In justifying his latest tariffs announcement, President Donald Trump complains of unfair trade deficits, saying the US has been “looted, pillaged, raped, plundered” by other countries for decades.

He has accused China of “bleeding us dry” through unbalanced deals, called Canada’s tariffs on US dairy “a total disgrace”, and even pointed to Cambodia as a country that has “taken advantage of us for years” with excessive tariffs.

What he has left out in his repeated criticisms is the trade surplus the US benefits from when it comes to his country’s service industry.

Services make up about 70 percent of the US economy. That includes a wide range of businesses, including education, healthcare, travel and hotels, financial services, as well as media and entertainment, insurance, maintenance and repair, and charging for the use of intellectual property, among others.

Exports of these services contribute approximately 25 percent of the US economy, economists say.

“The US has a strong comparative advantage in several major service industries: education, health, finance, law, accounting, entertainment. That explains the trade surplus,” said Gary Huffbauer, nonresident senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics.

In 2023, the US exported services worth $1.02 trillion, up 8 percent from a year earlier, and imported services for $748.2bn, up 5 percent. That left it with a trade surplus of $278bn, a trend stretching back at least two decades.

“Trump may be ignorant of the services trade surplus, but more likely he thinks he can get more popular approval by talking about deficits in manufactured goods,” Huffbauer added, pointing to the auto worker who Trump brought during his tariff announcement on Wednesday as an example of support for tariffs among the US working class.

Rachel Ziemba, an economist and adjunct senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security, agreed that it was “a puzzlement” that Trump never referred to this metric.

“He was the same way in his first term, underemphasising services, despite the fact that he spent his career in services,” said Ziemba, referring to Trump’s real estate, tourism and entertainment ventures, all of which come under services.

Trump’s focus on goods reflects the fact that manufacturing is important to the industrial base, including the defence sector, and it would be problematic if too much manufacturing capacity erodes as it hits productivity, said Ziemba.

“But it is surprising he doesn’t look at the whole picture and at the ways in which his policies put services at risk. Plus, cutting research undermines advanced manufacturing. His whole team underestimates services,” Ziemba said.

Vulnerable to retaliation

There is the reality that a lot of Trump’s voters are in the manufacturing belt, where jobs and lifestyles have been eroded as many plants shut down as the work was relocated to cheaper destinations overseas – one reason Trump has given for his focus on trade imbalances.

That lack of domestic manufacturing and supply chains was also felt during the COVID pandemic when trade came to a screeching halt and resumed initially at a snail’s pace when international borders started to reopen.

But none of that takes away from the reality that Trump’s latest harsh tariff policies will leave the US services sector vulnerable to retaliation.

Foreign countries can deny operating permits for US business firms and can tax digital services, Hufbauer said. They can also temporarily suspend copyright, trademark and patent rights or prohibit the payment of royalties.

For decades, the US has worked to secure foreign market access and intellectual property protection for US service firms.

“Some countries have tried limiting the reach of Hollywood entertainment through screen quotas and other devices. On the whole, those have not been successful. But this time they could invoke stricter measures,” Hufbauer said.

“US service and tech companies could lose a lot of market access, and share market value, as a consequence of Trump’s tariff war,” he added.

While there may not necessarily be alternatives at scale for US software, countries have imposed taxes like digital service taxes and data localisation requirements, albeit those are more driven by privacy needs than as a source of revenue.

There are already some “buy local” – and boycott US – trends in parts of the world which could be formalised by government policies.

However, warned Ziemba, for any country that plans to apply taxes on these US services, there is always the danger that the move could backfire as it would increase the costs for the domestic market and prompt further retaliation from Trump.

By focusing on manufacturing over services, Trump is using “his judgement as to where he can marshal political support”, Hufbauer said.

Modi says he wants a ‘positive and constructive relationship’ with Bangladesh, where pro-India Hasina was ousted last year.

India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi has met with Bangladesh’s interim leader Muhammad Yunus for the first time since a revolution eight months ago ousted the country’s former prime minister and longtime Indian ally.

The two South Asian leaders spoke on the sidelines of a regional summit in Thailand on Friday.

Yunus, who is tasked with leading Bangladesh’s caretaker government until elections in 2026, was described by his press secretary as having a “constructive, productive, and fruitful” meeting with Modi.

