS removals do, limiting students’ options and causing a more immediate effect.

Robert Hoffman, an immigration lawyer, said SEVIS removal can affect employment eligibility and the status of dependents. “These kinds of terminations kind of short-circuit due process by not allowing the student the opportunity to hear the specifics of their charges or defend themselves.”

Neither university nor government officials have made it clear how students are being chosen for removal. However, the Department of Homeland Security said it would begin screening international students’ social media for “antisemitic” content.

DHS cited two executive orders aiming to crack down on “the explosion of anti-Semitism on our campuses and in our streets,” referencing pro-Palestine protests on college campuses. Several Texas universities, including UNT and UTD, were sites of similar protests.

Medical experts say the fight against rising measles cases is being hampered by a lack of forceful advocacy for vaccinations.

Since January, 505 people have been infected in Texas and more than 90 in neighboring New Mexico, Oklahoma and Kansas. Two children have died in Texas, including an 8-year-old girl last week, and an adult death in New Mexico is under investigation. The US has over 600 known cases and outbreaks in six states.

Dr. Sue Kressly, president of the American Academy of Pediatrics, said leaders need to speak with a consistent science- and fact-based message about measles vaccination, calling that the only way to handle an outbreak like this. "That is the number one message we're trying to put in front of everyone.”

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has a long history of advocating against vaccines, has backed vaccination as the best way to prevent measles from spreading since becoming the head of the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

But unlike previous health secretaries faced with containing outbreaks, his comments are not unequivocal. He has made misleading claims about nutrition, vitamin A, and other treatments while exaggerating vaccine risks, even as US vaccination rates are falling.

An HHS spokesman took issue, saying Kennedy has repeatedly reinforced the important role of vaccines. The spokesman said HHS and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have been monitoring the situation and are collaborating with state and local health authorities, including by providing resources.

In his Sunday X post, Kennedy promoted the inhaled steroid budesonide, which is used to treat asthma, and the antibiotic clarithromycin. A professor of pediatric infectious diseases pointed out antibiotics cannot treat a viral infection, and using an inhaled steroid to treat measles-related inflammation poses risks.

An Africa-born mobility startup is providing women with a catalyst for driving change in Zimbabwe.

The Hamba is a durable electric tricycle that could mobilize a generation of working women and mothers to perform arduous tasks with relative ease and comfort.

Mobility for Africa is a startup that allows women to lease the African-made Hamba for $15 a month. Its pilot program was a success, and now its electric tricycles are available to buy, on a lease-to-purchase agreement, and to rent.

The Hamba enables women to fetch water and firewood, take family members to medical facilities, or bring and buy produce at local markets, saving dozens of miles of walking each day.

92% of female customers noted an improvement in how safe they feel while traveling since they started using the Hamba compared with walking, and some have offered their services as couriers and drivers to other community members, sparking the spirit of entrepreneurialism.

“Transporting our produce to the market was a nightmare,” said Hilda Takadini, a 34-year-old tomato farmer and mother of six. “We would wake up at 3 a.m. and travel a very long distance using an ox-drawn cart, but now it is much easier.”