SEOUL — North Korea’s foreign ministry has criticized the US Golden Dome missile defense shield project as a “very dangerous threatening initiative,” state media said on Tuesday.

US President Donald J. Trump on May 20 said he had picked a design for the Golden Dome missile defense system and named a leader of the ambitious $175-billion program.

The Golden Dome plan “is a typical product of ‘America first,’ the height of self-righteousness, arrogance, high-handed and arbitrary practice, and is an outer space nuclear war scenario,” said the Institute for American Studies of North Korea’s foreign ministry, according to state KCNA news agency.

The aim is for Golden Dome to leverage a network of hundreds of satellites circling the globe with sophisticated sensors and interceptors to knock out incoming enemy missiles after they lift off from countries like China, Iran, North Korea or Russia.

China last week said it is “seriously concerned” about the project and called for Washington to abandon its development. — Reuters

Tesla’s sales in Europe fell 49% in April from a year earlier, even as battery-electric sales rose by 27.8%, as the US EV maker’s upgrade of its Model Y shows little sign of improving the brand’s tarnished image in the region.

Overall car sales in the region remained roughly consistent with last year, falling just 0.3%, with the strongest sales growth coming from electric and plug-in hybrid cars, data by the European Automobile Manufacturers Association (ACEA) showed.

Tesla’s sales in Europe continue to drop, reflecting a shift away from the brand as Chinese competition strengthens and some protest against Elon Musk’s political views.

European carmakers strive to cut domestic costs and tackle competition amid U.S. tariffs on auto imports and a slowing global economy, with uncertainty overshadowing the industry’s outlook despite eased U.S.-China trade tensions.

April sales in the European Union, Britain and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) fell to 1.07 million cars, following a 2.8% growth a month before, the ACEA data showed.

Registrations at Chinese state-owned automaker SAIC Motor and Mitsubishi grew by 24.5% and 22.1% respectively, while they fell by 24.5% at Mazda.

Tesla’s sales fell for a fourth month in a row, down 49% year-on-year, and its share of the total market nearly halved to 0.7% from 1.3% a year ago.

In just the EU – not including Britain and the EFTA – total car sales fell 1.2% year-on-year, declining for a fourth consecutive month, as the registrations of battery electric (BEV), plug-in hybrid (PHEV) and hybrid electric (HEV) cars grew by 26.4%, 7.8% and 20.8% respectively.

Electrified vehicles – either BEV, HEV or PHEV – sold in the bloc accounted for 59.2% of passenger car registrations in April, up from 47.7% in the previous year.

Among the largest EU markets, total car sales in Spain and Italy increased by 7.1% and 2.7% respectively, while in France and Germany they dropped by 5.6% and 0.2%.

In Britain, registrations were down 10.4%.

Growing interest in Europe’s EV market, driven by emission targets and cheaper models, contrasts with global policies encouraging EVs amid trade tensions, slowing markets, and potential plant closures and job losses. — Reuters

BRUSSELS – The European Union on Monday urged fast-fashion retailer Shein to respect EU consumer protection laws and warned it could face fines if it failed to address the EU’s concerns.

Shein has grown rapidly by shipping inexpensive products directly to consumers. In February, the European Commission warned Shein and Temu, another Chinese online e-commerce platform, that they would be liable for the sale of unsafe and dangerous products sold on their sites.

A spokesperson for the company said in a statement that Shein is working with national consumers’ authorities and the EU Commission.

“Our priority remains ensuring that European consumers can have a safe, reliable, and enjoyable online shopping experience,” the statement also said.

The Consumer Protection Co-operation (CPC) network of national consumer authorities and the European Commission had now notified Shein of practices which infringed EU consumer law, the Commission said in a statement.

“Shein now has one month to reply to the CPC Network’s findings and propose commitments on how they will address the identified consumer law issues. Depending on Shein’s reply, the CPC Network may enter a dialogue with the company,” it said.

“If Shein fails to address the concerns raised by the CPC Network, national authorities can take enforcement measures to ensure compliance. This includes the possibility to impose fines based on Shein’s annual turnover in the EU Member States concerned,” the statement added.

Shein could also be the target of EU regulatory demands under the EU’s Digital Services Act.

In a further blow to Shein, the EU has proposed a 2 euro ($2.27) handling fee per package for low-value e-commerce shipments. — Reuters

BRUSSELS – U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision to drop his threat to impose 50% tariffs on European Union imports from next month gave ‘new impetus’ to trade talks, the EU said on Monday, as global stock markets climbed and the euro rallied.

Back-tracking on the new tariffs he announced on Friday, Trump on Sunday restored a July 9 deadline to allow for talks between Washington and the 27-nation bloc to produce a deal after what he said was “a very nice call” with EU Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen.

The pan-European stocks index recovered to where it was trading before Friday’s surprise tariff announcement and the euro rose to its highest since late April. Gold prices fell as Trump’s latest move reduced demand for the safe-haven asset.

“They agreed both to fast track the trade negotiations and to stay in close contact,” a European Commission spokesperson said of Trump and von der Leyen’s conversation.

US and EU trade representatives were due to hold talks later on Monday.

“There’s now also a new impetus for the negotiations, and we will take it from there,” the spokesperson said.

The U.S. president’s about-turn reminded policymakers and investors how quickly his trade policy could change, however, and it was unclear how the EU would square its push for a mutually beneficial trade deal with U.S. calls for steep concessions.

Commerzbank currency strategist Michael Pfister said the European Union could reach a deal with the U.S. by July 9 but that Friday’s announcement made clear the respite was temporary.