Yunus took on his caretaker role in August 2024, after longtime leader Sheikh Hasina – who had strong ties with India – was toppled by a mass student-led uprising.

Sheikh Hasina’s overthrow sent Bangladesh’s relationship with neighbouring India into a tailspin, culminating in Yunus choosing to make his first state visit last month to China – India’s biggest rival.

Bangladesh has also moved closer to India’s arch-enemy Pakistan amid the diplomatic chill.

Nevertheless, Yunus and Modi appeared warm in their face-to-face meeting, with the two seen in photos smiling together and shaking hands.

Vikram Misri, India’s foreign ministry secretary, told reporters that Modi “reiterated India’s support for a democratic, stable, peaceful, progressive and inclusive Bangladesh”.

Modi said he wanted a “positive and constructive relation with Bangladesh based on a spirit of pragmatism”, according to Misri. However, he also said Modi repeated New Delhi’s concerns about alleged “atrocities” against minorities in Bangladesh – a matter Dhaka has claimed is exaggerated.

Yunus, for his part, raised with Modi Dhaka’s long-running complaint about what it says are Hasina’s incendiary remarks from exile in India, his press secretary Shafiqul Alam said.

Public opinion in Bangladesh has turned against India, in part over its decision to provide sanctuary to Hasina. New Delhi has not responded to Dhaka’s request to send her home for trial.

Hasina has defied extradition requests from Bangladesh to face charges, including related to the killing of hundreds of protesters during the unrest that toppled her.

Misri said Modi and Yunus had discussed the extradition order but there was “nothing more to add” at present.

Harsh Pant, foreign policy head at the Observer Research Foundation, an Indian think tank, expressed hope that the meeting between Modi and Yunus would “start the process of rebuilding some engagement” between the two historically close nations.

“I think at this point, simply stabilising the relationship perhaps should be the priority,” said Pant.

As the acting chief justice began reading out the decision, filled with technical legal jargon, the crowds grew quieter, straining to hear from outdoor loudspeakers the outcome that would determine Mr. Yoon’s fate — and that of the country. Some people opposed to Mr. Yoon cheered and applauded intermittently as the reading went on. Protesters on both sides clasped their hands together in prayer. Many held up their phones to record the moment.

And then, the crowd erupted.

Those supporting Mr. Yoon’s impeachment reacted with hugs, screams and fists pumped in the air to the unanimous decision to remove him from office. At a rally of supporters of Mr. Yoon near his residence, there was loud booing. Some people folded over in dismay, and others loudly cursed.

“It’s been so hard, but now my heart is relieved,” said Kim Ji-seon, 55, who brought her daughter to witness the verdict in the hopes that Mr. Yoon’s impeachment would be upheld. “I hope they can create a country where people can be happy.”

Soon after the decision was announced, only a handful of people, some wearing “Make Korea great again” and “stop the steal” hats, were left at a pro-Yoon demonstration that was scheduled to last all day outside the presidential office. Construction workers were taking down scaffolding, and dozens of chairs had been stacked and pushed to the side.

Jang Jaeeuk, 21, said he had stayed out on the street near the court overnight along with other students from his university, getting only three hours of sleep, because it was such an important day for his country.

“I’m happy that the hardships of the past four months haven’t gone to waste,” he said after crying and hugging his fellow students upon hearing the verdict. “Now I feel that we can change the world and, in that sense, I’m hopeful for the future.”

Supporters of Mr. Yoon near the court, who were predominantly men, said that they were deeply disappointed that the president was removed and went home.

Yoon Seo-jun, 18, sitting on the edge of a sidewalk, said he was distrustful of the system that led to the impeachment and dismayed about the future of the country.

“South Korea’s democracy is dead,” he said, adding that he hoped the National Assembly, which had impeached Mr. Yoon, would be dissolved.

After the decision, some South Koreans expressed apprehension about what might come next and the possibility of further political upheaval.

Lee Yongseok, 27, who watched the court’s televised decision at a screen at Seoul’s main railway station, said that although he supported the verdict, he knew that others would be skeptical of the ruling and of the judges who made it.

“I feel like something big is going to come to my country,” he said.

