Global News Podcast - US agrees trade deal with China

Episode Date: May 12, 2025

Stock markets rally as US and China agree to slash tariffs for at least 90 days. Also: Kurdish PKK militants end armed struggle against Turkey and Mounjaro and Wegovy go head to head in weight loss trial.

This is the Global News Podcast from the BBC World Service. I'm Bernadette Keough and at 13 Hours GMT on Monday 12 May these are our main stories. The United States and China have agreed to reduce tariffs on each other's goods, pausing a trade war that's led to huge disruption to the global economy. After four decades of fighting the Turkish state, the Kurdistan Workers' Party, the PKK, is laying down its arms and disbanding. And the first head-to-head trial of two weight-loss drugs suggests Mount Jaro is more effective than its rival, Wegovi. Also in this podcast, members of British Special Forces tell the BBC that they witnessed colleagues

killing unarmed civilians. They handcuffed a young boy and shot him. He was clearly a child, not even close to fighting age. I couldn't believe what they were doing. We have the results of a BBC investigation and... This is a completely unique approach. To our knowledge there haven't been any trials of any treatment at all aiming to quieten or silence tinnitus in its initial stages. New hope for the one in seven of us who will develop the debilitating ear condition tinnitus. ear condition, tinnitus.

We begin in Switzerland, where weekend negotiations have resulted in a major de-escalation in the trade war between two of the world's biggest economies. China and the United States have agreed to significantly decrease tariffs on goods being sold between the two countries. Both sides are cutting tariffs by 115 percentage points from Wednesday for 90 days, during which time further negotiations will take place. This means US tariffs on Chinese imports will fall to 30%, while Chinese tariffs on US goods will fall to 10%. The negotiations over the weekend in Geneva were described as robust by the US Treasury Secretary Scott Besant. The consensus from both delegations is neither side wants a decoupling.

And what had occurred with these very high tariffs was the equivalent of an embargo and neither side wants that. We do want trade. We want more balanced trade and I think that both sides are committed to achieving that. So what's been the reaction in China? Laura Bicker is our Beijing correspondent. China has been slightly more muted in its response. You might remember that Donald Trump hailed this as a total reset in relations. Beijing has talked about constructive talks, talked about the fact that perhaps they've discussed that they're going to have this economic and trade mechanism for further discussions, but they are being slightly

low key on what might happen in the future. I think when it comes to why they may have gone towards these talks, I think Beijing behind the scenes, although it's been continually defiant since these tariffs escalated, since they spiraled. A couple of months ago, Beijing has dug its heels in, has been determined to say that it will fight until the end. But I think what has brought it to the negotiating table is that behind the scenes, they are beginning to be concerned about the effect these tariffs are having on this country's economy, an economy that is already struggling with stubbornly high youth unemployment, a housing crisis and low consumer confidence, which basically means people don't

want to put their hands in their pockets and spend money at the moment. And is there a sense in which we know who blinked first? I think both are determined to show that it wasn't them. You know, even before they went into the talks at the weekend on Friday, Beijing was insisting that it was the US that came to them and the US was insisting it was Beijing's initiated the talks. Look, I think when it comes to why they sat down, I mean, I'm hearing from toy companies and manufacturers in the US who say they cannot do without Chinese products. Walmart and Target were warning about empty shelves in the next few weeks. Here in Beijing, I've talked about the pressure

on the economy. I think there was pressure on both sides to get to the negotiating table, and now we have this 90-day pause. I think Beijing's defiance may continue. They're already saying that this is a bit of a victory for Beijing and that they stood firm. So we'll see what happens in the next 90 days.

Laura Bicicker in Beijing. For more than four decades the Kurdistan Workers' Party, the PKK, has been fighting for an independent Kurdish state. Now the group has announced it's laying down its arms and disbanding, signalling an end to one of the world's longest running conflicts. We heard more from our correspondent in Turkey, Ola Geren. There is a moment of history here. We are in Diyarbakir in the southeast of Turkey, which is really de facto the Kurdish capital, and we had been expecting this

announcement. The call was initially made by the jailed leader of the PKK, Abdullah Erdulan. Now he has been held on an island prison off the coast of Istanbul since 1999 and various other peace efforts have come and gone but this one appears to be different. He issued a call for peace back in February that was followed in March by a declaration of a ceasefire and we had signals in recent days that this announcement was going to come. Now what does it mean for the Kurds? That's the big unanswered question. What we do not know at this stage is what is on offer for Turkey's Kurdish minority, for Kurdish politicians