“It is questionable what has changed in terms of the fundamental problems following a phone call,” he said.

EU COMPANIES ON EDGE
Several businesses leaders said the sheer uncertainty made it hard to plan anything.
Gianmarco Giorda, managing director of Italy’s auto part maker lobby group ANFIA, told Reuters he still hoped the talks would succeed but that formulating strategies was complicated:

“U.S. duties are an additional source of concern in an already difficult scenario for the Italian automotive industry.”

Germany’s family-owned LAPP Group, which makes everything from cables and wires to robotics for factories, warned that some of its specialised products would still be affected by the volatile business environment.

“Unfortunately, current U.S. politics is characterised by unpredictability, individual interests and populism,” CEO Matthias Lapp told Reuters.

“Germany’s good transatlantic relations have been built up over decades of diplomatic work and mutual understanding. However, confidence in their stability is currently suffering massive damage.”

EU trade chief Maros Sefcovic held a video conference on Monday with the CEOs of Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen, BMW and Stellantis, as businesses wondered what plans, if any, they should make.

FRUSTRATION
Trump, who has repeatedly expressed disdain for the EU and its treatment of the United States on trade, dropped the plan to recommend a 50% tariff effective from June 1 after von der Leyen told him that the EU needed more time to come to an agreement.

“I agreed to move it,” Trump said before returning to Washington after a weekend in New Jersey. “She said we will rapidly get together and see if we can work something out.”

Von der Leyen said in a post on X that she had a “good call” with Trump and that the EU was ready to move quickly.

“Europe is ready to advance talks swiftly and decisively,” she said. “To reach a good deal, we would need the time until July 9.”

The negotiations had been stuck, with Washington demanding unilateral concessions from Brussels to open up to U.S. business while the EU seeks an agreement in which both sides could gain, according to people familiar with the talks.

The EU already faces 25% U.S. import tariffs on its steel, aluminum and cars and so-called “reciprocal” tariffs of 10% for almost all other goods, a levy that had been due to rise to 20% after Trump’s 90-day pause expires in July.

The levy could increase to 50% in a no-deal scenario, which could raise consumer prices on everything from German BMWs and Porsches to Italian olive oil and hurt demand for French luxury handbags.

It was not clear, however, whether the 50% would be levied on imports not subject to the U.S. ‘reciprocal’ tariff, such as steel, cars and other products subject to investigations, such as semiconductors, pharmaceutical products and lumber. — Reuters

U.S. President Donald Trump’s social media firm, Trump Media & Technology Group, plans to raise about $3 billion to spend on cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin, the Financial Times reported on Monday, citing people familiar with the matter.

Trump Media aims to raise $2 billion in fresh equity and $1 billion more through a convertible bond, the report said.

The terms, timing and size of the company’s capital raise could still change, the FT report said.

Trump Media Group responded to a Reuters request for comment by calling both Reuters and the Financial Times “fake news” outlets. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The company behind Truth Social, a streaming and social media platform, has been exploring potential mergers and acquisitions as it aims to diversify into financial services.

Last month, Trump Media reached a binding agreement to launch various retail investment products, including crypto and exchange-traded funds aligned with Trump’s America First policies.

This, however, has attracted scrutiny from government ethics and regulatory authorities.

The company’s capital raise is expected to be announced ahead of a major crypto investor and advocate meeting this week, the FT report said, adding that Vice President JD Vance and Trump’s sons Donald Jr. and Eric are expected to speak.

Bitcoin was up 1.5%, its biggest move up or down in three days and largest gain in four days. — Reuters

MOSCOW – Russia’s economy is facing “hypothermia” risks, Economy Minister Maxim Reshetnikov said on Monday as he urged the central bank to take slowing inflation into account when it meets to set interest rates next week.

Grappling with stubbornly high inflation, Russia’s central bank has kept its key interest rate at 21% since October, a stance that has stifled investment just as the economic support provided by soaring military spending starts to decline.

Russian authorities usually present a united front on policy matters, but high interest rates, hefty budget spending and the efficacy of capital controls have all led to public disagreements in the last few years.

Sometimes the Kremlin gets involved.

In August 2023, the central bank made an unscheduled, 350-basis-point rate hike the day after receiving a public rebuke from President Vladimir Putin’s then economic adviser Maxim Oreshkin, blaming what he called its soft monetary policy for weakening the rouble.

Then in March this year Putin urged his economic officials not to freeze the Russian economy as if it were in a “cryotherapy chamber” with high borrowing costs, which many analysts interpreted as a call to start an easing cycle.

Reshetnikov, speaking on Monday in the State Duma, Russia’s lower house of parliament, said that inflation in recent weeks had been in the 3-4% range when recalculated in annual terms.

“We expect that May data will consolidate this trend and we of course expect that the central bank will duly take this into account when taking decisions because we also see risks of economic hypothermia in the current regime,” Reshetnikov said.

The ministry forecasts annual inflation for 2025 at 7.6%, an estimate that Reshetnikov described as “realistic”.

Major Russian exporters including Rusal and Gazpromneft have cut the planned volume of commodities such as metal and oil products they send by rail, a Russian Railways document seen by Reuters showed last week, demonstrating the real-world impact of subdued demand as the country’s economy slows.

Many businesses in the industrial sector have complained of prohibitive borrowing costs and some have scaled back investment plans. The economy ministry forecasts economic growth of 2.5% this year, compared with a central bank prediction of 1-2%.

The central bank’s next rate-setting meeting is scheduled for June 6. — Reuters