Even as supporters and opponents of Mr. Yoon tried to grasp what comes next for their country, government officials were taking steps to move on.

In a gesture that underlined the finality of the court’s ruling, the officials removed the presidential emblem in front of the building where Mr. Yoon used to work as president. The emblem bears the image of a mythical bird, the phoenix.

Choe Sang-Hun, Chang W. Lee, Jun Michael Park and Victoria Kim contributed reporting.

Throughout his career, Kumar acted – and at times directed – films that had a focus on unity and national pride.

Indian actor Manoj Kumar, known for his roles in Hindi-language films with patriotic themes, has died aged 87.

Kumar died in Mumbai due to heart-related complications on Friday, his son Kunal Goswami told India’s ANI news agency.

“He had health-related issues for a long time. It’s the grace of God that he bid adieu to this world peacefully. His cremation will take place tomorrow [Saturday],” Goswami said.

Throughout his career, Kumar was known for acting – and at times directing – films that had a focus on unity and national pride. For that, he was often dubbed “Bharat” Kumar – a reference to the ancient Sanskrit word for India.

Born Harikrishan Goswami, he renamed himself, in Bollywood tradition, taking on the name Manoj Kumar.

He made his debut in Indian cinema in the late 1950s and went on to star in several films, many with patriotic themes, including Upkar (1967), Purab Aur Pachhim (1970) and Kranti (1981).

Kumar was the recipient of several national awards, including the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, India’s highest honour for cinema.

He was also a member of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s governing Hindu-nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Modi led the condolences, calling Kumar an “icon” of Indian cinema and saying his works “ignited a spirit of national pride and will continue to inspire generations”.

India’s President Droupadi Murmu posted on X that she was “saddened by the demise of legendary actor and filmmaker”.

“He has left an indelible mark on Indian cinema,” she wrote.

In his tribute, Bollywood actor Akshay Kumar said he “grew up learning from him that there’s no emotion like love and pride for our country”.

“And if we actors won’t take the lead in showing this emotion, who will? Such a fine person, and one of the biggest assets of our fraternity,” Akshay Kumar posted on X.

The Palestinian Red Crescent, which lost nine of its staff in the March 23 Israeli attack, called killings one of the war’s ‘darkest moments’.

New evidence suggests that some of the 15 Palestinian aid workers killed by Israeli forces in Rafah last week were shot at close range in what appeared to be execution-style killings – an attack the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) has described as “one of the darkest moments” of the war.

Forensic analyst Ahmad Dhaher, who personally examined five of the bodies at Khan Younis’s Nasser Hospital, said the evidence pointed to close-range gunfire.

“Preliminary analysis suggests they were executed, not from a distant range, since the locations of the bullet wounds were specific and intentional,” Dhaher told The Guardian newspaper.

“One observation is that the bullets were aimed at one person’s head, another at their heart and a third person had been shot with six or seven bullets in the torso.”

He cautioned that the state of decomposition made it difficult to draw definitive conclusions.

The aid workers disappeared on March 23 during a rescue mission in Rafah’s Tal as-Sultan neighbourhood after it came under attack by Israeli forces. The group included nine PRCS medics, six civil defence workers and one United Nations employee.

According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), after the first rescue team was killed, other emergency crews searching for them were repeatedly struck over several hours.

A week later, 15 bodies were discovered buried in the sand, which OCHA described as a “mass grave.” One PRCS worker remains missing.

This is “one of the darkest moments in this conflict that has shaken our shared humanity to its core,” PRCS President Younes al-Khatib told the UN Security Council on Thursday.

Al-Khatib also said PRCS dispatchers overheard a conversation in Hebrew between Israeli forces and some of the aid workers, indicating that at least some were still alive while in Israeli custody.

Israel’s military claimed that nine Hamas and Islamic Jihad fighters were inside the rescue crews’ ambulances but said it was launching an investigation into the incident.

“The presence of those terrorists puts everyone’s lives at risk,” claimed Israel’s ambassador to the UN Danny Danon.

Humanitarian workers have been repeatedly targeted during the Gaza war, with 408 killed so far, including 280 UN staff, according to the UN.

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk said the aid workers’ killing raises “further concerns over the commission of war crimes by the Israeli military”.

Speaking at a UN Security Council meeting in New York, Turk called for an “independent, prompt and thorough investigation” into their killing.