in return for the PKK laying down their weapons. And we've been speaking to people here in the past 48 hours or so who knew this announcement was coming, trying to get a sense of the mood. Among people here who are Kurdish but not connected with the PKK, there is a sense of relief, there is a sense of we've been waiting for this. One man said for 40 years, he said I'm going to cry with happiness when I hear the announcement. We don't want any more deaths. We don't want our sons to die. But I think among supporters of the PKK,

feelings are mixed and questions remain. Just remind us about the scale of the insurgency going back decades. Well this has scarred Turkey over 40 years. It was launched in 1984 by the PKK. They have carried out attacks not only on military and police targets but also in more recent years on the cities including in Istanbul. One of the most devastating attacks was in 2016 after the collapse of a previous ceasefire when they carried out a double suicide bombing outside a football stadium after a major league game. Now the target was police and 38 were killed, but eight civilians died alongside them.

So this is something that has been seen by many Turks as a plague on the whole country and something that they hoped would be brought to an end. There are reasons why this time it might work because for both sides there are incentives now, there are factors at play. For President Erdogan, for example, it seems likely that he wants to try to run for a third term. He will need the support of the pro-Kurdish bloc of politicians in parliament if he's to be able to do that.

And on the PKK side, they have been really hammered by the Turkish military in recent years, driven into the mountains in northern Iraq and they have less room for manoeuvre now in Iraq and in Syria. So both sides have reasons now to have decided to come to the table. Oligarhine in Turkey. A study published in the New England Journal of Medicine of two weight loss drugs has found both led to substantial reduction in body mass but one is better than the other. The first head-to-head trial of Maungaro and Wegovi

involved 750 obese people in New York and was paid for by the manufacturers of Maungaro, Eli Lilly. Our health correspondent James Gallaher has been looking at the findings. In the last five years we've really seen the explosion in the numbers of people taking weight loss drugs around the world and this is the first time that the two big ones, Moundjaro and Weygovy, have been pitted head to head. What it showed was that Moundjaro led to a 20% reduction in body fat when people were taking these drugs for just over a year compared with 14% on Wegovi, suggesting that when it comes to pure weight loss, it's Malnjaro that's the more effective drug.

What accounts for the difference in the way they work within the body and the brain? We don't know 100% for sure, but the leading idea is that it's down to the way these two drugs work. So Wegovi mimics a hormone that's released by the body after you have a meal and it tells the brain that you're full. And that's how Wegovi mimics a hormone that's released by the body after you have a meal and it tells the brain that you're full. And that's how Wegovi works by tapping into that process and it flips one chemical switch inside the brain that says, I'm full, I don't need to eat anymore. Whereas Manjaro flips that same switch and another one.

So the idea is because it's tapping into more of these systems in the brain that tell you full that you don't need to eat anymore, that that's why mangiara is giving these bigger results. And it found that women tend to lose more weight than men. Do we know why? No! We really don't have a clue. But it's been pretty clear in the trial data that women are losing more weight than men. There are differences in male and female anatomy. We know that women and men tend to store their fat in different parts of the body. It's why men get that typical apple-shaped belly kind of physique, whereas women tend to be more pear-shaped. So there are differences in how we store fat and maybe that's feeding into how these drugs work.

How available are these drugs worldwide, James? You can buy them. The problem, I suppose, has been that the demand for these drugs, particularly in countries that have big problems with obesity and all the other conditions that come with obesity, is that the demand has far outstripped the supply pretty much ever since these drugs were invented and created. And over time, that availability has increased, but there is still more demand for these drugs than is being able to be met. There's a huge amount of money to be made out of these drugs. And this is the first ever head to head trial of two of these drugs. But there are loads more coming down the pipeline. Some researchers are trying to find different ways of making these drugs more effective.

Can you get them into pill form, which would make them far more accessible all around the world rather than the current injections that are needed? And there are other teams looking at different mechanisms within the body. Are there other ways to tell the brain that you don't need to eat more food to reduce those cravings to eat more to help people lose weight? So I think in 10 years time, we'll be looking at a very different world than the one we are now, where there are these two front runner drugs that are going to be way more in the future.

