U.S.-Based Orange Juice Importer Sues Over Trump's 50% Tariff on Brazilian Goods
Johanna Foods Inc., a major importer of orange juice, filed a lawsuit on Friday in the U.S. Court of International Trade in New York, saying that the measure, announced in a July 9 letter from Mr. Trump to President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva of Brazil, threatened to upend its business and sharply drive up prices for American consumers.
Mr. Trump has used tariffs aggressively to shape trade policy. In justifying the tariff on Brazil, he cited factors including what he called an unfair trade relationship and a 'witch hunt' trial against Brazil's former right-wing president, Jair Bolsonaro, a close ally.
Johanna Foods' complaint argues that such factors do not meet the legal threshold for invoking the International Emergency Economic Powers Act of 1977, which gives the president broad authority to regulate international economic transactions during a declared national emergency.
'There is no unusual or extraordinary threat,' the company said in the complaint, pointing to the lack of a formal executive order or declaration of national emergency. The complaint also said that the letter to Mr. Lula did not constitute an executive order.
The complaint said the tariffs would increase Johanna Foods' annual import costs by $68 million and lead to retail price hikes of up to 25 percent. Johanna Beverage Co., a related company based in Washington State, is also listed as a plaintiff.
Orange juice prices are already high. In June, the price of frozen orange juice concentrate was 5.5 percent higher than in June 2024, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Brazil, the world's largest exporter of orange juice, supplies well over half of the fresh orange juice consumed in the United States, according to Agriculture Department figures. Brazil is also a major exporter of coffee to the United States.
The threatened tariff comes amid an extraordinary pressure campaign against Brazil as it prosecutes Mr. Bolsonaro on charges of attempting a coup to overturn his loss in the 2022 election.
Mr. Lula said in a recent statement that Brazil would not be 'tutored' by anyone and would retaliate against tariffs on Brazilian imports, which will take effect on Aug. 1 unless a trade deal is reached.
A federal appeals court is set to hear arguments later this month on a case challenging Mr. Trump's use of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act to impose tariffs, but has allowed the administration to enforce global tariffs for now.
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This family self-deported to Mexico, and lost everything
By Diego Oré URUAPAN, Mexico (Reuters) -As broadcasters declared Donald Trump the next President of the United States, Sonia Coria turned to her husband and asked if they should go home. For seven months they had been living in Glendale, Arizona, sharing a two-bedroom apartment with Coria's aunt and slowly building a life far from the threats and cartel violence that made them flee Mexico. Coria, 25, took odd jobs as a cleaner and her husband, Carlos Leon, also 25, worked as a gardener. Their eldest child Naomi, eight, was going to a local charter school, making friends and picking up English. In the small kidney-shaped pool of the condominium building where they lived, she had learned to swim. Little Carlos, five, was learning to ride a bike. Their neighborhood in western Glendale - a city of some 250,000 people just outside Phoenix - was home to lots of Mexican migrants. Opposite their apartment block was a small butcher, Carnicería Uruapan, named after the town they had fled in the dangerous Mexican state of Michoacan. They had bought their first car on installments - a tan-colored 2008 Ford F-150 pickup truck that cost them $4,000. They were still poor, sometimes going to soup kitchens for a meal or picking up appliances and toys that neighbors had thrown out, but it was a life they could only have dreamed of back home in Mexico. Trump's campaign, and his victory, changed how they felt about living in the United States. They had followed the law, entering the United States at a border crossing and applying for asylum. The application was in process. But they now worried they could lose everything. "We run the risk of them taking away the little we've managed to scrape together," Coria remembers telling her husband that night as election coverage played on the television. Leon nodded and hugged his wife. They began to cry quietly, afraid Carlos and Naomi would hear them as they played on the floor in the bedroom they all shared. The kids had been allowed to stay up late, so that Coria and Leon could watch the results come in. The family's account is based on interviews with Leon, Coria and NGOs that helped them on their return to Mexico. Reuters was not able to verify all details of their journey, but core facts were supported by photos, videos, messages, and customs documents the family shared. As the Trump administration vows to enact the "largest deportation operation in American history," authorities have raided workplaces, sent alleged Venezuelan gang members to a notorious prison in El Salvador, and deployed National Guard and active-duty Marines to contain anti-government protests in Los Angeles. Beyond the 239,000 people the administration has deported so far, some cuffed and led on to planes, the very public expulsion of migrants has had another effect: triggering tough and complicated decisions in immigrant households across the U.S. on whether to stay or leave. As they discussed returning to Mexico, Leon set one condition: That they wait until after Trump took office on January 20, to save up some more money and to see if he proved as hardline on migration as he'd promised. In the end, fear led them to leave before Trump had even been sworn in. 