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Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
How Trump's Tariffs and Immigration Policies Could Make Housing Even More Expensive
President Donald Trump owes his second electoral victory, in no small part, to voter frustration over the rising cost of living. Over the course of Joe Biden's presidency, the price of a typical American house increased by nearly 40 percent, and rents followed a similar trajectory. As of 2024, approximately 771,480 Americans lack reliable shelter—at once a new high and a new low. All of these issues are most acute in states governed by Biden's fellow Democrats. In California, the median home price is now more than 10 times the median household income. Economists generally view three to five as a healthy ratio. Polling data suggest that many key voting blocs in the 2024 presidential election were primarily motivated by the rising cost of living and by out-of-control housing costs in particular. For all the network news preoccupation with transgender athletes and campus protests, it was mortgages and rents—the single largest line items in a typical household's budget—that moved voters to toss out incumbents. On April 2, after months of empty threats and false starts, the administration finally launched its global trade war, including a 25 percent tariff on various goods from Canada and Mexico. But Canadian softwood lumber and Mexican gypsum used for drywall—the (literal) pillars of a typical American single-family home—would be exempt. The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) was quick to celebrate it as a win: Canada accounts for 85 percent of all U.S. lumber imports. If the tariffs had taken effect as planned, the per-unit cost of a home might have increased by as much as $29,000. In a sector characterized by thin margins, that would have meant a lot of idle construction sites. And yet the partial rollback will offer only a temporary reprieve. Tariffs already in effect will increase the cost of a new home by $10,900 on average, according to an April 2025 estimate by the NAHB—an increase of $1,700 over its March estimate. This is on top of a 41.6 percent increase in building materials since 2020, brought on by pandemic-related supply chain disruptions. Those cost increases could hit renters hardest. After a decade of underbuilding in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis, America is short roughly 5 million homes—most of them apartments. Perhaps the most robust finding in urban economics is that when vacancy rates increase, rents fall. But driving up vacancy rates requires cities to build more housing. Thanks to the YIMBY ("yes in my backyard") movement, a handful of cities—including Austin and Minneapolis—have recently had building booms that have brought prices back down. But those cities have been the exception. Meanwhile, a new wave of tariffs is about to make it a lot more expensive to build. On February 11, the administration imposed a 25 percent tariff on steel and aluminum—much of it imported from allies such as Brazil and Germany. On February 25, the administration announced an investigation into copper imports, presumably with future tariffs in the works. Depending on their country of origin, other key inputs like iron and cement are also now subject to steep tariffs. Even if you can get new housing built, the appliances needed to make all these new homes livable could soon cost hundreds of dollars more. Not only are microwaves, refrigerators, and air conditioners now more expensive to import, but tariffs on key inputs mean they are also more expensive to produce domestically. Uncertainty around tariffs has put many construction projects on pause, sending homebuilder stocks plummeting. Many small, local developers are exiting the market altogether. Following in the mold of autarkic Cuba—where international trade is strictly limited and medical doctors drive taxis for a living—your next Uber driver could very well be an out-of-work former developer. Never mind that the typical American city desperately needs them to build. If tariffs weren't bad enough, the administration's program of mass deportations could kick the housing crisis into overdrive. As things stand, the construction industry is already short 250,000 workers. This is partly a legacy of Trump's first term, in which an immigration clampdown suppressed what might have been an overdue housing construction boom. Even today, approximately 30 percent of construction workers are immigrants, many of them undocumented. In California, which is already a basket case on housing affordability, immigrants make up 41 percent of all construction labor. In Texas—one of the few bright spots for housing affordability in recent years, thanks to an ongoing construction boom—nearly 60 percent of all immigrant construction workers are undocumented. If 2024 was any indication, expecting voters to put up with all this in 2026 is a risky gamble. On some level, the Trump administration must appreciate that this is an existential threat. And yet its current proposals are out of sync with the scale of the housing crisis: Releasing more federally owned lands for housing development remains the only proposal the administration has seriously offered up to address the housing shortage. It's a fine enough idea if properly designed. But it would, at best, provide only modest relief to a handful of Western cities. Worse yet, the administration seems to have regressed to the implicitly regulatory "protect the suburbs" rhetoric that so failed Trump in the 2020 election. In February, Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) chief Scott Turner announced that he would be scrapping the Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing (AFFH) rule in order to "cut red tape" and "advance market-driven development." Except the rule was essentially just a reporting exercise that required local governments to disclose—and ideally remove—local red tape standing in the way of housing. In 2018, then–HUD Secretary Ben Carson embraced the AFFH rule as a way of nudging cities to remove regulatory barriers to