Trump unveils 100% tariff on some patented drugs on 'Liberation Day' anniversary

NEW YORK (AP) — President Donald Trump has signed an executive order that could slap long-threatened pharmaceutical tariffs of up to 100% on some patented drugs from companies that don’t reach deals with his administration in the coming months. Companies that have signed a “most favored nation” pricing deal and are actively building facilities in the U.S. to onshore production of patented pharmaceuticals and their ingredients will have a 0% tariff. For those that don’t have a pricing deal but are building such projects in the U.S., a 20% tariff will apply but increase to 100% in four years. Companies still have months to negotiate before the 100% tariffs kick in. Also Thursday, Trump rolled out an update on his 50% tariffs on imported steel, aluminum and copper.

Oil prices surge while Asian share prices rise moderately

TOKYO (AP) — Oil prices are surging on worries of a prolonged Iran war while Asian financial markets are rising moderately during cautious trading. Some markets were closed for the Good Friday holiday. Benchmark U.S. crude rose 11.4% to $111.54 a barrel. The price of Brent crude, the international standard, jumped 7.8% to $109.03 per barrel. Stocks rose in Japan, South Korea and Shanghai. Markets were closed in several places including Wall Street, which finished its first winning week since the start of the Iran war. Crude oil prices have been driving sharp swings for stocks globally. Shipping traffic has been severely curtailed in the Strait of Hormuz.

Company backed by Trump sons looks to sell drone interceptors to Gulf states being attacked by Iran

NEW YORK (AP) — A drone maker backed by President Donald Trump’s two oldest sons is trying to win contracts with Gulf countries under threat by Iran and protected by the U.S. military led by their father. Powerus is holding demonstrations in “several” Gulf countries of how its defensive drone interceptors could help them ward off the attacks, according to co-founder Brett Velicovich. Powerus recently struck a deal that will bring on the Trump brothers, Eric and Donald Jr., as stakeholders in the military contractor. The president’s oldest sons have expanded their business interests rapidly beyond hotels and golf courses in a little over a year since their father took office again.

White House scales back plan to dismantle the CFPB but still wants to slash staff by two-thirds

NEW YORK (AP) — The Trump administration has scaled back its plans to dismantle the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Under the new plan, the bureau’s headcount would be reduced from 1,700 authorized employees before Trump’s second term to roughly 550 staffers. The administration originally intended to shrink the bureau’s staff to around 200 employees. This plan, revealed in a memo and court documents this week, faces opposition from the CFPB’s employee union and likely requires a federal judge's approval. The proposed cuts would significantly shrink the bureau’s supervision and enforcement divisions.

AI machine sorts clothes faster than humans to boost textile recycling in China

ZHANGJIAGANG, China (AP) — A company in eastern China is using an artificial intelligence-powered machine to sort clothes and boost recycling. It offers a glimpse into how AI could help reduce the impact of synthetic textile waste. The Fastsort-Textile machine was named one of Time magazine’s Best Inventions of 2025 and was created by Databeyond. The Chinese AI recycling company was founded in 2018. The equipment operates in Zhangjiagang and can sort 100 kilograms of clothes in two to three minutes. That compares with one worker taking around four hours to do the same thing.

Kids ate the multiplex: How family movies are taking over moviegoing, one blockbuster at a time

NEW YORK (AP) — As “The Super Mario Galaxy Movie” lands in theaters, coloring stations, collectible popcorn containers and mascot Marios are all in place to entice arguably the most prized moviegoers to Hollywood today. Kids. Despite a lot of talk about the imperiled future of moviegoing, future moviegoers are turning out in droves and fueling today’s biggest blockbusters. By Sunday, Universal Pictures expects the five-day opening of the “Super Mario” sequel to reach $186 million domestically, and around $350 million worldwide. That would make it easily the biggest hit of the year. Increasingly, the multiplex belongs to kids.

No sign of war winding down in Mideast as Friday dawns with attacks across region

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — There has been little sign Friday of the war in the Mideast winding down as Israel says it faced incoming fire from Iran, and Kuwait and Bahrain also reported being under attack. In Iran, eight people were killed while celebrating the close of Persian new year near a major bridge hit by a U.S. strike. Tehran continued to demonstrate its ability to strike its neighbors even as U.S. President Donald Trump claimed the threat from the country was nearly eliminated. Iran’s strikes on its neighbors along with its chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz have disrupted the world’s energy supplies far beyond the Middle East.

US jobless aid filings fall to 202,000 as layoffs remain low despite uncertainty of Iran war

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. applications for unemployment benefits fell last week as layoffs remain sparse despite a softening labor market and rising energy costs due to the Iran war. The number of Americans applying for jobless aid for the week ending March 28 fell by 9,000 to 202,000 from the previous week’s 211,000, the Labor Department reported Thursday. That’s fewer than the 212,000 new filings analysts surveyed by the data firm FactSet were expecting and within the range of the past several years. Filings for unemployment benefits are considered representative of U.S. layoffs and are close to a real-time indicator of the health of the job market.

Federal government sues three states over their regulation of prediction markets

The federal government is suing Connecticut, Arizona and Illinois, challenging their efforts to regulate prediction market operators such as Kalshi and Polymarket. All three states have sent cease and desist orders to such companies accusing them of engaging in illegal online gambling under state law. Arizona also filed criminal charges last month against Kalshi for allegedly violating state gambling laws and a law that makes betting on elections illegal. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission contends in court filings Thursday that it, not the states, regulates these companies. Last month, the Trump administration threw its support behind Kalshi and Polymarket.

Amazon to slap a 3.5% surcharge on third-party sellers as Iran war drives up fuel prices

NEW YORK (AP) — Amazon is slapping a 3.5% fuel and logistics surcharge on third-party sellers that sell on its platform starting later this month amid a spike in fuel prices since the war in Iran. The temporary fee is effective April 17 for many of the sellers who use Amazon’s fulfillment services, the online behemoth confirmed to The Associated Press in an email Thursday. The Seattle-based company said it has absorbed these increases so far but similar to other major carriers, when costs remain elevated, it implements temporary surcharges to partially recover these costs. It noted that it was “meaningfully” lower than surcharges applied by other major carriers.

3 killed as high winds topple a tree on an Easter egg hunt in Germany

James E. Hill

Congo to receive third-country deportees from the US under new deal

Trump promises strikes on Iran’s power plants and bridges on Tuesday if the Strait of Hormuz isn't reopened