'PROJECT HOMECOMING' Despite high-profile deportations to Guantanamo or El Salvador, the total number of deportations under Trump trails former President Joe Biden's last year in office. Increasingly, persuading migrants to leave of their own accord has become a core strategy. "Self-deportation is safe," reads a DHS flyer on display at immigration courts in the U.S. "Leave on your own terms by picking your departure flight." 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Larios did not respond to requests for comment. It was a hard decision to leave. They had fled their hometown in February last year after armed men claiming to be members of the notorious Jalisco New Generation Cartel began showing up at the avocado farm where Leon was working as a guard, demanding protection money. Leon didn't have the money to pay, and the owner was away. Now, they were going back. Uruapan is one of the most violent cities in the world, with an official murder rate of nearly 60 per 100,000 inhabitants. In recent years organized crime has taken over the area, running or extorting farms and businesses and killing those who refuse to pay. But the family hoped their savings would make a difference. They had managed to scrape together $5,000 and the plan was to buy land and open an auto repair shop using their pickup truck to help with the business. At 5 p.m., on January 19, they drew up to the Dennis DeConcini border crossing at Nogales. 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She said in an email to Reuters that its office "acts in strict adherence to the legal framework governing the entry and exit of merchandise, as well as the customs control applicable to persons and vehicles crossing points of entry into the national territory." Mexican president Claudia Sheinbaum told journalists this month that her government is strengthening its "Mexico Embraces You" program to receive Mexican migrants voluntarily returning from the U.S. to ensure "they are not subject to any act of corruption by customs or immigration when they enter our country." The program offers a $100 cash grant, job placement, free transportation to their places of origin, and facilities for importing goods, but the family returned before it went into action. As the sun began to set, the dry desert air turned cold. The family worried about where to spend the night and how they would reach Michoacan, some 2,000 kilometers away. They were spotted by Francisco Olachea, a nurse with Voices from the Border, a humanitarian organization that works on both sides of the border. Olachea remembers approaching the crying family outside customs and offering them a hand. They loaded the Corias' belongings onto the NGO's ambulance and a rented pickup truck paid for by Olachea and another NGO, Salvavision. That night, Olachea took them to NANA Ministries, a Christian organization in the border town of Nogales. They were offered water, fruit, coffee, and pozole, a traditional Mexican broth made from corn kernels with meat and vegetables. The four spent the night in a small room. Together, Voices from the Border and Salvavision raised just over $1,000 to buy the family bus tickets to Michoacan and send some belongings to Sonia Coria's mother's house in black garbage bags. What they couldn't send was donated to the church where they had spent the night. On January 20, the family returned to Uruapan. The four of them shared a small room with no door in the tin-roofed home belonging to Coria's mother. The couple slept on the floor, and the kids shared a bed with no mattress. They later moved into an even smaller room at an aunt's house. Leon eventually found work in a car repair workshop. Coria got a job in a Chinese restaurant. The children complain about leaving the United States. Carlos asks for his bike; Naomi is forgetting her English. In June, a 62-page letter from customs seen by Reuters informed them that their truck had been seized and had become property of the federal treasury. Also, that they owe the equivalent of $18,000 in customs duties for bringing in the F-150 to Mexico. Solve the daily Crossword
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Free Raising Cane's for National Chicken Finger Day 2025: How to get deal
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Mortgage and refinance interest rates today, July 26, 2025: Fixed mortgage rates see slight decreases
