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 TARIFFS

FORMATS: Photo, Video, DigitalPlans, LiveVideo, Text

1. WITH: SWITZERLAND WTO TRADE

2. DESCRIPTION: The World Trade Organization presents its “Global Trade Outlook and Statistics” that is expected to be dominated by the prospective impact of U.S. tariffs announced on April 2.

3. UPCOMING: By 04/15/2025 6:00 p.m. EDT

___

US--INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS

FORMATS: Text, Photo

4. WITH: US--EDUCATION-INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS

5. DESCRIPTION: In early April, the bar association for immigration attorneys began receiving one or two inquiries from university students. These were foreigners studying in the U.S., and they’d discovered their legal status had been terminated with little notice. To their knowledge, none of the students had committed a deportable offense. In recent days, the calls have begun flooding in. Attorneys say hundreds of students have called to say their legal residency has been terminated, seeking advice on what to do next. The Associated Press has confirmed hundreds of students’ legal statuses have been terminated. Here’s what they’re doing next.

6. UPCOMING: By 04/15/2025 12:00 p.m. EDT

___

US FATAL CARGO SHIP FIRE

DESCRIPTION: The National Transportation Safety Board meets in Washington to review its findings about a fatal cargo ship fire in New Jersey and any related safety recommendations. The Italian-owned Grande Costa D’Avorio was docked in Newark, one of the busiest U.S. seaports, when a pusher vehicle used to load cars onto the vessel caught fire in July 2023. Two firefighters died and six other responders were injured.

UPCOMING: By 04/15/2025 10:30 a.m. EDT, Text, Photo

___

STARBUCKS-DRESS CODE

DESCRIPTION: Starbucks is imposing new limits on what its baristas can wear under their green aprons.

UPCOMING: By 04/15/2025 10:30 a.m. EDT, Text

___

——————————

NEW AND DEVELOPING

——————————

AS--JAPAN-GOOGLE

Japan’s anti-monopoly watchdog accuses Google of violations in smartphones

SUMMARY: Japanese regulators have accused U.S. tech giant Google of violating anti-monopoly laws, echoing similar moves in the U.S. and Europe. Google Japan said it found Tuesday’s action “regrettable.” It said it has invested in Japan significantly to promote innovation. The Japan Fair Trade Commission’s “cease and desist order” says Google must stop pre-installation of the Google search engine in Android smartphones, which it said in effect shuts out competition. It’s unclear if Google, a subsidiary of Alphabet, will fight the order. In the U.S., a judge ruled last year that Google had illegally exploited its dominance to squash competition.

WORDS: 215 - MOVED: 04/15/2025 10:27 a.m. EDT

https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search?query=itemid:a50213d4e7858381679404c62a39905c&mediaType=text

___

US--MAKING PEEPS

The great Easter basket question — to Peep or not Peep

SUMMARY: Love them or hate them, marshmallow Peeps are inescapable around the Easter holiday. Millions of the brightly-colored candies are made daily in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, by Just Born Quality Confections. The family-owned candy manufacturer also churns out Hot Tamales, Mike and Ike fruit chews and Goldenberg’s Peanut Chews. Peeps is the company’s most recognizable brand. It also evokes strong reactions — good and bad. Some say an Easter basket isn’t complete without the multi-flavored Peeps, while others deride them as being indestructible. On average, about 5.5 million are made each day. That adds up to 2 billion Peeps a year.

WORDS: 380 - MOVED: 04/15/2025 10:26 a.m. EDT

https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search?query=itemid:5712b5cad525a0da50622ff8f8c86b73&mediaType=text

___

US--TRUMP-TARIFFS-BEEF

Ranchers hope Trump’s tariffs boost demand for cattle but some fear market uncertainty

SUMMARY: Ranchers hope President Donald Trump’s tariffs will make imported beef expensive enough that Americans will turn to cattle raised at home for all their hamburger and steaks. That might raise prices enough to give ranchers the incentive to expand their herds for the first time in decades. But doing that would take at least two years, and it’s not clear if Trump’s 10% tariffs on most of the world besides China are high enough to make that happen. And the tariffs keep changing so it’s hard for ranchers to plan. About the only thing clear so far is that American ranchers will likely lose one of their biggest markets as a result of the 125% tariffs imposed by China in response to Trump.

