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Panama Ports Deal Delayed; Trump Pardons Nikola Founder, Warns Automakers By Mark R. Long

A deal lauded by President Trump that would shift control of two Panama Canal ports will likely be delayed after prompting a Chinese antitrust review.

The deal , which had an initial deadline of April 2, drew the ire of Chinese officials because the seller is CK Hutchison, a Hong Kong conglomerate led by nonegenarian billionaire Li Ka-shing, who reportedly didn't notify Beijing before agreeing to sell dozens of global ports to a BlackRock-led investor group. Chinese leader Xi Jinping was angered to lose a potential card in negotiations with Washington. The WSJ's Raffaele Huang and Costas Paris report that China's antitrust regulator on Friday said it would review the $23 billion deal "to protect fair competition and safeguard public interest."

People familiar with the negotiations said the review and any delay in signing the documents wouldn't mean the deal would be scuppered, as it would be risky for Beijing to appear to block a transaction that didn't involve Chinese or Hong Kong ports. It also comes as Xi is mounting a charm offensive with foreign companies amid the escalating trade war with the U.S.

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President Trump pardoned Nikola founder Trevor Milton, who had been convicted for securities fraud over what prosecutors said were lies about the company's zero-emission trucks.

The Journal's Corinne Ramey and Ben Foldy write that Trump said he pardoned Milton because his prosecution by the Manhattan U.S. Attorney's office was unfair , and the pardon was "highly recommended by many people." Brad Bondi, a lawyer for Milton and the brother of Attorney General Pam Bondi, didn't respond to requests for comment.

Milton, 42 years old, founded Nikola in 2015 and took it public in 2020 with a valuation of $3.3 billion. After briefly eclipsing Ford's market value before the fraud case , Nikola filed for bankruptcy last month as it struggled with high costs and efforts to convince the trucking industry to abandon diesel engines and embrace hydrogen fuel-cell rigs over battery-electric trucks.

Number of the Day Auto Tariffs

Trump warned automakers not to raise prices, despite the higher costs from new tariffs on imported cars and components.

On a call with automaker CEOs earlier this month, Trump said the White House would look unfavorably on such a move , the WSJ's Josh Dawsey and Ryan Felton report. This rattled some of the executives who worried about being punished if they increased prices. Trump told the executives the tariffs would be "great" and bring manufacturing back to the U.S. In an interview with NBC News on Saturday, the president said he "couldn't care less" if foreign automakers raised their prices in response to the tariffs, and disputed that he had instructed auto executives to not raise prices on the call.

Makers of vehicles and parts have made clear they have little choice but to raise prices in the face of tariffs . Dealers have stockpiled a two- to three-month supply of new cars, which means the effects of tariffs might not be felt until May.

In recent days, Trump has encouraged his team to devise plans that would apply higher rates of tariffs on a broader set of nations.(WSJ) United Auto Workers President Shawn Fain has emerged as a prominent pro-tariff voice , after taking jabs at Trump during the presidential campaign. (WSJ) Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and President Trump agreed to talks on a new economic and security partnership after Canada's April 28 election. (WSJ) Higher prices and fewer options await car buyers if import duties on foreign-made autos persist. (WSJ) The new tariffs could add upwards of $30,000 to the cost of a new Class 8 truck, according to the American Trucking Associations. (Commercial Carrier Journal) Quotable In Other News

U.S. personal income and consumption rose in February, but the Federal Reserve's preferred metric for core inflation rose further above the central bank's target. (WSJ)

U.S. consumer sentiment declined significantly in March, with a key survey index dropping to its lowest level since 2022. (WSJ)

The U.S. goods trade deficit fell by 4.9% on the month to $147.9 billion in February, as exports increased and imports fell. (WSJ)

Canada's economy showed signs of stalling after notching the strongest growth in months at the start of the year. (WSJ)

Germany's jobless rate rose to 6.3% in March from 6.2% last month, with layoffs at big companies threatening a further uptick. (WSJ)

Consumer confidence in Germany improved marginally after parliamentary elections. (WSJ)

Retail sales in the U.K. grew 1.0% on the month in February, beating expectations. (WSJ)

Low inflation in France and Spain points to cooling price rises across the eurozone. (WSJ)

European industrial sentiment improved on plans for higher defense spending. (WSJ)

Copper prices in the U.S. have surged ahead of those in the rest of the world, hitting a record high last week due to the threat of tariffs. (WSJ)

Daimler Truck is forming a partnership with Germany's ARX Robotics to integrate AI and robotics into military-vehicle platforms. (WSJ)

Yemen's Houthi rebels were weakened by U.S. airstrikes but maintain the ability to harass commercial shipping in the Red Sea and Suez Canal. (WSJ)

Swiss building-materials supplier Holcim is targeting annual net sales growth of 3% to 5% following the spinoff of its North American business, Amrize. (WSJ)

The U.S. auto-safety regulator opened a probe into more than 2 million Honda vehicles over reports that engines can fail to restart from idling. (WSJ)

Mediterranean Shipping's Medlog USA unit agreed to acquire a majority stake in intermodal logistics provider COFC Logistics for undisclosed terms. (Journal of Commerce)

Softbank is looking to create industrial parks across the U.S. featuring AI-equipped factories. (Nikkei Asia)

About $6 billion of the $21 billion Hyundai plans to invest in its U.S. operations is earmarked for greater localization of auto components such as electric-vehicle parts. (Supply Chain Dive)

CEVA Logistics added a new trans-Pacific air-charter operation with service between Wuxi, China and Chicago. (Air Cargo News)

Four people were charged in Norway for allegedly supplying fake papers from a bogus insurance company for more than 250 "shadow fleet" vessels. (TradeWinds)

An Iowa lawmaker introduced a bill to Congress aimed at boosting the U.S.'s cold chain storage infrastructure. (Supply Chain Brain)

About Us

Mark R. Long is editor of WSJ Logistics Report. Reach him at [mark.long@wsj.com]. Follow the WSJ Logistics Report team on LinkedIn: Mark R. Long , Liz Young and Paul Berger .

This article is a text version of a Wall Street Journal newsletter published earlier today.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

March 31, 2025 07:06 ET (11:06 GMT)

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