“There is clearly growing consensus within the council that it must do more to hold Israel accountable,” reports Al Jazeera’s Gabriel Elizondo from the UN headquarters in New York.

These are the key events on day 1,135 of Russia’s war on Ukraine.

These are the key events from Thursday, April 3:

Fighting

• A Russian ballistic missile strike killed at least four people and wounded 17 in the city of Kryvyi Rih, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s hometown. The attack also sparked a fire in the city, said Oleksandr Vilkul, the head of Kryvyi Rih’s military administration.
• Russian drone attacks overnight targeted the Ukrainian regions of Zaporizhia and Kharkiv, killing one person and injuring several others, officials said.
• Two people were killed and at least 32, including two children, were injured by a Russian drone attack which hit several multistorey apartment blocks in Kharkiv, the region’s governor said. One person was also injured in a separate drone attack on Ruski Tyshky, a village outside Kharkiv.
• Kyiv’s air force said Russia launched 39 drones towards Ukraine overnight, of which 28 were shot down. According to the air force, seven others failed to reach their targets due to electronic warfare measures.
• Russian air defence units repelled a drone approaching Moscow, the city’s mayor Sergei Sobyanin said.
• Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokeswoman Maria Zakharova accused Ukraine of launching more than 30 “provocative” attacks on Russian energy facilities, despite a mutually agreed moratorium on strikes against energy facilities brokered by the United States.
• According to Russia’s Ministry of Defence, Ukrainian forces attacked Russian energy facilities four times in the past 24 hours. Ukraine’s military denied the accusations, saying its troops were adhering to the ceasefire, but claimed Russia had violated the moratorium “numerous times”.

• The Russian Defence Ministry said its forces took control of two settlements, Vesele and Lobkove, in eastern Ukraine.
• Reuters news agency reports, citing war bloggers, that Russian troops have intensified their attacks in Russia’s western Kursk region to rout Ukrainian forces, including hundreds of Ukrainian troops holding out in a monastery – which it described as the last major Ukrainian foothold in the Russian territory.
• US Army General Christopher Cavoli said Ukraine’s army had resolved some of its manpower shortages to fight against Russia but warned that a cut-off of US weapons to Ukraine would be severely harmful to Kyiv’s war efforts. Cavoli also said Russia lost more than 4,000 tanks during its war on Ukraine, describing the scale of the war as “awe-inspiring”.

Economy

• The 10 percent reciprocal tariffs imposed on Ukraine by the United States are “difficult, but not critical”, said Kyiv’s Economy Minister Yulia Svyrydenko. She also said Ukraine had an export volume of $874m to the US last year while Kyiv bought goods worth $3.4bn from the US during this period.
• Russia remains patient and is not surprised by US President Donald Trump’s threats to impose new tariffs on Russian oil, said Sergei Ryabkov, Moscow’s deputy foreign minister in charge of ties with the US.

Ceasefire

• Ryabov warned that there might not be a peace agreement in the war on Ukraine unless the US recognised the “belligerent” stance of the European Union and Ukraine.

• President Zelenskyy, during a meeting with community leaders in northern Ukraine’s Chernihiv region, said that maintaining the country’s army size would be a top priority in peace negotiations.
• Zelenskyy also said that Ukraine would not accept the recognition of Russian-controlled Ukrainian territories as parts of Russia. He suggested finding a compromise to return such territories back to Ukraine over time through diplomatic means.
• Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha informed US Secretary of State Marco Rubio of Russia’s violation of the energy ceasefire brokered by the US.

Politics and Diplomacy

• Russian President Vladimir Putin’s investment envoy Kirill Dmitriev accused unidentified forces of trying to sow tension between Russia and the US by “distorting Russia’s position” and said meeting with the US demonstrated a “positive dynamic” between Washington and Russia.
• Finland’s President Alexander Stubb said France, or the United Kingdom as part of the “coalition of the willing”, should take charge in engaging with Russia as part of Europe’s efforts to support Kyiv.
• The US has withdrawn from the team of European and US investigators put together under the EU’s judicial body Eurojust to collect evidence of potential Russian war crimes in Ukraine. The move was inspired by a “change in priorities” within the US Department of Justice, Eurojust said.