The week that Trump pushed the global economy to the brink with tariffs — and then pulled back

WASHINGTON (AP) — The stock market was soaring and the sun was shining when President Donald Trump stepped out of the Oval Office on Wednesday afternoon. Less than two hours earlier, he had retreated from his plans to increase tariffs on many U.S. trading partners, and investors were rejoicing after bracing for a global economic meltdown.

“You’ve got the markets seeing your brilliance,” Sen. John Barrasso, a Republican from Wyoming, told the president.

Trump agreed. “Nobody’s ever heard of it,” he declared.

It was a typical bit of hyperbole that, in this case, was true. Even by the standards of Trump’s second term, the saga that had played out over the past week left the world struggling to catch its breath.

The president, of his own doing, had single-handedly pushed the global economy to the brink of chaos with new tariffs. The stock market cratered, businesses tore up their plans and foreign leaders prepared for a future without the world's richest nation at the center of international trade.

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China reaches out to others as Trump layers on tariffs

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — China is reaching out to other nations as the U.S. layers on more tariffs in what appears to be an attempt to form a united front to compel Washington to retreat. Days into the effort, it's meeting only partial success with many countries unwilling to ally with the main target of President Donald Trump's trade war.

Facing the cratering of global markets, Trump on Wednesday backed off his tariffs on most nations for 90 days, saying countries were lining up to negotiate more favorable conditions.

China has refused to seek talks, saying it would “fight to the end” in a tariff war, prompting Trump to further jack up the tax rate on Chinese imports to 125%. China has retaliated with tariffs on U.S. goods of 84%, which took effect Thursday.

Trump's move was seemingly an attempt to narrow what had been an unprecedented trade war between the U.S. and most of the world to a showdown between the U.S. and China.

“A just cause receives support from many,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said at a daily briefing on Thursday. “The U.S. cannot win the support of the people and will end in failure.”

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Global shares jump following historic gains on Wall St after Trump paused most of his tariffs

TOKYO (AP) — World markets soared on Thursday, with Japan’s benchmark jumping more than 9% as investors welcomed U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision to put his latest tariff hikes on hold for 90 days, though he excluded China from the reprieve.

In early trading, Germany’s DAX initially gained more than 8%. By midmorning, they were up 5.3% at 20,720.86, while France's CAC 40 in Paris gained 5% to 7,204.23. Britain's FTSE 100 surged 4.0% to 7,983.37.

Chinese shares saw more moderate gains, given yet another jump in the tariffs each side is imposing on each others’ exports.

The future for the S&P 500 was down 2.1% while the contract for the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 1.6%.

Analysts had expected the global comeback given that U.S. stocks had one of their best days in history on Wednesday as investors registered their relief over Trump’s decision.

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Video shows 4 captive Ukrainian troops killed by men identified as Russian forces

ROME (AP) — The Ukrainian soldiers clambered from the ruined house at gunpoint — one with arms raised in surrender to the Russian troops — and lay face-down in the early spring grass.

Two drones — one Ukrainian and one Russian — recorded the scene from high above the southern Ukrainian village of Piatykhatky. The Associated Press managed to get both videos. They offer very different versions of what happened next.

The Ukrainian drone video, which AP obtained from European military officials, shows soldiers with Russian uniform markings raising their weapons and shooting each of the four Ukrainians in the back with such ferocity that one man was left without a head.

“Out of all the executions that we’ve seen since late 2023, it’s one of the clearest cases,” said Rollo Collins of the Center for Information Resilience, a London group that specializes in visual investigations and reviewed the video at AP’s request. “This is not a typical combat killing. This is an illegal action.”

The Russian drone video, which AP located on pro-Kremlin social media, cuts off abruptly with the men lying on the ground — alive. “As a result of the work done by our guys, the enemy decided not to be killed and came out with their hands up,” wrote a Russian military blogger who posted the video.

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US-Russian dual national Ksenia Karelina is released in prisoner swap between Moscow and Washington

A U.S.-Russian dual national imprisoned in Russia on treason charges was freed Thursday in a prisoner exchange with Washington, the woman's lawyer and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said.

Ksenia Karelina, also identified in the media as Ksenia Khavana, is “on a plane back home to the United States,” Rubio said in a post on X. She was arrested in the Ural Mountains city of Yekaterinburg in February 2024 and convicted of treason later that year on charges stemming from a donation of about $52 to a charity aiding Ukraine.

The U.S. authorities have called the case against her “absolutely ludicrous.” Karelina was among a growing number of Americans arrested in Russia in recent years as tensions between Moscow and Washington spiked over the war in Ukraine. Her release is the latest in a series of high-profile prisoner exchanges Russia and the United States carried out in the last three years.

Karelina, a former ballet dancer, reportedly obtained U.S. citizenship after marrying an American and moving to Los Angeles. She was arrested when she returned to Russia to visit her family last year.

Russia’s Federal Security Service, or FSB, accused her of “proactively" collecting money for a Ukrainian organization that was supplying gear to Kyiv's forces. The First Department, a Russian rights group, said the charges stemmed from a $51.80 donation to a U.S. charity aiding Ukraine.

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Hope of finding survivors fades in aftermath of Dominican club roof collapse

SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic (AP) — Rescue crews in the Dominican Republic on Thursday dug through the remains of a legendary nightclub whose roof collapsed earlier this week, killing at least 184 people, but hope of finding survivors was slim.