housing production, as part of his brief flirtation with YIMBYism. In a move that would make Orwell blush, Carson joined Trump in a Wall Street Journal op-ed two years later announcing that they would "protect America's suburbs" and scrap the rule if reelected. Trump lost that election. It's all a very strange state of affairs—a developer in chief with evidently little interest in getting America building again. It didn't need to be this way. Over the course of the first Trump administration, housing production recovered at a steady clip, with a muted increase in housing costs as a result. The administration's deregulating zeal could have been focused on unnecessary federal mandates that increase costs. Instead, the United States is poised to experience a run-up in housing prices through 2028 that could make the pandemic-era increases like a minor blip. So what could the federal government do? From a constitutional perspective, not much. The bulk of the blame for America's housing crisis lies with local governments that maintain onerous zoning regulations and unpredictable permitting processes—and the state governments that control them. The federal government has little role to play in zoning, even if it once did a lot of the heavy lifting to promote it. But that isn't to imply there is nothing the federal government could do. In recent years, the idea of tying federal dollars to local deregulation has gained acceptance within the Beltway. Bills with unsubtle names like the "Build More Housing Near Transit Act" or the "Yes In My Backyard Act" would variously condition money for transit or other public facilities on local jurisdictions cutting back on red tape. At the same time, the federal government could turn up the tax pressure. If homeowners in cities with high costs and low production were suddenly ineligible for benefits like the mortgage interest deduction or the state and local tax credit, it would transform the local politics of housing. Homeowners who might otherwise be fully bought into government constraints on housing production could flip their script. More likely, however, the onus will fall on state and local legislators to pull out all the stops on housing production. State and local elected officials can't control tariffs or immigration policy. But they can control "make or break" factors such as zoning regulations, permitting timelines, and impact fees. According to a recent RAND study, variations in these policies explain why it's nearly twice as expensive to build housing in California as in Texas. At least some state legislators are rising to the occasion. In recent months, states as diverse as Republican-supermajority Montana and Democratic-supermajority Washington have moved forward legislation restricting the right of local governments to block housing. Even California is starting to see the light. All these bills will help to get more housing built, no matter what's happening at the federal level. The Trump administration had better hope those state-level efforts are successful—and scrap the trade and immigration policies that could plunge America into another housing crisis. The post How Trump's Tariffs and Immigration Policies Could Make Housing Even More Expensive appeared first on
Gulf Today
30-04-2025
- Business
- Gulf Today
Abu Dhabi Labour Court hands dues worth Dhs230m to 18,597 employees
The Abu Dhabi Labor Court revealed that financial dues totaling Dhs230,210,771 (Dhs230 million) were paid to 18,597 employees during 2024, while the court's adjudication rate of preliminary cases brought to it reached 99 per cent, reflecting the speed with which legal action was taken and labour disputes were resolved. This came during a media forum remotely organised by Abu Dhabi Judicial Department on Wednesday via Microsoft Teams, marking the International Workers' Day 2025. The forum was titled "Innovative initiatives to develop litigation mechanisms in Abu Dhabi Labour Court." Counselor Abdullah Faris Al Nuaimi, President of Abu Dhabi Labour Court, stated that speedy adjudication of cases and ensuring that rights are preserved for their holders as part of administering justice is a fundamental goal of Abu Dhabi Judicial Department. This is in line with the directives of His Highness Sheikh Mansour Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Presidential Affairs and Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Judicial Department, to pursue excellence in providing judicial and legal services to meet the future aspirations and vision and support the competitiveness of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi worldwide, he added. Abu Dhabi Labour Court was able to adjudicate 99 per cent of preliminary cases and 95 per cent of registered appeals, while it managed to complete 98.33 per cent of electronic requests within 48 hours with 100 per cent accuracy in session dates, he said. Al Nuaimi pointed out that the court completed a number of development procedures over the past year to ensure rapid response and adjudication. These included restructuring judicial bodies in the Court of First Instance and enhancing the response to the delivery of dues to beneficiaries to one working day from the date the case was filed, he added. Other procedures included adopting judicial classifications that are consistent with the nature of the complaint, activating proactive measures and precautionary reservations in collective disputes, opening a hall to educate employees about legal rights and duties and organizing awareness lectures for employees in labour cities and others for employers, he said. Meanwhile, Counselor Ali Hassan Al Hashimi, Vice President of Abu Dhabi Labour Court, stressed the importance of proactive measures in dealing with collective bargaining cases. These included strengthening communication channels with employees, providing official platforms for receiving complaints and suggestions and ensuring rapid responses and taking immediate corrective action when any malpractice or organisational issues are detected, while focusing on reaching amicable settlements of disputes before referring them to the courts, he said.
