Toyota subsidiary Hino Motors penalized $1.6 billion over emissions fraud scheme, DOJ says
March 19 (Reuters) - A subsidiary of Japanese carmaker Toyota (7203.T), opens new tab faces $1.6 billion in penalties after pleading guilty to having engaged in a multi-year emissions fraud scheme, the U.S. Justice Department said in a statement on Wednesday.
U.S. District Court Judge Mark A. Goldsmith for the Eastern District of Michigan accepted Hino Motors' guilty plea and sentenced the company to pay a fine of $521.76 million and serve a five-year term of probation during which it will be prohibited from importing diesel engines it has manufactured into the United States, the Justice Department said.
The court also entered a $1.087 billion forfeiture money judgment against the company, according to the Justice Department.
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The National
12 minutes ago
- The National
Riots in LA as Donald Trump and Gavin Newsom call each other 'liars'
They blocked off a major road and set self-driving cars on fire as law enforcement used tear gas, rubber bullets and flash bangs to control the crowd. Many protesters dispersed as evening fell and police declared an unlawful assembly, a precursor to officers moving in and making arrests of people who do not leave. Some of those remaining threw objects at police from behind a makeshift barrier that spanned the width of a street and others hurled chunks of concrete, rocks, electric scooters and fireworks at California Highway Patrol officers and their vehicles parked on the closed southbound 101 freeway. Officers ran under an overpass to take cover. (Image: Kevin Lamarque, REUTERS) Sunday's protests in Los Angeles, a sprawling city of four million people, were centred in downtown several blocks. It was the third and most intense day of demonstrations against Trump's immigration crackdown in the region, as the arrival of around 300 Guard troops spurred anger and fear among many residents. The Guard was deployed specifically to protect federal buildings, including the detention centre where protesters concentrated. Los Angeles police chief Jim McDonnell said officers were 'overwhelmed' by the remaining protesters. He said they included regular agitators who appear at demonstrations to cause trouble. Several dozen people were arrested throughout the weekend of protest. One was detained on Sunday for throwing a Molotov cocktail at police, and another for ramming a motorcycle into a line of officers. Trump responded to McDonnell on Truth Social, telling him to arrest protesters in face masks. 'Looking really bad in L.A. BRING IN THE TROOPS!!!' he wrote. (Image: AP Photo/Eric Thayer) Starting in the morning, the troops stood shoulder to shoulder, carrying long guns and riot shields as protesters shouted 'shame' and 'go home'. After some closely approached the guard members, another set of uniformed officers advanced on the group, shooting smoke-filled canisters into the street. Minutes later, the Los Angeles Police Department fired rounds of crowd-control munitions to disperse the protesters, who they said were assembled unlawfully. Much of the group then moved to block traffic on the 101 freeway until state patrol officers cleared them from the roadway by late afternoon. Nearby, at least four self-driving Waymo cars were set on fire, sending large plumes of black smoke into the sky and exploding intermittently as the electric vehicles burned. By evening, police had issued an unlawful assembly order shutting down several blocks of downtown Los Angeles. Flash bangs echoed out every few seconds into the evening. Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom requested that Trump remove the guard members in a letter on Sunday afternoon, calling their deployment a 'serious breach of state sovereignty'. He was in Los Angeles meeting local law enforcement and officials. READ MORE: Israeli army boards Freedom Flotilla ship trying to reach Gaza as 'connection lost' The deployment appeared to be the first time in decades that a state's national guard was activated without a request from its governor, a significant escalation against those who have sought to hinder the administration's mass deportation efforts. Newsom and Los Angeles mayor Karen Bass blamed the increasingly aggressive protests on Trump's decision to deploy the Guard, calling it a move designed to inflame tensions. They have both urged protesters to remain peaceful. 'What we're seeing in Los Angeles is chaos that is provoked by the administration,' she said in an afternoon press conference. 