Economy

US-China Relations
Sources: Trump to China for Summit in Early April

Donald Trump plans to travel to China and Beijing in the first week of April for a summit with President Xi Jinping. Politico reports, citing sources.

The presidents spoke by phone last week – a conversation that was long and “fantastic”, according to Trump. They discussed issues such as trade, defense, Taiwan and the Ukraine war.

“The relationship with China and my personal relationship with President Xi is extremely good, and we both recognize how important it is that they remain so”, Trump writes on social media.

US growth
WSJ: Job seekers pay to be recruited

The US job market is now so challenging that the WSJ is drawing attention to a new phenomenon, where job seekers in the service sector are hiring recruiters to increase their chances.

The model is called “reverse recruiting”, reverse recruiting in Swedish, and is based on different types of payment models. For example, a job seeker may have to pay when accepting a job.

According to figures from the federal statistics agency BLS, at the end of 2025 there were more unemployed people than there were vacancies and it takes an average of six months for a job seeker to land a job.

Political situation in Botswana
Diamond problems cause tax shock in Botswana

Botswana’s government is proposing to raise corporate tax by 2.5 percentage points to 24.5 percent and the top personal tax rate to 27.5 percent to compensate for the loss of revenue from diamond exports, Bloomberg reports.

Demand for diamonds has fallen sharply in recent years, partly due to increased competition from synthetic stones. Previously, rough diamonds accounted for about a third of the government’s revenue.

– Taxation is not a punishment. It is a joint investment in our development, says Finance Minister Ndaba Gaolathe.

Global challenges
Failure to take climate action can be costly for fashion companies

If fashion companies do not quickly reduce their climate impact, profits risk falling by 34 percent by 2030. This is according to a report from the Apparel Impact Institute, reports Bloomberg.

“You are already taking on some of these costs, whether you know it or not,” says Lewis Perkins, CEO of the institute.

The report points to three factors that could hit profits the hardest over the next four years: higher carbon prices, rising raw material costs and more expensive energy. If the trend continues, up to 70 percent of the fashion industry’s $1.8 trillion (S$1.1 billion) value could disappear by 2040.

Climate action is particularly challenging for the supply chain, as companies do not own their suppliers.

Ulrika Leverenz, head of H&M’s green investments, says the company “needs to work with all stakeholders along the entire chain.”