Meanwhile, dozens of people in the capital of Santo Domingo still searched for their loved ones, growing frustrated upon getting no answers after visiting hospitals and the country's forensic institute.

Doctors warned that some of the two dozen patients who remained hospitalized were still not in the clear, especially the eight who were in critical condition.

“If the trauma is too great, there's not a lot of time” left to save patients in that condition, said Health Minister Dr. Víctor Atallah.

He and other doctors said that injuries include fractures in the skull, femur and pelvis caused by slabs of cement falling on those attending a merengue concert at the Jet Set nightclub in Santo Domingo, where more than 200 were injured.

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Israeli strike on Gaza apartment building kills at least 23, officials say

DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israeli aircraft struck a residential block in war-ravaged northern Gaza on Wednesday, killing at least 23 people, health officials said, as the renewed fighting in the devastated Palestinian enclave showed no signs of slowing.

The Al-Ahly hospital said at least 23 people were killed in the strike, including eight women and eight children. The territory's Health Ministry confirmed the figures.

The strike hit a four-story building in the Shijaiyah neighborhood of Gaza City, and rescue teams were searching for victims under the rubble, according to the Health Ministry’s emergency service. The civil defense, a rescue group that operates under the Hamas-run government, said other neighboring buildings were damaged in the strike.

The Israeli military said it struck a senior Hamas militant who it said was behind attacks emanating from Shijaiyah, but it didn't name him or provide further details. Israel blames the deaths of Palestinian civilians on the militant group, because it embeds itself in dense urban areas.

As it ratchets up pressure on Hamas to agree to free hostages, Israel has issued sweeping evacuation orders for parts of Gaza, including Shijaiyah. It imposed a blockade on food, fuel and humanitarian aid that has left civilians facing acute shortages as supplies dwindle. It has pledged to seize large parts of the Palestinian territory and establish a new security corridor through it.

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50 years later, Vietnam's battlefields draw retrospective veterans and other tourists

HO CHI MINH CITY, Vietnam (AP) — Hamburger Hill, Hue, the Ia Drang Valley, Khe Sanh: Some remember the Vietnam War battles from the headlines of the 1960s and 1970s, others from movies and history books. And thousands of Americans and Vietnamese know them as the graveyards of loved ones who died fighting more than a half-century ago.

Today the battlefields of Vietnam are sites of pilgrimage for veterans from both sides who fought there, and tourists wanting to see firsthand where the war was waged.

“It was a war zone when I was here before,” reflected U.S. Army veteran Paul Hazelton as he walked with his wife through the grounds of the War Remnants Museum in Ho Chi Minh City, which was known as Saigon when he served there.

Hazelton’s tour just shy of his 80th birthday took him back for the first time to places he served as a young draftee, including Hue, the former Phu Bai Combat Base on the city's outskirts, and Da Nang, which was a major base for both American and South Vietnamese forces.

“Everywhere you went, you know, it was occupied territory with our military, now you just see the hustle and bustle and the industry, and it's remarkable," he said.

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Inflation likely cooled last month as businesses braced for higher tariffs

WASHINGTON (AP) — Inflation likely declined last month as the cost of energy, used cars and hotel rooms may have fallen, though President Donald Trump's remaining tariffs could lift prices soon.

Consumer prices probably rose 2.6% in March from a year ago, the Labor Department is expected to report Thursday, according to economists' projections compiled by FactSet. That would be down from February's yearly gain of 2.8%. Excluding the volatile food and energy categories, prices are expected to have risen 3%, down from 3.1% in February.

The projected figures, if accurate, would suggest inflation is starting to cool again after remaining elevated for most of the fall and winter. Core inflation was stuck at 3.3% for five months before declining in February.

Still, inflation remains above the 2% target set by the inflation-fighters at the Federal Reserve. And on a monthly basis, core prices are forecast to rise 0.3% in March. If sustained, price increases at that pace would easily top the Fed's target. Overall prices are expected to tick up just 0.1% in March, however. Economists pay closer attention to the core figures because they provide a better guide to where inflation is headed.

Most economists had forecast higher inflation this year as a result of the sweeping tariffs on 60 nations that President Donald Trump announced last week. Yet on Wednesday, Trump paused those duties for 90 days. A universal tariff of 10% remains in place, as well as 25% duties on steel, aluminum, cars and many items from Canada and Mexico.

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Author, wife of Weezer bassist arrested after being shot by police who say she pointed a gun at them

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Jillian Lauren, author and wife of Weezer bassist Scott Shriner, was shot and injured by Los Angeles police and arrested on suspicion of attempted murder after pointing a gun at officers from her front yard, authorities said Wednesday.

The 51-year-old Lauren, identified by police as Jillian Shriner and listed as Jillian Lauren Shriner in jail records, had injuries that were not life threatening after the shooting in the northeast Los Angeles neighborhood of Eagle Rock on Thursday, the LAPD said in a statement.

Her representatives did not immediately respond to requests for comment and there is no indication Scott Shriner was involved in the incident. Weezer is scheduled to play the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival on Saturday.

Police said they were assisting California Highway Patrol officers in their search for three suspects from a misdemeanor hit-and-run. Lauren was not among the suspects. But while pursuing one of them who had reportedly been running through a backyard, police came upon Lauren in the front yard of her neighboring residence, holding a handgun.

They ordered her several times to drop the gun, but she refused, and pointed it at them, police allege. They did not say whether she fired the gun, but said she was hit by police gunfire and fled into her home, where they took her into custody then took her to a hospital.