NPR News Now - NPR News: 10-27-2025 6AM EDT

Episode Date: October 27, 2025

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Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Kourva Coleman. President Trump has arrived in Tokyo on his first trip to Japan in this term. He'll meet Japan's new prime minister who just took office last week. The visit to Japan comes ahead of Trump's next stop in South Korea, where he's supposed to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping. Trump flew into Japan today from Malaysia, where he attended the opening day of the ASEAN summit. Adam Hancock reports from Kuala Lumpur. President Trump signed a flurry of trade deals during his one-day stop in Kuala. Alumpur, including agreements involving critical minerals with both Thailand and Malaysia. US-China trade talks were also held on the sidelines of the ASEAN summit, with Trump bullish that a deal can be agreed when he meets with President Xi on Thursday. I think we'll have a good deal with China, and they want to make a deal, and we want to make a deal, we've agreed to meet. Trump also presided over the signing of a ceasefire agreement between Thailand and Cambodia,

following their latest deadly border dispute in July. During his stop in Japan, the U.S. President is scheduled to meet the country's new leader to discuss trade and defense spending. For NPR News, I'm Adam Hancock in Kuala Lumpur. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent says the U.S. and China have reached a substantial framework for a trade deal. It involves rare earth and tariffs. Besson says that for now the U.S. will not impose 100% tariffs on China. President Trump has congratulated the president of Argentina, whose governing party won. mid-term elections. Natalie Alcoba reports from Buenos Aires, Argentina, the country's president

says he will push on with economic reforms. Argentina's president Javier Milet had reasoned to celebrate Sunday. The libertarian leader clinched a strong victory in a test of his political power and a quasi-referendum on his tough economic prescriptions. Milet's La Libertada Vance party secured more than 40% of the popular vote, almost nine points ahead of the main opposition for Sa Patria. the left-leaning perinist coalition. This election drew more eyes than usual due to the unexpected intervention of the United States in Argentina's economy.

The U.S. has recently approved a $20 billion currency swap with Argentina to steady a floundering peso. For NPR News, I'm Natalie Alcoba in Buenos Aires. Virginia Democratic lawmakers have called the state's General Assembly back for a meeting today. Virginia may be the latest state

to take up congressional redistricting efforts From Member Station VPM, Jad Khalil tells us the effort could eliminate Virginia's bipartisan redistricting commission. If Democrats want to get a new map in front of voters by the midterms, they'll have to amend the Constitution to do so. The meeting would jumpstart the process, and new legislators that come into office after next week's election would have to approve the same amendment. Virginia has six Democrats in Congress and five Republicans. Jed Khalil reporting. You're listening to NPR News. It's day 27 of the federal government shutdown.

State governors have been warning that federal aid for food assistance will run out by Saturday morning. Now the Trump administration is saying the same thing. On its homepage, the Agriculture Department is blaming the looming food scarcity on Democrats. The homepage also makes other false statements about Democrats. The National Hurricane Center says Hurricane Melissa is now a Category 5 storm, with Tom sustained winds of 160 miles per hour. NPR's Ava Pucatch reports it's aiming directly for Jamaica. Jamaican officials have been urging residents to prepare for Melissa

and seek shelter before it reaches the coast of the island. Daryl Vaz, Jamaica's Minister for Power Energy Telecommunications and Transport, says now is not a time for rifts and disagreements. Every single Jamaican has a part to play between now, during and after and if we do it collectively in unity and in harmony we will recover

better and quicker Jamaica's two main airports had closed Sunday ahead of the storm Ava Pukatch and PR News The Navy's Pacific Fleet reports it has lost two aircraft in the South China Sea. Both were based on the aircraft carrier

the USS Nimitz. A fighter jet and a Seahawks helicopter or rather helicopter, went down into the ocean, in separate circumstances. These occurred within half an hour of each other. All of the crew were rescued. The Navy says the crashes are under investigation. I'm Corva Coleman, NPR News.