Express Tribune
27-03-2025
- Business
- Express Tribune
Telecom fund utilisation stalls
Chinese authorities have raised the issue of lack of access to telecommunication services in Gwadar. PHOTO: FILE Listen to article Though the Universal Service Fund (USF) has received billions of rupees from telecom firms, it has failed to start a single project to enhance internet connectivity in Pakistan's remote and deprived areas. The situation has worsened as no representative from telecom operators has been appointed to the USF board of directors in the past two years. For years, telecom operators have contributed billions of rupees to the USF and Ignite, however, there are no visible signs of how these funds have been utilised in the recent past. The government's reluctance to appoint industry representatives to the USF and Ignite boards reflects misaligned priorities, stalled progress and a lack of transparency. Sources told The Express Tribune that the total revenue of telecom companies over the last two years was around Rs1,771 billion. Of this, they contributed 1.5%, or around Rs26 billion, to the USF without revenue adjustment. Telecom operators contribute 1.5% to the USF, 0.5% to Ignite and 0.5% to the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA). "We can safely claim a contribution of Rs20 billion to the USF over two years," industry officials said, arguing that despite receiving a hefty amount, the USF has not initiated a single project during this period. To make matters worse, the telecom operators have had no representatives on the USF and Ignite boards of directors for the past two years. This shift is deeply concerning as these organisations were initially set up to function with industry expertise to ensure proper infrastructure and digital skill investments. Industry officials said that telecom operators play a crucial role in network expansion, innovation and service delivery and their exclusion from key decision-making forums could result in inefficiencies, misaligned policies and stalled digital growth. The absence of board members from cellular mobile operators (CMOs) has left Pakistan's digital future in limbo. According to sources, a significant portion of CMOs' contributions, amounting to around Rs50 billion, remains unutilised in the fund. They pointed out that previously approved projects had been scrapped, further delaying much-needed connectivity improvements in rural and remote areas. Many projects have been shut down due to funding shortages, which raises concerns about financial mismanagement. Since their inception, the USF and Ignite have performed exceptionally well when telecom industry nominees were on their boards. However, now, no CMO nominees are on the USF board as the government cites conflict of interests. Without telecom sector's expertise, decisions are being made by bureaucrats with little understanding of commercial realities, leading to stalled projects. According to industry officials, telecom operators contribute to the USF in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) and Gilgit-Baltistan (G-B), but these regions continue to suffer from poor network coverage and the lack of service expansion. Challenging geography, low population density and high infrastructure costs make private-sector investment unviable without USF support. USF subsidies are crucial for maintaining connectivity in these areas, but delays in project approvals have left AJK and G-B further isolated. Ignite, responsible for developing digital and IT skills in Pakistan, plays a key role in training youth for global freelancing markets, which helps boost foreign currency inflows. However, its recent stagnation has slowed critical IT development initiatives that could have driven digital exports. It has ignored industry feedback due to the absence of its representation on telecom boards. The lack of industry input could result in missed opportunities in 5G, AI-driven networks, the Internet of Things, cybersecurity and other emerging technologies. It has also failed to make strategic investments in skill-building programmes, hindering Pakistan's global digital competitiveness. Industry officials say the USF was created to bridge the digital divide, but its recent inaction has left millions without reliable connectivity. The absence of CMO representation in both organisations is not just a governance failure; it