Customs duties, UNESCO, Spain and the death of Ozzy Osbourne: the night's news

Tariffs: US-Japan trade deal. Donald Trump announced Tuesday that he had signed the “largest deal ever” with Japan, likely to create “hundreds of thousands of jobs” in the United States and including “reciprocal” 15% tariffs on exports between the two countries, writes CNBC . The American president had threatened to impose a 25% tariff on all Japanese products starting August 1st, if no agreement is reached. Japanese cars and auto parts were already subject to a 25% tariff, but the rate will be reduced to 15% under the agreement. Steel and aluminum, however, will remain subject to a 50% surcharge. In a message on his Truth Social network, quoted by the business news channel, Donald Trump also declared that “Japan would invest $550 billion in the United States,” adding without further details that the United States “would receive 90% of the profits.” According to the White House tenant, Japan will open up more to trade, "especially for cars and pickup trucks, rice and certain other agricultural products." Shares of automakers Toyota, Honda and Nissan soared on the Tokyo Stock Exchange following the announcement. Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, weakened by a heavy electoral defeat on Sunday and who was counting on the conclusion of a good trade agreement to keep his job, welcomed Wednesday that Japan is "the first country to obtain a reduction in [American] surcharges on automobiles, without limits or volume restrictions."

The United States is leaving UNESCO again. The Trump administration will withdraw the United States from the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), “about two years after its re-entry under Biden,” reports NPR . The U.S. State Department said Tuesday that it was “not in the national interest of the United States” to be a member of UNESCO, which it accuses of promoting “divisive social and cultural causes.” The institution “focuses on promoting international collaboration in education, science, and culture,” reports American public radio. “It is best known for its World Heritage List, which recognizes places of cultural or natural significance.” The relationship between the United States and UNESCO has historically been difficult: Washington first left the organization in 1984, under Ronald Reagan, before rejoining it in 2003. In 2018, it was Donald Trump's turn to shun the institution, before Joe Biden decided to return in 2023.

Spain: Law to prevent another blackout rejected by Parliament. Despite pressure from major energy companies, the Spanish Parliament on Tuesday rejected measures presented by the socialist government to prevent another blackout, like the one that occurred on April 28. The right, far right, and radical left united against the bill, which was rejected by 183 votes to 165. This is “a resounding failure” for Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, which illustrates “the absence of solid foundations on which to build for the rest of his term, at a time when his credibility is being undermined by corruption scandals,” observes the right-wing daily El Mundo . The bill proposed, among other things, better supervision of the grid and the installation of batteries to develop electricity storage at renewable energy production sites. The national blackout on April 28 plunged the country into chaos for more than ten hours. A report had pointed to “power surges” on the network, which had caused “a chain reaction” .

Heavy metal legend Ozzy Osbourne dies. British musician Ozzy Osbourne, “whose dark voice and propensity for extreme behavior made him the ideal frontman for the groundbreaking heavy metal band Black Sabbath—qualities that also propelled him to an even more successful solo career—has died at the age of 76,” Billboard magazine reported Tuesday. “It is with unspeakable sadness that we must announce the passing of our beloved Ozzy Osbourne this morning,” the family announced from Birmingham, UK. The cause of death has not been released, but Osbourne had been battling multiple health issues for the past decade, revealing in 2019 that he had Parkinson’s disease. A founding member of Black Sabbath in 1968, Ozzy—real name John Michael Osbourne— “helped define” heavy metal, Billboard observed. His “vocal talents” – a unique, high timbre and impressive breath – “gave him the power to pierce the densest metal tracks like a foghorn,” the magazine explains. His death comes just weeks after Black Sabbath’s final concert, “which took place on July 5 and grossed $190 million, making it the highest-grossing benefit concert of all time,” the trade publication notes.