AP Business Digest
Here are the AP’s top business stories that have moved or are planned to move today. All times U.S. Eastern. For up-to-the minute information on AP’s coverage, visit AP Newsroom’s Coverage Plan.
——————————
UPCOMING
——————————
US TRUMP SEAFOOD
DESCRIPTION: President Donald Trump signed executive orders seeking to deregulate the U.S. fishing industry and open up commercial fishing in protected waters.
UPCOMING: By 04/18/2025 11:00 a.m. EDT, Photo, Text
___
US--EDUCATION-TRUMP-HARVARD
DESCRIPTION: Ongoing coverage of the Trump administration’s battle with Harvard University over federal attempts to limit campus activism and change admissions policies. Harvard defied the government’s demands and now faces funding freezes, plus threats over enrolling foreign students and losing tax-exempt status.
SENT: By 04/18/2025 12:30 p.m. EDT, Photo, Text
___
TRUMP-MEDIA-AP
DESCRIPTION: The Trump admninistration and The Associated Press are in court again over access to the White House press pool. UPCOMING: 600 words and photos. By David Bauder.
UPCOMING: By 04/18/2025 4:00 p.m. EDT, Photo, Text
___
——————————
NEW AND DEVELOPING
——————————
ML--MIDEAST-WARS-YEMEN
US strikes on a Yemeni oil port kill 74 people, Houthis say, in deadliest attack of Trump campaign
SUMMARY: Yemen’s Houthi rebels say U.S. airstrikes targeting oil port killed at least 74 people and injured at least 171 others. The overnight strikes on the Ras Isa port sent massive fireballs billowing skyward and left mangled fuel trucks burning. It was the deadliest known American attack yet in U.S. President Donald Trump’s military campaign against the Houthis, which began March 15. The U.S. military’s Central Command declined to comment when asked about civilian casualties. Satellite images of the port provided by Planet Labs PBC and analyzed Friday by The Associated Press showed destroyed tanks and vehicles as oil leaked into the Red Sea.
WORDS: 1243 - MOVED: 04/18/2025 10:17 a.m. EDT
https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search?query=itemid:563f61bbd96e1f2de68373fdf76c8811&mediaType=text
___
AS--TAIWAN-US SENATORS
US lawmakers’ bipartisan Taiwan visit signals support despite harsh words and tariffs from Trump
SUMMARY: Republican and Democratic lawmakers are making their first trip to Taiwan under the new Trump administration a bipartisan one. The three senators are pushing to message both Taiwan and China that U.S. support for Taiwan’s defense remains broad. That’s despite the harsh words and heightened tariffs President Donald Trump has leveled against the self-ruled island nation. Republicans Pete Ricketts and Ted Budd and Democrat Chris Coons are set to talk with Taiwan’s president and defense minister Friday. Taiwan and Many Asia-Pacific nations so far are eschewing the retaliatory criticism and tariffs of some of the U.S.’s European allies after President Donald Trump slapped broad tariffs on many countries. That includes a 32% tariff on Taiwan.
WORDS: 851 - MOVED: 04/18/2025 10:08 a.m. EDT
https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search?query=itemid:dc038ca1dbdd3b2570bdaffb685b5ee1&mediaType=text
___
US--TRUMP TARIFFS-RARE EARTHS
The US has a single rare earths mine. Chinese export limits are energizing a push for more
SUMMARY: America’s only rare earths mine has fielded calls from anxious companies since China responded to President Donald Trump’s tariffs by limiting exports of seven heavy metals. The mine in California can’t meet the U.S. demand for rare earths, which is why Trump is pushing for new mines. Rare earth elements are ingredients in electric vehicles, advanced fighter jets, smartphones and many other products. They aren’t actually rare, but it’s hard to find them in a high enough concentration to make a mine worth the investment. Experts say prices are likely to increase quickly if China extends its import controls but there is likely enough of a stockpile to keep factories operating for now.
WORDS: 1324 - MOVED: 04/18/2025 9:58 a.m. EDT
https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search?query=itemid:effd6a7ec64b5830df9d3c76ab9b607a&mediaType=text
___
AS--JAPAN-US-AMBASSADOR
New US ambassador to Japan says he’s optimistic a tariffs deal can be reached
SUMMARY: The new U.S. ambassador to Japan has arrived in Tokyo and says he is optimistic that his country and its key Asian ally will reach a deal in their ongoing tariff negotiations. George Glass, a prominent businessperson known for his background in finance, investment banking and technology, arrived on Friday as the United States and Japan are negotiating President Donald Trump’s tariff measures, which have triggered worldwide concern. Trump is also pushing Tokyo to further increase its defense spending and shoulder more burden for hosting some 50,000 American troops as the allies strengthen military cooperation.