Today's mortgage interest rates have shifted slightly downward. According to Zillow, the 30-year fixed mortgage rate shifted down by four basis points, sitting at 6.68%. Meanwhile the 15-year fixed rate is down six basis points to 5.91%. If you're looking to buy a house soon, it could be smart to lock in your interest rate now while rates are slightly down. Just be sure to choose a mortgage lender with a rate buydown option so you don't get stuck with a higher rate if rates decrease further in the coming weeks. Instead, with a buydown program, you can re-lock your interest rate if market rates decrease before you buy the house. Read more: Looking for a lender with a rate buydown program? Check out Yahoo Finance's Pennymac mortgage review or TD Bank mortgage review. Today's mortgage rates Here are the current mortgage rates, according to the latest Zillow data: 30-year fixed: 6.68% 20-year fixed: 6.52% 15-year fixed: 5.91% 5/1 ARM: 7.26% 7/1 ARM: 7.25% 30-year VA: 6.29% 15-year VA: 5.64% 5/1 VA: 6.15% Remember, these are the national averages and rounded to the nearest hundredth. Learn more: 8 strategies for getting the lowest mortgage rates Today's mortgage refinance rates These are today's mortgage refinance rates, according to the latest Zillow data: 30-year fixed: 6.79% 20-year fixed: 6.31% 15-year fixed: 5.91% 5/1 ARM: 7.15% 7/1 ARM: 7.37% 30-year VA: 6.26% 15-year VA: 6.11% 5/1 VA: 5.86% Again, the numbers provided are national averages rounded to the nearest hundredth. Mortgage refinance rates are often higher than rates when you buy a house, although that's not always the case. Refinance interest rates Up Next Up Next Free mortgage calculator Use the mortgage calculator below to see how today's interest rates would affect your monthly mortgage payments. For a deeper dive, you can use Yahoo's free mortgage calculator to see how homeowners insurance and property taxes factor into in your monthly payment estimate. You even have the option to enter costs for private mortgage insurance (PMI) and homeowners' association dues if those apply to you. These details result in a more accurate monthly payment estimate than if you simply calculated your mortgage principal and interest. 30-year fixed mortgage rates: Pros and cons There are two main advantages to a 30-year fixed mortgage: Your payments are lower, and your monthly payments are predictable. A 30-year fixed-rate mortgage has relatively low monthly payments because you're spreading your repayment out over a longer period of time than with, say, a 15-year mortgage. Your payments are predictable because, unlike with an adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM), your rate isn't going to change from year to year. Most years, the only things that might affect your monthly payment are any changes to your homeowners insurance or property taxes. The main disadvantage to 30-year fixed mortgage rates is mortgage interest — both in the short and long term. A 30-year fixed term comes with a higher rate than a shorter fixed term, and it's higher than the intro rate to a 30-year ARM. The higher your rate, the higher your monthly payment. You'll also pay much more in interest over the life of your loan due to both the higher rate and the longer term. 15-year fixed mortgage rates: Pros and cons The pros and cons of 15-year fixed mortgage rates are basically swapped from the 30-year rates. Yes, your monthly payments will still be predictable, but another advantage is that shorter terms come with lower interest rates. Not to mention, you'll pay off your mortgage 15 years sooner. So you'll save potentially hundreds of thousands of dollars in interest over the course of your loan. However, because you're paying off the same amount in half the time, your monthly payments will be higher than if you choose a 30-year term. Dig deeper: 15-year vs. 30-year mortgages Adjustable mortgage rates: Pros and cons Adjustable-rate mortgages lock in your rate for a predetermined amount of time, then change it periodically. For example, with a 5/1 ARM, your rate stays the same for the first five years and then goes up or down once per year for the remaining 25 years. The main advantage is that the introductory rate is usually lower than what you'll get with a 30-year fixed rate, so your monthly payments will be lower. (Current average rates don't necessarily reflect this, though — in some cases, fixed rates are actually lower. Talk to your lender before deciding between a fixed or adjustable rate.) 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Recent news that home price gains are slowing, with predictions that house values may actually ease lower this year, can be part of your home buying decision. The best time to buy is typically whenever it makes sense for your stage of life. Trying to time the real estate market can be as futile as timing the stock market — buy when it's the right time for you. Read more: Which is more important, your home price or mortgage rate? Today's mortgage rates: FAQs What is a 30-year mortgage rate right now? According to Zillow, the national average 30-year mortgage rate is 6.68% right now. But keep in mind that mortgage rates vary by state and even ZIP codes. For example, if you're buying in a city with a high cost of living, rates could be higher. Are interest rates expected to go down? Overall, mortgage rates are expected to lower slightly in 2025. Rates may inch up or down from day to day, but there shouldn't be a huge shift in the near future. Are mortgage rates dropping? Mortgage rates are dropping slightly. Today's 30-year fixed mortgage rate has only shifted down four basis points. How do I get the lowest refinance rate? In many ways, securing a low mortgage refinance rate is similar to when you bought your home. Try to improve your credit score and lower your debt-to-income ratio (DTI). Refinancing into a shorter term will also land you a lower rate, though your monthly mortgage payments will be higher.
