How Trump tariffs hit Ukraine's wounded war veterans – DW – 06/16/2025
A US company that manufactures machines used to build prosthetic limbs is on a mission to help Ukrainian veterans by donating life-changing equipment. But tariffs now stand in the way of helping Ukraine's wounded.
A Ukrainian soldier takes his first steps on a new prosthetic leg, thanks to a US company's donation of 3D printers that create these life-changing assistive devices. However, rising US tariffs on imported components are significantly increasing production costs, making it challenging for the company to continue its support. Tony Hynes, the CEO of Precision Valve & Automation, highlights the impact of these tariffs, which could make each printer more expensive. Four of the 3D printers were delivered before the tariffs took effect and despite current obstacles, the company remains committed to sending more printers to Ukraine. At the same time, they are training Ukrainian partners via video calls to ensure that this vital technology continues to help those in need.
This video summary was created by AI from the original DW script. It was edited by a journalist before publication.
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DW
5 hours ago
- DW
How Trump tariffs hit Ukraine's wounded war veterans – DW – 06/16/2025
A US company that manufactures machines used to build prosthetic limbs is on a mission to help Ukrainian veterans by donating life-changing equipment. But tariffs now stand in the way of helping Ukraine's wounded. A Ukrainian soldier takes his first steps on a new prosthetic leg, thanks to a US company's donation of 3D printers that create these life-changing assistive devices. However, rising US tariffs on imported components are significantly increasing production costs, making it challenging for the company to continue its support. Tony Hynes, the CEO of Precision Valve & Automation, highlights the impact of these tariffs, which could make each printer more expensive. Four of the 3D printers were delivered before the tariffs took effect and despite current obstacles, the company remains committed to sending more printers to Ukraine. At the same time, they are training Ukrainian partners via video calls to ensure that this vital technology continues to help those in need. This video summary was created by AI from the original DW script. It was edited by a journalist before publication.
DW
a day ago
- DW
Spain housing crisis: Locals blame tourists and speculators – DW – 06/15/2025
Short-term rentals are worsening Spain's housing crisis, while investor demand continues to drive up prices. For many locals, the situation is devastating. The real estate agent Juan Sanchez, who didn't want his real name published in this article, pushes open the frosted glass door of an apartment that used to be a shop. Visitors step directly into the kitchen from the streets of Spain's capital. The ceilings are very high. "You could easily add a mezzanine here," Sanchez says, and explains that the two bedrooms advertised are in the basement, and rather tiny. One of them doesn't even have a window. However, the space could be "easily rented out to students" for €1,300 ($1,484) if the prospective buyer is willing to ignore what he calls "a small catch." "Downstairs is officially listed as a storage space in the property registry, because we couldn't get a residential permit. But that's not a problem for renters," he tells DW. Wealthy Russian's are among the foreign housing investors that Spanish real estate agents welcome Image: Victor Tschezkij/DW The 55-square-meter (592 square-feet) space, advertised as an apartment, located in a middle-class neighborhood in central Madrid, is listed to sell for over €300,000. Unlike a decade ago, when cheap credit boosted the housing prices in Spain, today, the sky-high prices even for mid-range apartments are driven by foreign investors with deep pockets. They've invested huge sums in Spain's lucrative housing sector and booming tourism industry, driving up prices in the entire housing market in the process. According to a report by the Spanish institute BBVA Research, demand is outstripping supply significantly. Those living in Spain, meanwhile, are struggling to afford skyrocketing rents, a situation compounded by the growing share of homes being rented out to international tourists visiting Spain, and students seeking accommodation. Spaniards rally against housing crisis To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video Spain's worsening housing crisis has already sparked repeated protests on the Canary Islands, in Barcelona and in Madrid. Locals contribute to the shortage These