James Gallaher. President Trump will visit the Middle East this week where he's likely to discuss trade and investment with Gulf allies as well as conflicts in the region. But the president's means of transport has become an unlikely hot topic. Qatar is reportedly preparing to give Mr Trump a luxury jumbo jet to be his new Air Force One. It's one of the most expensive gifts the White House has ever been offered from a foreign government and is raising substantial legal and ethical questions. More details from Anna Aslam. Donald Trump has been unhappy with the US presidential fleet for a long time.

Both planes are about 35 years old and so need frequent servicing which can take months. During his first term Mr. Trump negotiated with Boeing for two new jets but they're years behind schedule and in February he'd finally had enough. Mr. Trump said we may buy a plane or get a plane or something as he toured a Qatar-owned luxury jumbo jet parked at Palm Beach International Airport. Now, according to media reports, the royal family is preparing to give him that plane. It'll reportedly be upgraded to serve as Air Force One and then potentially a private jet once Mr. Trump leaves office. It has an estimated value

of 400 million dollars and is so opulent it's been called a flying palace. But critics say it flies in the face of the constitution, which clearly states government officials cannot accept gifts from any king, prince or foreign state. Senator Adam Schiff, who led an impeachment case against President Trump, said the corruption is brazen, while the Democratic Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said it's not just bribery, it's foreign influence with extra legroom. But the Trump administration insists it isn't breaking any laws. According to sources familiar with the matter, White House lawyers claim the plane is not

a bribe because it isn't being given to the president himself, but rather to his government and then to his presidential library foundation. They also argue it isn't being given in exchange for any particular favour or action. Qatar has also pushed back against the reports. Officials denied that the jet would be a gift but said the transfer of an aircraft for temporary use was under discussion between the two countries. Anna Aslam Still to come, we head to a Catholic parish in Nairobi. It was just one of our members, a father to us, a brother, a friend in the same congregation.

It was a big surprise for me. It's either one, you know. Fond memories of Bob, now Pope Leo XIV. Current Filipino politics is dominated by dynasties and the feuds that have developed between them. First there's President Bongbong Marcus Jr, son of Ferdinand, who served as president for two decades till the mid-1980s. Then there's his vice president, Sara Duterte, daughter of former president Rodrigo, who's currently under lock and key in the Netherlands, indicted by the International Criminal Court on charges of crimes against humanity. Added to that mix, as voters have been going to the polls in mid-term elections, is the

fact that Sara Duterte is facing an impeachment trial for corruption. Jonathan Head is our South East Asia correspondent. In a way there are two elections going on here. There are 18,000 posts up for grabs. This is similar to the American system. It's a mid-term election. You've got governors, vice-governors, councillors, congressmen, all of those up for grabs. And many of those are local contests where people really do focus on the bread and butter issues. And when it comes to those, actually, they don't really give President Marcos very good marks. The economy hasn't done particularly well. He's not a very effective leader. But in the mix are half of the Senate. That's 12 senators.

And it is the Senate they're up for grabs. And it's the Senate which will decide on the impeachment of Sara Duterte. The impeachment is actually related to allegations she misused funds as a vice president, but of course, as you referred to, she is also facing other potential charges because of that claim she had hired an assassin to kill the president. So both Sarah Duterte, the vice president, and President Marcos, who are entirely split now, have been campaigning hard to get their own senators in because they need two thirds of the senators to vote for impeachment. If Sara Duterte is

impeached, that would block her from her plan to run for the presidency in three years' time. She is the most popular politician. She's very likely to win. And so this manoeuvre to get her impeached, as well as sending her father to the Hague, in the eyes of of many Filipinos looks like a blatantly political move by the President. Jonathan you mentioned the former President Rodri de Terti again there, he's standing in this election in absentia for election as a Mayor, he's got a real chance of winning hasn't he, why? Is he still very popular? I like the way you put it, he's got a real chance of winning, no he's going to win.

