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The White House is narrowing its approach to tariffs set to take effect on April 2nd, dubbed "Liberation Day" by President Donald Trump, likely omitting a set of industry-specific tariffs while applying reciprocal levies on a targeted set of nations that account for the bulk of foreign trade with the U.S. There had been plans to announce reciprocal tariffs that seek to equalize U.S. tariffs with the duties charged by trading partners, as well as tariffs on sectors like automobiles, pharmaceuticals and semiconductors. However, the Wall Street Journal cites an administration official who says those sector-specific tariffs are now unlikely to be announced on April 2nd. The official added that the White House is still planning to unveil the reciprocal tariff action on that day, though planning remains fluid. The fate of the sectoral tariffs, as well as tariffs on Canada and Mexico that Trump said were justified by fentanyl trafficking, remains uncertain. 

 

Wall Street Journal

Treasury Department and IRS officials are predicting a decrease of more than 10% in tax receipts by the April 15th deadline compared with 2024, said sources who spoke on the condition of anonymity to share nonpublic data. That would amount to more than $500bn in lost federal revenues. The prediction, officials say, is directly tied to changing taxpayer behavior and President Donald Trump’s actions to reduce staff at the agency. Senior tax agency officials issued detailed warnings about those outcomes to the incoming Trump administration before the president took office. The IRS has dropped investigations of high-value corporations and taxpayers, according to several agency employees involved in those inquiries, because it’s had to triage resources to keep internal systems operating. Two agency commissioners have resigned since Trump took office. The IRS’s head of compliance, Heather Maloy, stepped down effective Friday. A Treasury Department spokesperson described the claims as "sensational and baseless," adding that they "should be dismissed out of hand."

 

CNBC	Washington Post

The Treasury Department's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) issued an interim final rule Friday removing the requirement under the Corporate Transparency Act for U.S. companies and people to report beneficial ownership information to FinCEN. The definition of "reporting company" has been revised to mean only those entities that are formed under the law of a foreign country and that have registered to do business in any U.S. state or tribal jurisdiction by the filing of a document with a secretary of state or similar office (formerly known as "foreign reporting companies"). FinCEN also exempts entities previously known as "domestic reporting companies" from BOI reporting requirements.

 

Accounting Today

More states are passing or weighing laws that require employers to offer paid medical or sick leave. Voters in Missouri, Nebraska and Alaska approved paid sick leave laws in November, and at least seven states are considering paid family and medical leave laws this year, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Advocates say such laws can lessen financial anxiety and increase employee productivity - although some measures can place stress on smaller employers, which often don’t have a separate human resources department to monitor compliance with mandated leave policies, observes Beth Milito of the National Federation for Independent Business. Meanwhile, experts say the patchwork nature of the laws can be an additional frustration for multi-state employers.

 

The Columbian

Barclays has successfully had two U.S. securities fraud lawsuits dismissed. They were related to the bank's unauthorised sale of $17.7bn in excess securities. Judge Lewis Liman ruled that investors could not sue based on general assurances about internal controls, despite the lack of regulatory approval for the exchange-traded notes. The judge found no evidence of intent to defraud, saying that Barclays' actions, including a sales halt and disclosures, were "a prudent course of action that weakens rather than strengthens an inference of intent to defraud."

 

Reuters

Ron Sargent, Kroger's interim chief executive, is set to earn an annual salary of nearly $4.4m, along with a $3.9m stock grant, as the company searches for a permanent leader. The stock grant includes approximately 61,000 restricted shares that will vest in one year, potentially bringing Sargent's total compensation to over $8m. This leadership change follows the resignation of former CEO Rodney McMullen, whose conduct was deemed inconsistent with Kroger's policy on business ethics. Kroger has not disclosed specific details regarding McMullen's exit, stating that it did not impact the company's accounting or daily operations. Amid industry challenges, including inflation and ongoing trade disputes, Kroger operates over 2,700 stores across 35 states.

 

Cincinnati Enquirer

Deloitte has launched a new suite of “ready-to-deploy” artificial intelligence agents designed to automate workflows across business functions, including financial management. Available through the Zora AI platform using technology from NVIDIA, the agents can complete complex tasks and provide “on-demand insights, analysis, reporting, workflow automation, decision support and data sourcing.” Hewlett Packard Enterprise plans to offer “Zora AI for Finance” to customers of HPE Private Cloud AI, and both companies are using the tool internally in the meantime

 

CFO Dive

Tether, the creator of the world's largest stablecoin, is "engaging with a Big Four accounting firm" as it pursues an audit of its reserves. Chief executive Paolo Ardoino said: "It's our top priority." Currently, Tether provides quarterly reports but lacks a full audit, which would enhance transparency. Ardoino said that President Donald Trump's supportive stance on cryptocurrency could facilitate the audit process.

 

Reuters

China has said a new IP rule will fight discrimination against its citizens or organizations in international intellectual property disputes. South China Morning Post observes that although the regulation does not identify any country, it would appear to target the U.S. and European Union, which have accused China of IP rights infringement and forced technology transfer in trade disputes. Beijing denies such accusations. According to the regulation, in cases where a foreign government “uses intellectual property disputes as an excuse to contain and suppress China, takes discriminatory restrictive measures against Chinese citizens and organizations, and interferes in internal affairs,” Beijing may act according to the Foreign Relations Law and Anti-Foreign Sanctions Law.

 

Chinadaily US Edition

At Tesla's Gigafactory Berlin-Brandenburg in Germany, approximately 3,000 workers have signed a petition demanding longer breaks and increased staffing, despite the company reporting that around 80% of employees are satisfied with their jobs. The IG Metall union plans to present the petition, signed by 3,086 staff, at an upcoming works council meeting. Tesla conducted its own survey of about 7,500 workers, and said that only 5% expressed dissatisfaction. As production of the new Model Y ramps up, Tesla is converting 300 temporary workers to permanent positions, but union representatives remain concerned about whether this will suffice to meet production demands.

 

U.S. News

Denmark has been identified as having the most resilient business environment among 130 nations and territories, according to an analysis by FM, a global property insurance and risk management company. Eight of the top 10 countries are European, with one United States region placing tenth. The 10 most resilient countries, according to FM, are: Denmark, Luxembourg, Norway, Switzerland, Singapore, Sweden, Germany, Finland, Belgium, and United States Region 3. Chad ranked bottom. Haiti, Madagascar, Zimbabwe and Mali rounded out the bottom five. Ghana rose 17 spots to No. 72, Lebanon has dropped 23 spots since the 2021 edition, and Argentina was down 22. Armenia and Russia each fell nine places.

 

U.S News & World Report