WORDS: 550 - MOVED: 04/18/2025 9:31 a.m. EDT
https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search?query=itemid:d1626a13c0c9847306cb16446aca7dd2&mediaType=text
___
US--PHILANTHROPY-MOUNTAIN-FIRE-RECOVERY
Living through a ‘low-attention disaster,’ Mountain Fire survivors recover in LA’s shadow
SUMMARY: Nearly six months after the Mountain Fire displaced 750 people and destroyed 182 homes and other structures in Ventura County, survivors say recovery is more difficult without FEMA support and in the shadow of the LA fires. The Mountain Fire was not a federally declared major disaster, meaning that federal funds for mental health, disaster case management, temporary housing, and rebuilding are not here. Nonprofits have struggled to fundraise for the low-attention disaster, and officials say more support is needed from the state.
WORDS: 1295 - MOVED: 04/18/2025 8:25 a.m. EDT
https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search?query=itemid:9a81fe2b68a8b6933fc6295177346e41&mediaType=text
___
CB--PUERTO RICO-BLACKOUT
Crews restore power to nearly all customers after island-wide blackout hit Puerto Rico
SUMMARY: Officials in Puerto Rico say power has been restored to 98.8% of customers after an island-wide blackout hit the U.S. territory earlier this week. More than 1.45 million customers had electricity less than 48 hours after the outage hit, according to Luma Energy, which oversees the transmission and distribution of power on the island. Luma warned Friday that generation remains limited and that some customers may experience temporary outages due to limited generation. The blackout that hit Wednesday afternoon occurred after a transmission line failed and then caused generators across the island to protectively shut down. Authorities are investigating what cause the failure.
WORDS: 180 - MOVED: 04/18/2025 8:11 a.m. EDT
https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search?query=itemid:9c5ee88c846d0fd81ce0510ea8a55a50&mediaType=text
___
US-TRUMP TARIFFS-FALLING DOLLAR
Strange sell-off in the dollar raises the specter of investors losing trust in the US under Trump
SUMMARY: Among the threats tariffs pose to the U.S. economy, none may be as strange as the sell-off in the dollar. Currencies rise and fall all the time over inflation fears and other factors, but economists worry the dramatic dollar drop shows a loss of confidence in the U.S. as President Donald Trump tries to reshape global trade. If true, the blow could be big. The special status of the dollar as the medium of international trade and a safe haven has allowed the U.S. government, consumers and businesses to borrow at low rates even as debts have ballooned, which has helped speed economic growth.
WORDS: 1106 - MOVED: 04/18/2025 6:00 a.m. EDT
https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search?query=itemid:c108fd36a3122f85872ad34ba5f5d977&mediaType=text
___
FINANCIAL MARKETS
Asian markets are mostly higher as Wall Street is stuck in trade war doldrums
SUMMARY: Asian shares are mostly higher after a bumpy ride on Wall Street. Markets advanced in Tokyo, Taiwan and Seoul in thin Good Friday trading. On Thursday, most U.S. stocks rose, but the worst drop for UnitedHealth Group in a quarter century pulled the Dow industrials 1.3% lower. The S&P 500 edged up 0.1%, while another drop for Nvidia helped pull the Nasdaq composite down 0.1%. Treasury yields rose following mixed data on the U.S. economy. President Donald Trump again criticized the Federal Reserve for not cutting interest rates. Stocks of companies in the oil-and-gas industry rallied after the price of crude recovered some of its recent sharp losses.
WORDS: 776 - MOVED: 04/18/2025 3:36 a.m. EDT
https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search?query=itemid:6e9de7ff1f9c06e1dacab7cb24f37f3c&mediaType=text
___
US--FEDERAL RESERVE-INDEPENDENCE
Trump’s attacks on Powell threaten the Fed’s independence. Here’s why it matters
SUMMARY: Donald Trump has stepped up his attacks on Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell at the same time that the Supreme Court is considering a case that could make it easier for the president to fire him. The developments are occurring against a backdrop of wider turmoil in the economy and financial markets, brought on by Trump’s sweeping taxes on imports. Most economists worry that an assault on the Fed’s longstanding independence from politics would further disrupt markets and add to the uncertainty enveloping the economy. Here are some questions and answers about the Fed.
WORDS: 1188 - MOVED: 04/18/2025 3:00 a.m. EDT
https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search?query=itemid:7931193eb7ec39eb9dfa61169be2c17c&mediaType=text
___