This is the nature of Filipino politics, clan loyalties are very strong. It's all about celebrities, big families, and they're none bigger than the Duterte's and the Marcos' In his hometown of Davao, Mr. Duterte is worshipped. In fact, he's still very popular across the country. There are five Duterte's running for different positions in Davao, and they always win. So even though he's in a jail cell, for different positions in Davao, and they always win. So even though he's in a jail cell, people will still vote for him. And he's running to replace his son, Sebastian, who instead is now running to be vice mayor. And so even if Mr. Duterte wins the mayor's job and is still stuck in the Netherlands,

his son and all the other relatives will continue to run it. The same applies to the Marcoses. They dominate one province in the top, Ilocos Norte. That's the nature of Filipino politics. But at the very top, of course, you've got this titanic, epic battle between these two powerful clans. Jonathan Head speaking to Nick Miles. British veterans have told the BBC they saw civilians and children murdered by colleagues in the Special Air Service or SAS and the Special Boat Service or SBS. It's the first time former members of UK Special Forces have given eyewitness accounts of executions of unarmed, handcuffed and wounded people in Iraq and Afghanistan. The Ministry of Defence says

anyone with evidence should contact the ongoing public inquiry into British Special Forces. Richard Bilton reports. Those who inquiry into British Special Forces. Richard Bilton reports. Those who served with UK Special Forces are about to break a code of silence. They don't want to be identified. We've used actors to speak their words, but they want the world to know what they saw. One of the guys went in and shot a load of people in a row. They were sleeping.

They were shot one after the other. I saw it with my own eyes, right in front of me. Everyone knew what was going on. It's not scout camp. Everyone knew what was happening. People were murdered. Panorama has been investigating UK Special Forces for years. We've travelled to Afghanistan to meet people like Habibullah,

who lives on the plains of Helmand. The SAS came to his farm in Nadali in February 2011 to look for a Taliban commander. They say they were fired on first. Habibullah says there were no fighters at his home, but the SAS killed nine people in their beds, including two of his sons. So these are the bullet holes? My eldest son was lying there at the end of the room. This is the bullet hole. When I remember them, it hurts me so

much. A public inquiry is examining allegations against U.K. special forces. It's only looking at three years from 2010. But we have been told the unlawful killings started much earlier. This man served in Iraq. His words are spoken by an actor. There was one operation where the blokes had clearly executed a man. It's disgraceful. There's no professionalism in that.

The killing was at its worst in Afghanistan. British soldiers were being killed in Helmand, special forces were sent in to stop the Taliban fighters and bomb makers. The public inquiry has only been looking at allegations about the SAS. The eyewitnesses we've spoken to say the Navy's special Forces, the SBS, committed war crimes too. This man served with them. His words are spoken by an actor. Everyone found on target was killed on target, pretty much. I can't recall us taking a single injured insurgent back to base

for treatment. They were shot there and then. Under British and international law, troops can't deliberately kill unarmed civilians or prisoners of war. But the eyewitnesses say they saw the execution of detainees, including children. Again, their words are spoken by actors. I witnessed some of the stuff that was happening, a lot of people being killed.

They were clearly running away. They were shot in the head. They handcuffed a young boy and shot him. He was clearly a child, not even close to fighting age. I couldn't believe what they were doing. These are murderers. They should all be locked up. The Ministry of Defence says it supports the independent inquiry

and it is not appropriate to comment on allegations which may be within its scope. The eyewitnesses say they are proud to have served in the British armed forces, but they can no longer keep quiet about the terrible things they saw. Richard Bilton reporting. Imagine hearing constant buzzing or ringing in the ears with no end to the noise. That's the reality for people living with tinnitus. It's a condition that will affect one in seven of us and for some it makes life a misery. Now a new trial here

in the UK, which scientists believe is the first of its kind, is aiming to silence tinnitus before it takes hold, as Jonathan Swingler reports. We're really focusing on people who just recently developed persistent tinnitus. Bridged somehow. The two gentlemen behind me are trying to stimulate my brain with direct current. Let's check the contact and see if it'll zap you then. So this is a completely unique approach. So to our knowledge there haven't been any trials of any treatment at all aiming to quieten or silence tinnitus in its initial stages.