'This is about another agenda, this isn't about public safety.' But McDonnell, the LAPD chief, said the protests were following a similar pattern for episodes of civil unrest, with things ramping up in the second and third days. He pushed back against claims by the Trump administration that the LAPD had failed to help federal authorities when protests broke out on Friday after a series of immigration raids. His department responded as quickly as it could, and had not been notified in advance of the raids and therefore was not pre-positioned for protests, he said. Newsom, meanwhile, has repeatedly said that California authorities had the situation under control. California governor Gavin Newsom (Image: Mike Blake, Reuters) He mocked Trump for posting a congratulatory message to the Guard on social media before troops had even arrived in Los Angeles, and said on MSNBC that Mr Trump never floated deploying the Guard during a Friday phone call. He called Mr Trump a 'stone cold liar'. The admonishments did not deter the administration. 'It's a bald-faced lie for Newsom to claim there was no problem in Los Angeles before President Trump got involved,' White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson said in a statement. The arrival of the National Guard followed two days of protests that began Friday in Los Angeles before spreading on Saturday to Paramount, a heavily Latino city south of the city, and neighbouring Compton. Federal agents arrested immigrants in LA's fashion district, in a Home Depot parking lot and at several other locations on Friday. The next day, they were staging at a Department of Homeland Security office near another Home Depot in Paramount, which drew out protesters who suspected another raid. Federal authorities later said there was no enforcement activity at that Home Depot. The weeklong tally of immigrant arrests in the LA area climbed above 100, federal authorities said. Many more were arrested while protesting, including a prominent union leader who was accused of impeding law enforcement. The protests did not reach the size of past demonstrations that brought the National Guard to Los Angeles, including the Watts and Rodney King riots, and the 2020 protests against police violence, in which Newsom requested the assistance of federal troops. The last time the National Guard was activated without a governor's permission was in 1965, when President Lyndon B Johnson sent troops to protect a civil rights march in Alabama, according to the Brennan Centre for Justice. In a directive on Saturday, Trump invoked a legal provision allowing him to deploy federal service members when there is 'a rebellion or danger of a rebellion against the authority of the Government of the United States'. He said he had authorised the deployment of 2000 members of the National Guard. Trump told reporters as he prepared to board Air Force One in Morristown, New Jersey, Sunday that there were 'violent people' in Los Angeles 'and they're not going to get away with it'. Asked if he planned to send US troops to Los Angeles, Trump replied: 'We're going to have troops everywhere. We're not going to let this happen to our country.' He did not elaborate. About 500 marines stationed at Twentynine Palms, about 125 miles (200 kilometres) east of Los Angeles were in a 'prepared to deploy status' on Sunday afternoon, according to the US Northern Command.
Reuters
2 hours ago
- Reuters
China's imports of major commodities hiccup in May
LAUNCESTON, Australia, June 9 (Reuters) - China's imports of major commodities lost momentum in May, with crude oil, coal, iron ore and copper all recording declines amid concerns about growth in the world's second-biggest economy. Only imports of natural gas showed any improvement, with May's 10.11 million metric tons slightly ahead of the 9.67 million in April, although they were still down 11% from a year earlier, according to customs data released on Tuesday. Crude oil arrivals dropped to 10.97 million barrels per day (bpd) in May, down 6.2% from April's 11.69 million bpd and also below the 12.1 million bpd recorded for March, which was the strongest month since August 2023. Iron ore imports slipped to 98.13 million tons in May from 103.14 million tons in April, and were also weaker than the 102.03 million from May last year. Imports of all grades of coal were 36.04 million tons in May, down 4.7% from April's 37.83 million tons and 17.8% weaker than the 42.82 million tons in May 2024. Unwrought copper imports were 427,000 tons in May, down 2.5% from the 438,000 tons in April and also below the 514,000 tons from the same month a year earlier. On the surface the decline in imports of major commodities looks ominous for China as the world's biggest buyer of natural resources faces an ongoing trade war with the United States and still sluggish growth at home, especially in the key residential construction sector. But there is always a risk of reading too much into monthly numbers, which can be quite volatile and are also often driven by price moves during the period when cargoes were arranged. Crude oil is a good example of this. China's imports were weak in January and February, with cargoes delivered in these two months having been bought against a backdrop of rising prices, with benchmark Brent futures rallying from early December to a peak of $82.63 a barrel on Jan. 15. But oil prices started sliding thereafter, with Brent dropping to a low of $58.40 a barrel by April 9. Therefore, the rebound in China's crude imports in March and April came amid a declining price trend when the cargoes would have