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Police violence continues on US campuses

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Protests by university students in the US demanding an end to ties with Israel and for university administrations to pressure the federal government to end the war are spreading, and police attacks are intensifying.

The protesters say they will not disperse until schools commit to completely withdrawing funding from organisations with ties to Israel.

They are also calling for the withdrawal of funds from companies that sell weapons, construction equipment, technology services and other items to Israel from their campuses.

Professors arrested in Atlanta

Yesterday, as the world watched, police attacked a pro-Palestinian demonstration at Emory University in Atlanta and arrested dozens of people, including economics professor Caroline Fohlin and philosophy department chair Noëlle McAfee.

Professor Fohlin was heard in dialogue with police expressing concern about the police’s violent arrests and use of force.

On the university campus, police were seen forcing protesters to the ground and handcuffing them during events that followed the establishment of a camp in the university courtyard on Thursday morning.

Law enforcement officers used tear gas to disperse protesters from the area, according to a CNN crew at the scene. They also used pepper spray against the crowd that had gathered around the demonstrators who had been arrested by police.
The Georgia chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations condemned the use of force by police against demonstrators and the arrests at Emory University on Thursday.

“Emory University and the APD [Atlanta Police Department] bear full responsibility for the violence we are currently witnessing on the Emory campus. Students and protesters must be afforded all of their constitutional rights,” it said.

Dozens of protesters were also arrested at the University of Texas on Wednesday following a police assault. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Texas warned that state and university officials are using law enforcement to “violently censor” pro-Palestinian demonstrations at the University of Texas and other campuses across the country.

“The First Amendment guarantees the right of people to protest in Texas and across the country, including in defence of Palestinians,” the group said in a statement.On the other hand, the local district attorney’s office announced that the cases of 46 detainees had been dropped.

Protests spread to Washington

At Georgetown University in Washington DC, a crowd of pro-Palestinian demonstrators gathered outside Healy Hall, the main administration building on campus.

The crowd then marched, led by several professors in graduation regalia, to a tent camp at George Washington University (GW).At the GW encampment, dozens of tents filled about a quarter of the campus.Chanting “There is only one solution, intifada intifada, long live the intifada,” the demonstrators carried banners reading “Resistance is justified when people are occupied,” “Stop the occupation,” and “Ceasefire now.

What happened where?

According to CNN’s list, here’s what happened at pro-Palestinian protests so far:

University of Southern California (USC): USC cancelled its main commencement ceremony for the Class of 2024 in May, citing ‘new security measures’.

Emory University: At least two professors were arrested during campus protests. The Georgia chapter of CAIR condemned the arrests, and the Georgia NAACP called for a meeting with the university president.

Vice President for Public Safety Cheryl Elliott said 28 people were arrested during a protest at the school, including 20 members of the Emory community.

The Georgia State Patrol said troopers on horseback used pepper spray during the protest ‘to control the unruly crowd’. A group of Democratic Georgia state lawmakers condemned the ‘excessive use of force’ by the Georgia State Patrol during the Emory arrests.

Northeastern University: A camp was set up where dozens of protesters formed a human chain around tents.

City College of New York: The New York Police Department (NYPD) said it no longer planned to clear the encampment on Thursday afternoon.

George Washington University: Organisers and the university confirmed that pro-Palestinian protesters, representing students from the District of Columbia, Maryland and Virginia, had set up an encampment on campus.

University President Ellen M. Granberg said the DC Metropolitan Police had been asked to help move an ‘unauthorised protest camp’ on campus. Granberg said the decision was made ‘after numerous orders from the GWPD to move to an alternative demonstration site on campus were ignored by camp participants.

Emerson College: More than 100 people were arrested and four police officers were injured during a pro-Palestinian protest at Emerson College in Boston on Wednesday, according to the Boston Police Department.President Jay Bernhardt said he recognised and respected the ‘civic activism and passion that sparked the protest’ after dozens were arrested.

