Technologies

Trump Touts China Trade Deal: Tariffs Back to Square One, Still Historically High

The tentative agreement between the White House and Beijing would, among other things, allow Chinese students into American universities again.

President Donald Trump last week took to Truth Social to tout a new tentative trade agreement with China, albeit one that only really takes things back to square one and leaves the tariff rate against Beijing at historically high levels.

«WE ARE GETTING A TOTAL OF 55% TARIFFS, CHINA IS GETTING 10%,» Trump’s post to Truth Social read, with a later post adding, «President Xi [Jinping] and I are going to work closely together to open up China to American Trade. This would be a great WIN for both countries!!!»

Under this new arrangement, if it stands, the US tariff rate against China will be set at 55%, which is actually an increase from the 30% rate set when the two countries declared a truce in May at the start of their negotiations. It is seemingly just bringing the rate back in line with what Trump first announced in April on the so-called «Liberation Day,» which saw the rate against China set at 54%.

That initial announcement was followed by multiple rounds of escalation, which saw the import taxes against China hiked all the way to a rate of 145%. As part of this new arrangement, Trump said that the US will get access to rare earth minerals from China — including ones vital to the production of technology like smartphones — while in return, Chinese students will be allowed to attend American colleges and universities.

During his first term, Trump’s trade war with China saw the average tariff rate against China increase to about 20%, which remained largely unchanged during Joe Biden’s presidency. Given how much the US has traditionally imported from China, increased tariffs on goods from there will have a much greater impact on the cost of goods than tariffs against other countries.

It is unclear at this point when this 55% rate would take effect. The earlier 30% rate was supposed to remain in effect until August while negotiations continued. It is also unclear if this rate will effect all imports from China the same, or if some will be spared.

What do these tariffs do to prices?

As I’ve touched extensively elsewhere here on CNET, a tariff is essentially a tax placed on imports from a certain country. A 55% tariff rate on China, therefore, means any company or entity looking to import goods from there will be charged 55% of the order’s cost in order to do so — think a $100,000 shipment now costing $155,000.

Now, you, an average consumer, maybe don’t do a lot of bulk importing of construction materials or cheap T-shirts from China, but that extra cost for importers will more than likely get to you anyway. To offset tariffs, companies almost always pass on their increased import costs to the end consumer — making homes made with those construction materials or those T-shirts now sold at a major chain store more expensive. That sort of phenomenon is why many economists and finance experts have characterized Trump’s tariffs as a major new tax on the working class.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Strands Hints, Answers and Help for Oct. 23 #599

Here are hints and answers for the NYT Strands puzzle for Oct. 23, No. 599.

Looking for the most recent Strands answer? Click here for our daily Strands hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.

Today’s NYT Strands puzzle might be Halloween-themed, as the answers are all rather dangerous. Some of them are a bit tough to unscramble, so if you need hints and answers, read on.

I go into depth about the rules for Strands in this story.

If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections and Mini Crossword answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: NYT Connections Turns 1: These Are the 5 Toughest Puzzles So Far

Hint for today’s Strands puzzle

Today’s Strands theme is: Please don’t eat me!

If that doesn’t help you, here’s a clue: Remember Mr. Yuk?

Clue words to unlock in-game hints

Your goal is to find hidden words that fit the puzzle’s theme. If you’re stuck, find any words you can. Every time you find three words of four letters or more, Strands will reveal one of the theme words. These are the words I used to get those hints but any words of four or more letters that you find will work:

POND, NOON, NODE, BALE, SOCK, LOVE, LOCK, MOCK, LEER, REEL, GLOVE, DAIS, LEAN, LEAD, REEL

Answers for today’s Strands puzzle

These are the answers that tie into the theme. The goal of the puzzle is to find them all, including the spangram, a theme word that reaches from one side of the puzzle to the other. When you have all of them (I originally thought there were always eight but learned that the number can vary), every letter on the board will be used. Here are the nonspangram answers:

AZALEA, HEMLOCK, FOXGLOVE, OLEANDER, BELLADONNA

Today’s Strands spangram

Today’s Strands spangram is POISONOUS. To find it, look for the P that is the first letter on the far left of the top row, and wind down and across.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections: Sports Edition Hints and Answers for Oct. 23, #395

Here are hints and the answers for the NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle for Oct. 23, No. 395.

Looking for the most recent regular Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle and Strands puzzles.

Today’s Connections: Sports Edition has one of those crazy purple categories, where you wonder if anyone saw the connection, or if people just put that grouping together because only those four words were left. If you’re struggling but still want to solve it, read on for hints and the answers.

Connections: Sports Edition is published by The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by The Times. It doesn’t show up in the NYT Games app but appears in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can play it for free online.

Read more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle Comes Out of Beta

Hints for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Fan noise.

Green group hint: Strategies for hoops.

Blue group hint: Minor league.

Purple group hint: Look for a connection to hoops.

Answers for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Yellow group: Sounds from the crowd.

Green group: Basketball offenses.

Blue group: Triple-A baseball teams.

Purple group: Ends with a basketball stat.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today’s Connections: Sports Edition answers?

The yellow words in today’s Connections

The theme is sounds from the crowd. The four answers are boo, cheer, clap and whistle.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is basketball offenses. The four answers are motion, pick and roll, Princeton and triangle.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is triple-A baseball teams. The four answers are Aces, Jumbo Shrimp, Sounds and Storm Chasers.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is ends with a basketball stat. The four answers are afoul, bassist, counterpoint and sunblock.

Technologies

Amazon’s Delivery Drivers Will Soon Wear AI Smart Glasses to Work

The goal is to streamline the delivery process while keeping drivers safe.

Amazon announced on Wednesday that it is developing new AI-powered smart glasses to simplify the delivery experience for its drivers. CNET smart glasses expert Scott Stein mentioned this wearable rollout last month, and now the plan is in its final testing stages.

The goal is to simplify package delivery by reducing the need for drivers to look at their phones, the label on the package they’re delivering and their surroundings to find the correct address.

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A heads-up display will activate as soon as the driver parks, pointing out potential hazards and tasks that must be completed. From there, drivers can locate and scan packages, follow turn-by-turn directions and snap a photograph to prove delivery completion without needing to take out their phone.

The company is testing the glasses in select North American markets.

Watch: See our Instagram post with a video showing the glasses

A representative for Amazon didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

To fight battery drain, the glasses pair with a controller attached to the employee’s delivery vest, allowing them to replace depleted batteries and access operational controls. The glasses will support an employee’s eyeglass prescription. An emergency button will be within reach to ensure the driver’s safety.

Amazon is already planning future versions of the glasses, which will feature «real-time defect detection,» notifying the driver if a package was delivered to the incorrect address. They plan to add features to the glasses to detect if pets are in the yard and adjust to low light.