is seriously harming Pakistan's digital future. Without CMO nominees, projects and priorities risk being disconnected from real-world telecom challenges. The telecom industry has called for immediate appointment of CMO representatives to the USF and Ignite boards to restore industry oversight. Without urgent action, Pakistan could fall further behind in digital infrastructure and IT development, isolating millions and missing out on critical economic opportunities. The telecom sector is willing to invest in the country's connectivity and digital future, but it cannot do so if its contributions remain unutilised or blocked by bureaucratic inefficiencies, industry officials said. When contacted, a USF spokesperson stated that funds were being spent on ongoing projects, which had been 70% completed. Therefore, he added, work on new projects had not been started in the past two years. However, he revealed that some projects have now been submitted to the USF board for approval. Regarding the appointment of telecom operator representatives to the USF board, the spokesperson said that the CEOs of Zong and Ufone had been placed on the board. However, a Zong representative told The Express Tribune that its CEO had not been appointed to the USF board of directors.
Yahoo
21-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Daywatch: RTA outlines ‘doomsday' transit cuts
Good morning, Chicago. More than half of Chicago's bus routes could be eliminated, at least parts of four 'L' lines could shut down and Metra weekday service would be slashed to once an hour under a transit doomsday scenario. Those are some of the cuts under consideration if lawmakers fail to plug a $771 million budget gap expected to hit the region's four transit agencies as soon as next year, when COVID-19 relief funding runs out, the Regional Transportation Authority said. Also on the table are fare hikes and job losses. The potential cuts represent a worst-case scenario if none of the budget hole is filled. The reductions would dramatically slash service across the CTA, Metra and Pace, limit access to buses and trains across the city and suburbs and bring dire economic consequences to the region, the RTA warned. Read the full story from the Tribune's Sarah Freishtat. Here are the top stories you need to know to start your day, including: the Chicago Board of Education postponing a vote on a controversial budget amendment, tornado damage evident in parts of Gary and how the Cubs spent their time in Tokyo. Today's eNewspaper edition | Asking Eric | Horoscopes | Puzzles & Games | Today in History Moving to fulfill a campaign promise, President Donald Trump signed an executive order calling for the dismantling of the Education Department, an agency Republicans have talked about closing for decades. Here is a look at some of the department's key functions, and how Trump has said he might approach them. The Chicago Board of Education postponed yesterday a controversial budget amendment pushed by Mayor Brandon Johnson, prolonging doubt about who will pay for a new teachers contract and a $175 million pension payment to the city. School board President Sean Harden cited contract negotiations as the reason for the delay. 'We're extremely, extremely close to settling the teachers union contract,' Harden said at the start of the board meeting. After making history in 2017 as Aurora's first Black mayor and cruising to reelection four years ago, Richard Irvin now faces a political challenge partly of his own making as he seeks a third term leading Illinois' second-largest city. The ostensibly nonpartisan April 1 election is a rematch against John Laesch, an Aurora alderman at-large who was one of two candidates Irvin bested by more than 30 points in 2021. But this time Laesch is getting a boost from the Illinois Democratic Party, which entered the fray after Irvin repeatedly slammed Gov. JB Pritzker during the mayor's well-funded but ill-fated bid for the Republican nomination for governor in 2022. Democratic U.S. Rep. Sean Casten said he 'absolutely' will continue to hold town hall meetings even though an event in Downers Grove was cut short by police after heated confrontations between the congressman and a small group of Palestinian and Israeli supporters. Jeron Prentice didn't hear sirens, he didn't get a phone notification, but he knew when the storm hit, he had to hide. 