Columbia University: House Speaker Mike Johnson called on Columbia’s chancellor to resign if he failed to bring order to the campus. Negotiations between protesters and Columbia officials to clear the encampment were extended for another 48 hours early Wednesday morning. According to the New York Times, the Faculty Senate is expected to vote on Friday on a resolution admonishing the school’s chancellor, Minouche Shafik, for some of her decisions. Shafik has come under fire for authorising police to quell student protests on campus.

University of Southern California: Police arrested about 100 protesters at the University of Southern California after being ordered to disperse.

The university cancelled next month’s main graduation ceremony, citing ‘new security measures’.

University of Texas at Austin: After tense resistance, the Texas Department of Public Safety announced that law enforcement made 57 arrests on campus.

“We do not classify arrestees based on whether or not they are students at the university,” Travis County Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Kristen Dark told CNN.

Cal Poly Humboldt: The California State Polytechnic University, Humboldt campus will remain closed over the weekend as protesters, including “unidentified non-students,” continue to occupy two buildings, school officials said.

Brown University: The university has identified about 130 students who it says violated the school’s code of conduct, which prohibits camping on campus. The university said students found responsible would be disciplined depending on their conduct and other factors, including previous conduct violations.

Indiana University: At least 33 people were arrested on campus on Thursday following protests on campus.University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA):A “camp demonstration” was held at UCLA on Thursday.

Northeastern University: Dozens of protesters were seen forming a human chain around several tents at Northeastern University in Boston.

Ohio State University: Protesters at Ohio State University were arrested on Thursday night after refusing to disperse, according to university spokesman Benjamin Johnson.

White House throws ball to governors on National Guard

The White House has rejected a request from Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson for President Biden to call out the National Guard on college campuses.White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre said on Thursday that the issue was not up to the president.

“This is a matter for the governors to decide,” Jean-Pierre told reporters, noting that Biden had previously criticised the protests as anti-Semitic.

Johnson called the protests “dangerous” in a statement on Wednesday. “If this situation is not brought under control quickly and this threat and intimidation is not stopped, it will be an opportune time for the National Guard,” the House speaker said.

Republican calls against protests hardenPennsylvania Republican Senate candidate Dave McCormick lashed out at campus protests in Pennsylvania and across the country at a rally on Thursday night.

McCormick said: “We’re in moral trouble. The same thing happened at Penn today.Can you believe these kids are marching on our college campuses across the country? Honestly, can you believe it?” he asked.The Republican candidate called the demonstrations ‘anti-American’ and said universities that ‘condone this kind of behaviour’ should not receive federal research funding or be eligible for tax-exempt status for their endowments.

The Republican politician described the protesters’ behaviour as ‘anti-Semitic’ and ‘bordering on violence’ and said law enforcement should ‘clean up the camps’.Senators, including Republican heavyweight Mitch McConnell, argued that the demonstrations should be broken up by force.

Senate Minority Leader McConnell and his deputy John Thune wrote to US Attorney General Merrick Garland and Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona, describing the protesters as “anti-Semitic, pro-terrorist gangs”.

“The Department of Education and federal law enforcement agencies should take immediate action to restore order, prosecute gangs who continue the violence and threats against Jewish students, revoke the visas of any foreign nationals (such as exchange students) who promote terrorism, and hold school administrators accountable for standing by instead of protecting their students,” said the letter signed by 25 Republican senators.

Governor Greg Abbott, who led state troopers into the University of Texas, also said the protesters “belong in jail”.Former US President Donald Trump also condemned the demonstrations on Wednesday, comparing the anti-war protesters to the “white supremacists” who marched in Charlottesville, Virginia, during the first year of his presidency: “Charlottesville is peanuts compared to the riots and anti-Israel protests taking place all over our country.”

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US tariffs on steel and aluminum set to impact $150 billion market

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The 25% tariff on steel and aluminum products imposed by US President Donald Trump’s administration on Wednesday is expected to create upward pressure on prices for approximately $150 billion worth of imports, negatively impacting the profits of American automakers and other companies.

