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Donald Trump's steep tariffs on imported vehicles and parts, vowing retaliation as a widening trade war intensifies, as per a report. Major car exporter Germany urged a firm response from the European Union, while Japan said it «will consider all options», AFP reported. The US duties take effect starting April 3 and impact foreign-made cars and light trucks. Key automobile parts will also be hit within the month. Global stock markets plummeted with automakers like Toyota, Hyundai and Mercedes leading the plunge. In New York, shares in General Motors tumbled with Ford and Stellantis also declining. France Finance Minister Eric Lombard condemned the «hostility,» saying the only solution for the European Union is to «raise tariffs on American products in response.»

Shares in companies such as Japan's Toyota and Honda and South Korea's Hyundai Motor and Kia Corp fell, wiping off some $16.5 billion in value, after Trump on Wednesday unveiled a 25% tariff on imported cars and light trucks to take effect on April 3. On the streets of Tokyo and Seoul, and in «motor city» Gwangju, people were concerned the levies would have a far-reaching impact, speaking to the singular role the car industry has played in the post-war economic rise of the two U.S. allies. While car production helped transform Germany, Italy and France after World War Two, its influence in Asia has been even more profound. Automakers form the nucleus of vast networks of group companies that impact almost every facet of working life in the two countries. In Japan, where the industry accounts for roughly 3% of gross domestic product, it is the automakers — particularly Toyota — that set the precedent for national wage increases through annual talks between unions and management.

Ramadan, marked by fasting, prayers and acts of charity is a period of seeking forgiveness and taking time to reflect. The day begins with getting up before sunrise, morning prayers, and eating a pre-dawn meal called sehri while in the evening, the fast is concluded with an evening meal called Iftar which often comprises dates, fruits and other food items. Eid al-Fitr this year will be celebrated on either Sunday, March 30, or Monday, March 31, depending on the sighting of the moon in different parts of the world. On this special day, Muslims gather for prayers, visit family and friends, exchange gifts, give to those in need, and enjoy festive meals together. As the Islamic calendar follows the lunar cycle, significant dates shift forward by approximately 11 days each year. The sighting of the crescent moon marks the end of Ramadan and the beginning of Eid celebrations.

BYD has led a brutal price war that has pushed it to become the largest seller in the world's biggest car market. This Monday, it reported $107 bn in revenue for 2024, crossing the $100 bn barrier for the first time. Displacing Volkswagen as China's top carmaker by sales, the company is aggressively expanding into overseas markets.

Tesla share price rose 3.4 per cent on Tuesday even as Billionaire Elon Musk reportedly held a crucial meeting with employees, as per a report. Parleys between Musk, who is a key advisor to US President Donald Trump's administration, and Tesla employees and investors have been an assuring one, Fortune reported quoting Wedbush analyst Dan Ives. The meeting, which streamed online, had Musk speaking positive things to employees even as he claimed the future for Tesla looks bright. However, even after Tuesday's gain, Tesla's stock nevertheless remains down nearly 29 per cent for 2025 so far.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. President Trump’s trade war is forcing America’s closest allies to choose between fighting back, or acquiescing. The trouble is, nobody has figured out which is the best way to get Trump to do what they want.

shares rose on Tuesday as investors awaited a German survey that could indicate the recent historic debt deal was improving business morale in the region's largest economy. The pan-European STOXX 600 index was up 0.3% at 0815 GMT. Most sectors advanced, with banks and energy being among the top gainers.

Vietnam, which has now emerged as the fastest-growing tourism destination in Southeast Asia. Now, Vietnam has emerged as the third-most-visited country in the region, with 17.5 million international arrivals in 2024, edging ahead of Singapore. It follows Malaysia, which had 25 million visitors, and Thailand, which remains at the top with 35 million. The numbers also make Vietnam, also referred to as the Land of the Ascending Dragon, the regional leader in tourism recovery. Five years after the Covid-19 pandemic brought global travel to a halt, Vietnam has regained 98% of its pre-pandemic tourism business, outpacing all its neighbours, including Thailand (87.5%) and Singapore (86%). The momentum shows no signs of slowing down. Nearly four million international tourists arrived in Vietnam in January and February this year, a 30.2% increase from the same period last year, according to figures from the Vietnam National Authority of Tourism.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. PARIS—Two weeks after Russia’s large-scale invasion of Ukraine, French President Emmanuel Macron descended 20 stories beneath Paris to send a message to Moscow. He entered France’s nuclear bunker deep under his regal presidential palace to lead an exercise dubbed Poker.