WORDS: 1105 - MOVED: 04/15/2025 9:55 a.m. EDT

https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search?query=itemid:55330afb6276c51015ef4e312686cba1&mediaType=text

___

FINANCIAL MARKETS

Wall Street drifts in a rare quiet day following weeks of tariff turmoil

SUMMARY: U.S. stocks are drifting in a rare quiet day for financial markets worldwide, for now at least. The S&P 500 rose 0.2% Tuesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 44 points, and the Nasdaq composite gained 0.3%. The modest moves are a respite for Wall Street following weeks of huge swings caused by President Donald Trump’s trade war. Perhaps more importantly, the U.S. bond market and U.S. dollar were also showing more signs of calm after their sudden and sharp moves last week raised worries that the trade war was degrading their status as safe-haven investments. Treasury yields held steady.

WORDS: 543 - MOVED: 04/15/2025 9:42 a.m. EDT

https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search?query=itemid:f8fe9f29286b60580b5d0bcfa9534701&mediaType=text

___

EU--BRITAIN-STEEL

Raw materials to keep British Steel plant operating reach the UK

SUMMARY: The U.K. government says that it has bought enough raw materials to keep Britain’s last steelmaking blast furnaces operating for the “coming weeks.” The announcement Tuesday came amid fears that the government’s decision to wrest control of British Steel from its Chinese owners would deepen tensions between the U.K. and China. The Chinese Foreign Ministry on Monday warned against “politicizing” the issue as British officials raised concerns about Chinese investment in strategic industries. The issue has dominated British politics since Saturday, when Prime Minister Keir Starmer recalled lawmakers from their spring recess so Parliament could pass emergency legislation allowing the government to take operational control of British Steel.

WORDS: 349 - MOVED: 04/15/2025 9:28 a.m. EDT

https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search?query=itemid:ca048bde70f5312b2fc3cce17433c388&mediaType=text

___

AS--ASIA-CHINA-XI

Xi makes a case for free trade, presenting China as a source of ‘stability and certainty’

WORDS: 622 - MOVED: 04/15/2025 7:45 a.m. EDT

https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search?query=itemid:559757744cd48ca28a5171fe5071f9cc&mediaType=text

___

AS--JAPAN-US-TARIFFS

Japan’s chief trade negotiator to visit Washington for tariff talks this week

SUMMARY: Japan’s chief trade negotiator will visit the United States this week for talks aimed at convincing U.S. President Donald Trump to remove tariff measures against the East Asian country. Economic Revitalization Minister Ryosei Akazawa will be in Washington from Wednesday to Friday for talks with U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, according to Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi on Wednesday. The visit is to “build a relationship of trust” between the two sides, with Japan requesting the U.S. side to drop the tariff measures, Hayashi said on Wednesday.

WORDS: 379 - MOVED: 04/15/2025 7:32 a.m. EDT

https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search?query=itemid:693965f58db9446c6a010f5adeeabf48&mediaType=text

___

AS--SOUTH KOREA-SEMICONDUCTORS

South Korea to boost support of semiconductor industry in the face of Trump’s tariffs

WORDS: 391 - MOVED: 04/15/2025 6:07 a.m. EDT

https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search?query=itemid:658f4ca0007ebef98d2b477ecd531867&mediaType=text

___

US--TARIFFS-INVESTIGATIONS

US moves ahead on tariffs with investigations into computer chips and pharmaceuticals

SUMMARY: The Trump administration has taken its next steps toward imposing more tariffs on key imports, launching investigations into imports of computer chips and products that contain them, chip making equipment and pharmaceuticals. The Department of Commerce posted notices about the probes late Monday on the Federal Register, seeking public comment. Although President Donald Trump paused most of his biggest tariff hikes, apart from those for China, he has said he still plans tariffs on pharmaceutical drugs, lumber, copper and computer chips. The Commerce Department said it is investigating how imports of computer chips, equipment to make them and products that contain them affect national security.

WORDS: 668 - MOVED: 04/15/2025 2:30 a.m. EDT

https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search?query=itemid:65b528a3ae455b197a26f61f847063ef&mediaType=text

___

LT--VENEZUELA-ECONOMY

Inflation, currency woes worsen Venezuela’s complex crisis as Maduro declares ‘economic emergency’

SUMMARY: Erick Ojeda has no money. He returned to land almost empty-handed from an overnight trip fishing for shrimp. His sister and her newborn are waiting for him to pick them up from a hospital. He has had no luck finding a ride there, so he is still helping fishermen weigh what little they caught. They are all struggling, like most everyone in Venezuela, whose protracted crisis continues to evolve, entering a critical phase in recent weeks by further gutting people’s purchasing power and laying the groundwork for a recession. This latest chapter in the 12-year crisis even prompted President Nicolás Maduro to declare an “economic emergency” last week.

WORDS: 1321 - MOVED: 04/15/2025 2:17 a.m. EDT

https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search?query=itemid:5250770ae0e79fc69122b820ab8ac13e&mediaType=text

___