The US imports about one-fifth of the steel it consumes. More than 20% of this import by weight comes from Canada, followed by Brazil at 16%, and the European Union at 7%, with Japan ranking seventh at 4%. Canada is also the largest supplier of aluminum to the US.

Because the direct cost of tariffs falls on importers, this will mean higher costs, especially for manufacturers in the US auto industry.

US-based Wolfe Research anticipates the 25% tariff will drive the price of steel products up by as much as 16% above the 2024 average. Aluminum prices, which are already trending upward, are expected to nearly double.

Nomura Securities research analyst Anindya Das estimates the impact on automakers’ fiscal 2025 operating profits from a 10% increase in steel and aluminum prices compared to the 2024 average. According to this analysis, American players Ford Motor and General Motors will face a hit of approximately 3% to 4% if they cannot pass on their costs through higher prices.

Toyota Motor will experience a smaller decline of 0.5%, while the impact on Subaru, which conducts a large portion of its production in North America, will be around 2%.

Some parts manufacturers affiliated with Toyota bring steel from Japan for use in their US production facilities, and there have been calls for the company to cover the higher costs resulting from the tariffs.

A Toyota executive stated, “Tariffs are a factor outside their control, so we will respond appropriately.”

Japan has pushed to be exempted from the tariffs. “Steel and aluminum products from Japan do not harm the national security of the US,” Cabinet Chief Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi told reporters on Wednesday. “On the contrary, high-quality Japanese products are difficult to substitute and are necessary to make the US manufacturing sector more competitive, and greatly contribute to US industry and employment,” he added.

According to EU-based Global Trade Alert, the tariffs announced by the Trump administration last month cover a total of 289 categories, excluding overlaps between the steel and aluminum lists. These items, which also include kitchen and sporting goods, accounted for approximately 4.5% of the US total last year, with $151 billion in imports.

China was the largest importer at $35 billion, followed by Mexico at $30.6 billion, the EU at $20.3 billion, and Canada at $17.1 billion. Japan ranked seventh at $7 billion. When EU members were counted as separate countries instead of a single bloc, 27 economies had exposures exceeding $500 million.

To avoid tariffs, steel and aluminum exports previously destined for the US may be sold in other markets instead. Jakob Stausholm, CEO of Anglo-Australian iron ore miner Rio Tinto, said last month that selling aluminum in other markets such as Europe was an option.

Tadashi Imai, chairman of the Japan Iron and Steel Federation and president of Nippon Steel, recently stated that the biggest concern is that the tariffs “contribute to the market collapse caused by China’s excessive exports.”

With China’s economy declining, steelmakers are selling products at low prices elsewhere that cannot be absorbed by the domestic market. If they face higher barriers in the US, these goods could flow to other countries.

The US is also the world’s largest exporter of scrap iron and steel, and rising scrap prices leaving the country are likely to reverberate in the global market.

A representative from Japanese aluminum manufacturer UACJ said, “The short-term impact will be small, but it could be larger in the long term.”

Although the company generally produces products for the US domestically, it imports some products with special requirements from Japan in small quantities. According to UACJ, starting alternative production in the US could take three to four years.

Other companies are turning to completely different materials. Coca-Cola stated last month that it would switch some packaging from aluminum to plastic if the tariffs came into effect.

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Trump signs order for ‘strategic crypto reserve’

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US President Donald Trump, in a move aimed at revitalizing the digital assets sector, has signed an executive order authorizing the federal government to stockpile cryptocurrency assets seized through law enforcement agencies.

According to a post on X by David Sacks, the White House’s crypto and artificial intelligence czar, under the executive order, the federal government will retain bitcoin assets seized by federal law enforcement, which will enter a “strategic bitcoin reserve.”