I feel like a participant, not like a guinea pig. The scientists are getting equipment ready for when their research into tinnitus gets underway. Electrical stimulation of the brain is the first part. If you think that sounds scary, the strength is equivalent to one of a little square 9-volt batteries. Anyone who's, as a child for instance, experimented with putting one on their tongue knows it gives you a little bit of a tingle but there is some evidence showing that this applied over certain brain areas on average has a modest but significant quieting effect on tinnitus but it's only been tested in the late stages. The second part is sound

therapy. What we're trying to see is by combining both of these and doing it really early on, maybe when the tinnitus is more amenable to treatment, can it make any lasting difference to the tinnitus people here in the long term? Stephanie developed tinnitus and started to have a detrimental impact on her life. It's got that noise that the ringing that you get when you come out of a loud gig, it's a constant background noise and then within that I also get quite a lot

of whistling sounds and quite a lot of clicking, different tones of whistling sounds coming in and out and it's constant. It was really distressing when I first got it and I certainly thought I'm not sure how I'm ever going to be able to live with this. This is horrendous. I'm now less than a year down the road but I'm already learning to adapt to it and to adjust to it but I would very much like it not to be there. To find participants for their research who've just developed tinnitus they're relying on people looking up the condition on the internet. What everybody does when they first develop a symptom is they search online

and we can find people then who spot our ad that says would you like to take part in a research study. Hopefully this study finds a way to help people who develop tinnitus. Jonathan Swinglow with that report. Pope Leo XIV began his first full week as pontiff, meeting journalists, diplomats and top Vatican officials. He's been addressing the world's media from the Vatican and he began by speaking in English. Good morning and thank you for this wonderful reception. They say when they clap at the beginning it doesn't matter much. If you're still awake at the end

and you still want to applaud. Thank you very much The new Pope went on to focus on what he called the precious gift of free speech The way we communicate is of fundamental importance We must say no to the war of words and images We must reject the paradigm of war. Let me therefore reiterate today the Church's solidarity with journalists who are imprisoned for seeking and reporting the truth while also asking for their release. The Church recognizes in these witnesses, I'm thinking of those who report on war even at the cost of their lives, the courage of those who defend dignity, justice, and the

right of people to be informed because only informed individuals can make free choices. Meanwhile there's still excitement in those parts of the world where Pope Leo as Cardinal had been most active. That includes Kenya where he made several trips as head of the Augustinian order when he was still Cardinal Robert Francis Provost. It was only a few months ago that he last visited the head of the Augustinian order when he was still Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost. It was only a few months ago that he last visited the Sacred Heart Catholic Church of the Babadogo parish in Nairobi. Anita Nkongge went there the day after his election. A special mass to celebrate a special event. Teachers and pupils of the Babadogo School are praying for Pope Leo XIV, wishing him luck in his new role as head

of the Catholic Church. Many here have met him in person during his regular visits. Over the years he opened seven additional classrooms, a health clinic and a nursery. One of those who worked with him is Reverend Robert Karanja Ireri, the regional vicar for the Order of St. Augustine. He was just one of our members, a father to us, a brother, a friend. So when we have a pope, it was a big surprise for me. I was watching and it was like, is he the one, you know? Robert first met Cardinal Priewost in 2013 and he immediately wanted to know more about his American namesake.

I interacted with him and we became friends and it happened that we have the same name, Robert. So to differentiate between the two of us in Kenya, we were talking of the Big Bop and the Little Bop. So him was the Big Bop and I'm the Little Bob. So until yesterday, that is the name we have been using. I have to learn now to call him a new title. The two men last interacted over the Easter weekend

as exchanged prayers and wishes over WhatsApp messages. Robert also texted him straight after seeing his friend Bob appeared on the balcony of St. Peter's Basilica. I sent to him not really a congratulation because for us Agustinians leadership is a burden. You are given as like a load put on your shoulders. So as an Agustinian what I did is that I promised him my prayers. The pupils of the schools were quite surprised too when they discovered they had links to the new spiritual leader. My mother could not believe it.

I also told that, help in the development of our school. And my mother was really proud. And she said that I'm a lucky child to be in that school. Pope or not, Leo XIV has received an open invitation to come back to Kenya to see his friend Little Bob at the Babadogo Parish. Anita Nkongge reporting. And that's all from us for now, but there'll be a new edition of the Global News podcast later.

If you want to comment on this podcast or the topics covered in it, you can send us an email. The address is globalpodcast.bbc.co.uk This edition was mixed by Rebecca Miller and the producer was Nicky Verrico. The editor is Karen Martin. I'm Bernadette Keough. Until next time, goodbye.