NPR News Now - NPR News: 04-10-2025 6AM EDT

Episode Date: April 10, 2025

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This message comes from Mint Mobile. Mint Mobile took what's wrong with wireless and made it right. They offer premium wireless plans for less and all plans include high-speed data, unlimited talk and text, and nationwide coverage. See for yourself at mintmobile.com slash switch. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Korova Coleman. President Trump has paused the most recent round of terrorists he slapped on dozens of other countries yesterday. These were only in effect for hours and world markets had lost a lot of ground. Trump has paused the most recent round of tariffs he slapped on dozens of other countries yesterday. These were only in effect for hours, and world markets had lost a lot of ground. Then abruptly, Trump reversed himself.

He suspended most of those tariffs for 90 days. The stock market skyrocketed. But the 10 percent tariffs he imposed last weekend are still in effect, and Trump boosted tariffs again on China. These now stand at 125%. China had boosted its tariffs on US goods to 84%. China says it's open to negotiation with the Trump administration,

but as NPR's John Rewich says, Beijing says the US needs to change its attitude. China's Commerce Ministry spokeswoman Ho Yong-Chuen says pressure and threats are not the right way to deal with China. Dialogue must be conducted on the basis of mutual respect. Beijing and Washington have been locked in a tit-for-tat cycle of tariff escalation. Each blames the other and there's no end in sight.

NPR's John Brewitt reporting. Economists say that the escalating trade war between the U.S. and China is likely to keep prices higher. NPR's Scott Newman reports consumers are likely to see some of those prices stay higher for good. Something known as price stickiness is an economic concept describing how prices that go up quickly come down slowly or not at all. Kenneth Lewy is director of the Economic Research Institute of Erie at Penn State University.

When we have policies like tariffs, that's going to lead to an upward ratcheting of prices if we look at the historical evidence. One factor could be manufacturers eventually shifting their supply chains away from the U.S. at a cost they would likely pass on to consumers. Scott Newman, NPR News, Washington. Secretary of State Marco Rubio says Russia has released a Russian-American citizen in a prisoner swap. Ksenia Karolina was convicted of treason last year in Russia. She had donated less than $100 to a charity that provided

humanitarian support to Ukraine. The Senate appears poised to confirm a billionaire astronaut as the next administrator of NASA. As NPR's Jeff Brumfield reports, he had faced questions over ties to billionaire Elon Musk. Billionaire Jared Isaacman has flown to space twice with Musk's company SpaceX, and Isaacman's payments company, Shift 4, does business with the spaceflight firm. During his confirmation hearing, Isaacman said Musk would not influence him, but when asked repeatedly by Democratic Senator Edward Markey whether Musk was in the room when Trump offered him the job as NASA administrator, he refused to answer directly. Senator, I was, again, my meeting was with the President of the United States.

I'm assuming that you don't want to answer the question directly because Elon Musk was in the room. During the hearing, Isaacman said he wants to return astronauts to land on the moon while simultaneously pursuing a human mission to Mars. Jeff Brumfield, NPR News. You're listening to NPR. The Senate has confirmed two of President Trump's choices. Senators have confirmed Paul Atkins as the nation's top Wall Street regulator.

He'll lead the Securities and Exchange Commission. And the Senate has confirmed former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee to become the next U.S. ambassador to Israel. House Speaker Mike Johnson has delayed a vote on a multi-trillion dollar budget blueprint. He didn't have enough votes from Republicans to pass it. Fiscal conservatives say it does not lower the national deficit enough. Dying eggs is a beloved Easter tradition, but with egg prices still high, NPR's Chloe

Veltman reports the crafting community is coming up with creative alternatives to the standard hard-boiled materials. Marshmallows, small potatoes, egg-shaped clumps of dough and clay. These are among the objects professional crafters are gussing up instead of eggs this Easter. Jennifer Needham runs the Children's Party Planning website, The Party Teacher, where she recently wrote about egg dying. I explored this because I just thought who's gonna want to waste eggs on dying this year? You still want to have the tradition with your kids but it's just too expensive. Retailers like Walmart and Michaels are taking

advantage of the trend by selling craft egg kits for as little as a couple of dollars. But not all fake eggs are created equal when it comes to dying, Needham says. I try dying plastic and wood eggs and the dye slides right off of plastic but if you have a good quality wood egg with a matte finish, then the dye will stick. Chloé Valtman, NPR News. The hitch is, wood and eggs are more expensive than real ones. Chloé Valtman, NPR News.

And I'm Chloé Valtman, NPR News from Washington. Cell phones, cars, coffee. How do these goods make their way to us from overseas and what will President Trump's tariffs mean for their price tags? Join the 1A podcast as we explore supply chains and costs associated with some of your favorite products. It's our series, How Did This Get Here, every Wednesday. Listen to the 1A Podcast from NPR and WAMU.