Sacks added that the reserve “will not cost taxpayers a single penny,” further authorizing the Treasury and Commerce departments to “develop budget-neutral strategies to acquire additional bitcoin, provided these strategies do not incur any additional costs on American taxpayers.”

Sacks wrote about bitcoin, “The reserve is like a digital Fort Knox. The early sale of Bitcoin has already cost US taxpayers over $17 billion in lost value. Now, the federal government will have a strategy to maximize the value of its holdings.”

The order also established a separate “US Digital Asset Stockpile” to include other cryptocurrencies seized by the government. Earlier this week, Trump hinted at the possibility of including tokens such as Ripple’s XRP, Solana, and Cardano, alongside bitcoin and ether, in what he termed the “Crypto Strategic Reserve,” causing the prices of these tokens to rise with investors’ hopes that the US government would enter the market as a major buyer of digital assets.

However, crypto prices fell immediately after Sacks’s post and recovered shortly thereafter. According to CoinGecko data, as of 4:45 PM (presumably local time, though unspecified), bitcoin was trading at approximately $88,000, down 2.8% from the previous 24 hours.

The creation of the reserve and stockpile is part of a broad shift in Washington towards policies aimed at benefiting the crypto industry. It comes ahead of a crypto summit to be held at the White House on Friday, which will be attended by leading figures in the digital assets world.

For supporters, the bitcoin reserve is a chance for the US to participate in the growth of the original cryptocurrency, and many in the market believe that the market is poised to climb higher as Trump pursues a crypto-friendly regulatory agenda.

Yet, there are still many questions about how the reserve and stockpile will operate. For example, some critics doubt that the federal government can cash in its bitcoin holdings without spooking other investors and triggering a sell-off.

Trump first promised to create a crypto reserve during a speech at a major bitcoin conference in July.

Sacks said, “I want to thank the President for his leadership and vision in supporting this cutting-edge technology and for his swift action in supporting the digital asset industry. His administration is truly moving at ‘technology speed’.”

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BlackRock to acquire Panama Canal ports in major deal

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New York-based asset management giant BlackRock announced on Tuesday that it will acquire two ports serving the Panama Canal from Hong Kong’s CK Hutchinson, as part of a larger $22.8 billion deal.

US President Donald Trump had threatened to regain control of the Panama Canal, believing that US ships were not being treated fairly due to Chinese influence. This deal could potentially alleviate those concerns.

The ports will be acquired by a consortium that includes BlackRock, as well as Global Infrastructure Partners and Terminal Investment Limited.

Hutchinson’s official statement said the deal was “completely unrelated to recent political news regarding the Panama Ports,” and that the deal was the result of a “fast” process.

BlackRock declined to comment further, but sources say the firm has informed both the White House and Congress about the deal.

According to the *Financial Times* (*FT*), CEO Larry Fink himself informed senior leaders in the Trump administration, including the president, to secure their support for the takeover, in order to overcome possible political obstacles.

A source added that the consortium would not have proceeded with its offer if it believed the US government would not support the deal.

The deal consists of two parts, one of which covers Hutchinson’s 90% stake in the ownership and operation of the Balboa and Cristobal ports in Panama.

This transaction will be conducted separately from the second part, which covers 43 ports in 23 countries, including Germany and the United Kingdom, and 80% of the shares will be sold. Hutchinson’s ports in China are not included.

The remaining 20% stake is held by PSA, a port operator owned by Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund Temasek.

BlackRock did not provide an estimated closing date, likely due to the number of different regulators whose opinions will need to be sought. The deal is expected to be formally signed by April 2.

CK Hutchison, controlled by Hong Kong’s richest man, Li Ka-shing, and his family, has a portfolio consisting of ports, retail, telecom, and other infrastructure. Port operations account for approximately 9% of CK Hutchison’s total revenue of HKD 461.6 billion (USD 593.97 billion) in 2023.

Hutchison Ports, one of the world’s largest container terminal operators, has been managing the ports at both ends of the canal since 1997 under concessions from the Panamanian government.

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