U.S. appeals court judge said on Monday that Nazis were given more rights to contest their removal from the United States during World War Two than Venezuelan migrants deported by the Trump administration. In a contentious hearing, U.S. Circuit Judge Patricia Millett questioned government lawyer Drew Ensign on whether Venezuelans targeted for removal under a little-used 18th-century law had time to contest the Trump administration's assertion that they were members of the Tren de Aragua gang before they were put on planes and deported to El Salvador. «Nazis got better treatment under the Alien Enemies Act than has happened here,» Millett said, to which Ensign responded, «We certainly dispute the Nazi analogy.» Prior to the Trump administration's invocation of the 1798 Alien Enemies Act, the law had been used three times in U.S. history, most recently to intern and remove Japanese, German and Italian immigrants during World War Two. The Trump administration was asking the appeals court to halt Washington-based U.S. District Judge James Boasberg's two-week ban, imposed on March 15, on the use of the law to justify deportation of alleged Tren de Aragua members without final removal orders from immigration judges.

Novo Nordisk A/S agreed to pay United Laboratories International Holdings as much as $2 billion for a next-generation obesity drug, the Danish Ozempic maker's latest move to refill its pipeline of experimental treatments. Novo will pay Hong Kong-based United Laboratories $200 million upfront for the drug, which combines three different mechanisms in an effort to treat obesity as well as diabetes and other diseases, the companies said Monday. Novo agreed to pay as much as $1.8 billion if the drug reaches certain development and sales goals. The deal comes amid growing skepticism from investors that Novo's next-generation portfolio will be sufficient to keep it on top of the hypercompetitive market for weight loss treatments. German software developer SAP SE unseated Novo as Europe's most valuable public company on Monday. Novo's shares traded down as much as 3.1% in Copenhagen. United Laboratories will retain rights in China for its compound, which works in a similar way to Novo rival Eli Lilly & Co.'s retatrutide — considered the strongest among the next-generation drugs currently in late-stage human trials.

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Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. CK Birla Group’s flagship BirlaNu, formerly known as HIL Ltd, is set to invest around $150 million ( ₹1,300 crore) to help achieve its target of becoming a $1 billion (about ₹8,600 crore) company by 2028 and revive growth. The Delhi-based firm will look to expand manufacturing capacities and pursue inorganic growth opportunities through acquisitions to drive growth.

Heathrow Airport, which caused a full-day shutdown of the UK’s busiest travel hub. Over 1,300 flights were disrupted, and thousands of homes lost power after an explosion ignited a transformer at the North Hyde substation. Officials are probing potential links to Russian sabotage campaigns, following accusations of Kremlin-backed efforts to destabilize European infrastructure.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Attempts to build a global auto empire hark back to the 1910s and 1920s, when Henry Ford set up factories in Britain and Germany for the Model T, and General Motors responded by buying foreign carmakers. A century later, this ambition remains at risk of being run off the road.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. BERLIN—Germany’s mammoth spending package cleared its last parliamentary hurdle, paving the way for as much as €1 trillion in civilian and defense investments to jolt the region’s economy and reduce its military reliance on the U.S.

shares fell on Friday, led by travel stocks after a fire at Heathrow Airport, while investors continue to assess the effects of brewing trade tensions. The pan-European STOXX 600 was down 0.5% as of 0815 GMT, with losses led by Europe's travel and leisure index, down 2.1%.

existentialism, 'bad faith' is a psychological phenomenon where a person behaves inauthentically by acting against his intrinsic character due to societal pressure. In contrast, 'authenticity' is when a person exercises his innate free will and behaves according to his core values despite pressure to conform to societal norms.