days, internet platforms like sell even small living spaces to investors. The Spanish property startup allows users to purchase — rather than rent — individual rooms in a shared property as an alternative investment and living option. For the Madrid tenants' union Sindicato de Inquilinas de Madrid, the practice amounts to "rampant speculation" fueled by tourism and investment funds. The group has estimated that this has resulted in more than 4 million homes and 400,000 vacation rentals currently standing empty — in a country of 47 million people. But the housing shortage isn't just due to external demand. Locals are contributing to it, too. According to the Spanish national statistics office INE, over 2.5 million homes in Spain are only used occasionally, with many of them presumed to be second or third residences — often reserved for holidays, and rarely rented to others. Spanish Housing and Urban Planning Minister Isabel Rodriguez has vowed to fight the crisis with higer taxes Image: Borja Puig de la Bellacasa/LA MONCLOA/AFP Private investors and hedge funds are less reluctant to rent. In the first quarter of 2025, short-term leases, not counting tourist rentals, accounted for 14% of the rental market, or a 25% increase from the previous year, according to data compiled by the real estate platform Idealista. The platform reported the largest growth of short-term rental listings in cities like Bilbao (up 36%), Alicante (33%), Barcelona (29%), and Madrid (23%). In May, the Spanish ministry for consumer rights made headlines when it ordered the short-term rentals platform Airbnb to remove nearly 66,000 unlicensed listings. The Spanish Housing and Urban Planning Minister Isabel Rodriguez is also pushing a bill that would require vacationers to pay 21% VAT on apartment rentals — double the rate applied to hotel stays. But tenant groups like Sindicatos de Inquilinas say that's not nearly enough. Housing boom with social consequences Similar to the years preceding the 2008 financial crisis, Spain's real estate market is showing signs of overheating again. A house that cost an average of €138,000 in 2014 was valued at €178,700 in 2024, according to data from the US-based investment firm MD Capital. In places like the Balearic Islands, prices have more than doubled. Tim Wirth, a real estate lawyer based in Palma, says that the sharp rise in prices "inevitably leads to protests from local residents." He told DW that rentals in Spain must be made more attractive again with "legal and tax security for both sides." But he also acknowledges the acute social challenge in the fact that average wages have grown by a little over 23% in the past decade, while property prices have shot up by at least 29% in the same time period. No Airbnb in Barcelona? City to ban short-term rentals To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video In 2024, the average monthly gross salary in Spain was €2,642, according to the economic and socio-demographic information platform Datosmacro. An ordinary 80-square-meter apartment now costs about €1,100 a month to rent, as data from the real estate portal Fotocasa shows, with rental costs for a similar apartment in major cities like Madrid or Barcelona ranging between €1,400 and €1,500. Unlike people living in cities such as Paris or London, Spanish residents do not receive a supplement to their salaries to offset higher housing costs. Too many tourists, too little social housing Each year, some 90 million international tourists visit Spain. Many remote workers have set up residence in the Canary Islands and Barcelona, while students from across the world flock to the country's 90 universities and dozens of business schools. In the 2024/2025 academic year alone, more than 118,000 students came to Spain under the European Union students' exchange program Erasmus. Spain, however, lacks publicly funded student accommodation, and there is no financial support from the state equivalent to Germany's BAföG aid program for students from low-income households. That's one reason why Spanish citizens typically leave their parents' home after the age of 30, as official statistics show. In Germany, the average age is 24. In addition, public housing is scarce, with only about 14,370 state-sponsored housing units built in 2024. Between 2007 and 2021, Spain allocated just €34 per capita to social housing — far below the EU average of €160. Madrid's tenant lobby, meanwhile, has threatened to escalate public protests if the government doesn't take stronger action: "We'll raise our voices to reclaim what's vacant or being rented to tourists," a spokesperson told DW. This article was originally written in German.