been bought. However, May cargoes would have been arranged when prices were once again trending higher. It's also worth noting that China's imports of Russian and Iranian crude have also been volatile in recent months, dropping as new U.S. sanctions on vessels were imposed and then recovering as traders worked out ways around the measures. This pattern seems likely to have continued, with commodity analysts Kpler estimating China's imports of Iranian oil at 743,500 bpd in May, but also forecasting a sharp rise to 1.48 million bpd in June. Iron ore imports may also have been impacted by price moves, with the price rising modestly over April, the time when most May-arriving cargoes would have been booked. The Singapore Exchange contract reached a recent high of $101.80 a ton on May 14, and has since moderated to end at $96.26 on June 6. While the price moves are modest, the small decline may encourage some buying by China's steel mills, especially given the prevailing view that Beijing will launch new stimulus efforts in coming weeks to boost the economy. Copper imports are also likely reflecting dynamics on global markets rather than the domestic situation in China. China's imports have trended weaker and are now down 6.7% for the first five months of 2025 compared to the same period last year. But physical copper has been shifting to the United States as market players expect President Donald Trump to impose a tariff on imports of the industrial metal. U.S. demand has bolstered the premium of copper for delivery to the United States, and drawn metal away from China. While the London price has been volatile and driven by news reports on what Trump may or may not do, the trend has been to higher prices, with an increase from an April 9 low of $8,105 a ton to $9,701 in early Asian trade on Monday. Coal is the major commodity where China's domestic prices and supply have driven weakness in imports, with strong production and soft local prices cutting the need for imports. Seaborne thermal coal prices have dropped to four-year lows in response, and there are some early signs that demand is picking up, but it will likely take further declines to spark any meaningful interest in boosting imports. Enjoying this column? Check out Reuters Open Interest (ROI), your essential new source for global financial commentary. ROI delivers thought-provoking, data-driven analysis of everything from swap rates to soybeans. Markets are moving faster than ever. ROI can help you keep up. Follow ROI on LinkedIn, opens new tab and X, opens new tab. (The views expressed here are those of the author, a columnist for Reuters.)
North Wales Chronicle
3 hours ago
- North Wales Chronicle
New Zealand Rugby chief executive Mark Robinson resigns
NZR chairman David Kirk thanked Robinson for his 'great service' to the organisation and the sport over six years. 'On behalf of the Board, I'd like to recognise Mark for his great service to NZR and the sport,' he said in a statement. 'He has led with a passion for rugby and we thank him for his commitment over the past six years. 'Mark has driven significant change, both in New Zealand and internationally, and the Board believes the organisation is well-placed to capitalise on this. Of note was his leadership through a global pandemic that saw the game deal with an unprecedented crisis.' He added: 'Mark will continue to lead for the remainder of the year as we conclude key projects, and the Board will now commence recruitment for the new role.' In a statement, Robinson said he was leaving the role to join his wife and children, who have relocated to Australia. 'My family have been based in Australia for the last few months with all three of my children studying there,' he said. 'My wife is already there supporting them and, ultimately, I will be joining them early next year. 'The past six years have been a period of rapid change, or unprecedented challenges through the pandemic, and significant evolution across commercial, competitions and structures. I will reflect on that as I get closer to stepping away, but I firmly believe the foundations of our organisation are extremely strong and the game is well-placed for the future. 'Our vision is to inspire and unify through rugby and that opportunity has been an easy motivator for me every single day, from the community game right through to the international level.' The 51-year-old called his tenure a 'privilege' and said his focus was on 'supporting the Board and leading the organisation through a pivotal year, including ensuring the Black Ferns have the support they need to defend the Rugby World Cup in England'. He added: 'We also remain focused on implementing a new financial model for the game in New Zealand and completing the remaining work on what will be an exciting future international calendar.' Robinson took up the role in January 2020, having previously served on the organisation's board for seven years. His playing career included nine Tests for the All Blacks between 2000 and 2002 and appearances for the Bristol Bears and Japanese side Kobelco Steelers.