DW
a day ago
- DW
Milei urges Argentines to bank 'mattress dollars' – DW – 06/15/2025
Argentina's libertarian President Javier Milei has his sights set on an estimated $271 billion in cash stashed away by his fellow citizens to survive economic hardships. Thanks to sweeping spending cuts, Argentine President Javier Milei has managed to bring inflation in his country down from a monthly 25% in December 2023 to below 3% now, according to official data published by the country's INDEC statistics agency. And yet, the cost of living in Argentina is still rising, forcing the libertarian leader to make another controversial proposal to the public. He's called on his fellow citizens to spend their cash dollars squirreled away in mattresses and foreign bank accounts, long held by Argentines as a hedge against decades of economic turmoil. Last week (June 5), Milei's government sent a bill called Fiscal Presumption of Innocence to Congress, declaring that the law ensures that there will be no more persecution of those Argentines holding undeclared dollars. The measure widens a tax amnesty scheme rolled out last year which already lured tens of billions of dollars back into circulation. Milei's sweeping austerity measures have reined in inflation, but left many Argentines facing economic hardships Image: DW During Milei's 2023 presidential election campaign, his supporters marched through the streets of Buenos Aires waving oversized dollar bills featuring their candidate's face. Milei himself called the Argentine peso "worth as much as shit," initially pledging to replace it with the US dollar as legal tender once he's elected. Today, Milei's dollarization drive is back on the agenda, but in a different form. This time, it's not about switching the national currency, but about integrating the US dollars Argentines have been stockpiling at home into the formal economy. Dollars 'under the mattress' The INDEC agency has estimated that Argentinians have about $271 billion (€234 billion) hidden away, money that is colloquially referred to as "dolares del colchon," or mattress dollars. The exact amount is unknown, because the money is essentially undeclared. People began stockpiling these dollars during Argentina's prolonged periods of hyperinflation, which gripped the country until the end of 2023. Having access to US dollars in cash — or being able to receive and withdraw dollar funds — allowed people to sidestep skyrocketing peso prices by taking advantage of favorable exchange rates. In Argentina, dollar cash reserves became a kind of financial life insurance. Eugenio Mari, chief economist at the Buenos Aires-based libertarian think tank Fundacion Libertad y Progreso, finds this behavior perfectly rational. Speaking to DW, he said that for decades Argentines have tried to "protect themselves from inflation and from government overreach," meaning many used part of their income to buy dollars and kept them out of circulation. But saving in dollars also meant making consumption sacrifices and spending less overall. Cash dollars for economic recovery Now, President Milei wants to change that engrained behavior by convincing Argentines to bring the hidden dollars back into the monetary system for the benefit of the broader economy. The government argues that inflation has been tamed — at least for the time being — creating the right moment to release the hoarded cash. It's yet unclear how many Argentines are considering bringing their dollars back in circulation Image: Natacha Pisarenko/AP Photo/picture alliance But trust in a currency can be destroyed quickly, while rebuilding it takes much longer. So it's still unclear whether Argentines are willing to monetize their "mattress dollars" in sizeable amounts. In his effort, Milei is counting on deregulation and the removal of tax burdens to encourage them. Some even say the president is banking his political future on the scheme, which may come to be seen as a test of people's trust in his economic policy. So far, the plan is progressing slowly, daily newspaper Clarin wrote last week. 'Fiscal innocence' bill Technically, Argentinians are required to report any foreign currency holdings. But the law has never been fully enforced. Milei's bill guaranteeing fiscal innocence to offenders was a clever move, says economist Mari. "The removal of reporting requirements to the tax authority makes transactions easier and reduces the risk of citizens being pursued by the state, especially by tax authorities," said Mari. Since Javier Milei took office in December 2023, many economic indicators have improved. Inflation has dropped significantly, poverty is declining, the government has posted budget surpluses, and the economy is growing. Argentina sees protests swell ahead of major strike To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video According to recent World Bank forecasts, Argentina's economy is expected to grow by 5.5% this year, with another 4.5% projected for next year. However, prices for food and essential goods have soared, due largely to the rollback of state subsidies and the strengthening of the Argentine peso. Dollarization through the backdoor? Thousands of Argentines, meanwhile, are crossing borders into Chile, Paraguay, or Brazil to shop more cheaply, as the stronger peso is giving them a more favorable exchange rate. Hernan Letcher, director of the Centro de Economia Politica Argentina (CEPA) in Buenos Aires, believes Milei's aim with his dollar monetization plan is to "inject more dollars into the government's currency exchange system," which for him is "essentially a foreign exchange policy measure." As Argentines go shopping abroad, the country's central bank has reported growing capital outflows amid a stronger peso Image: Carol Smiljan/NurPhoto/picture alliance Nau Bernues, a financial expert and the CEO of Quaestus Asteriscos — a firm specializing in the financial system and investments — believes the government wants to "go even further." The plan is to make the dollar a "more transactional currency" that would allow people to "buy not only an apartment or a car, but also an appliance or even a cookie at a kiosk." "It's doing everything possible to ensure that there are more and more dollars. If that happens with constant pesos or no issuance, the exchange rate should appreciate," Bernues told the news agency Noticias Argentinas last week. He noted that Milei's economic team was "constantly proclaiming" that the dollar could fall from currently about 1,180 pesos per greenback to 1,000 pesos. But he personally is skeptical about Milei's "ambitious" plan, arguing that the dollars under the mattress are people's "insurance, perhaps their life savings," which they won't touch for anything, "except if they make it much easier to purchase land, real estate and assets that the average Argentine assigns a certain amount of protection." This article was originally written in German.