'I didn't have time to make it to the basement,' Prentice said. 'I just made it to the bathroom, and sat in the bathtub, and waited.' Prentice's home, which is owned by his aunt Carolyn Lewis, was one home on 21st Avenue in Gary that was hit by a Wednesday night tornado. The home was missing windows and some of its gutters, and early yesterday afternoon, it was still without electricity and gas. The Chicago Department of Public Health is advising city residents to check their measles vaccination records, as the illness continues to spread in other parts of the country. No cases of measles have been reported in Illinois this year. But across the country, there have been more than 300 cases so far this year in 15 states, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Measles cases are still rising. Here's what to know about the contagious virus, including symptoms and boosters. Kasparas Jakučionis never watched NCAA basketball growing up in Lithuania. But a few years ago, he latched onto March Madness and he understood its appeal. 'You can see how every win, every detail in the game matters,' Jakučionis said. 'Every possession matters, and you win or you go home. And that's the beauty of basketball.' The Illinois freshman guard will get his first in-person taste of the NCAA Tournament today when the No. 6 seed Illini face 11th-seeded Xavier at 8:45 p.m. at Fiserv Forum. Genesis Bryant nearly gave up basketball 3 years ago. Now she leads Illinois into 2nd NCAA Tournament in 3 years. Paige Bueckers, Olivia Miles and Aneesah Morrow headline list of 2025 WNBA draft prospects in NCAA Tournament Major League Baseball returned to the Tokyo Dome for the first time since 2019 with the Chicago Cubs' two-game series against the Los Angeles Dodgers. From opening day at the Tokyo Dome to a welcome dinner full of surprises, here's how the Cubs spent their time in Japan. Thanks to a recent restoration funded by Mellody Hobson and George Lucas via their Hobson/Lucas Family Foundation, the bracingly cockeyed comic romance 'The Annihilation of Fish' has dropped in from the past, with Lynn Redgrave and Margot Kidder in memorable supporting roles. It opens in Chicago today at the Gene Siskel Film Center and the Wayfarer Theatre in Highland Park. Tribune film critic Michael Phillips has this review. Billed as part of the 'Tour Before the Tour,' the British folk rock band Mumford & Sons takes the stage at the Chicago Theatre days before its new album release for 'Rushmere.'
Saudi Gazette
19-02-2025
- Business
- Saudi Gazette
216 million POS transactions in Saudi Arabia in a week
Saudi Gazette report RIYADH — The number of point of sale transactions in Saudi Arabia during the week between February 9 and 15 amounted to 216,651,000, with a value of SR13,320,771,000, compared to SR13,732,155,000 during the same period last year. According to Saudi Central Bank's weekly bulletin on points of sale, the number of transactions in clothing and footwear reached 6,368,000, with a value of SR844,146,000, building materials reached 1,755,000, with a value of SR378,464,000, and education 145,000 with a value of SR132,592, number of operations in electronic and electrical devices reached 1,160,000 with a value of SR164,048,000, gas stations 16,400,000 with a value of SR933,109,000, health sector 8,176,000 with a value of SR808,336,000, and furniture reached 1,405,000 with a value of SR347,996, the number of operations in hotels was 711,000 with a value of SR359,803,000, public utilities 766,000, with a value of SR56,651,000, jewelry 213,000, with a value of SR297,396,000, and in various goods and services reached 22,498,000, with a value of SR1,609,308, number of operations in entertainment and culture reached 2,826,000 worth SR267,474,000, restaurants and cafes 62,073,000 worth 1,936,425,000, food and beverages 49,564,000 worth SR1,977,627,000, communications 1,807,000 worth SR108,605,000, and transportation 2,846,000 worth SR695,193,000, while the number of other operations was 37,939,000 worth SR2,403,597, the level of Saudi cities, the number of weekly point-of-sale transactions in Riyadh reached 69,483,000, with a value of SR4,739,420,000, in Makkah reached 8,715,000, with a value of SR556,390,000, while the number of point-of-sale transactions in Madinah reached 8,737,000, with a value of SR529,680, number of POS transactions in Tabuk reached 4,577,000, worth SR242,955,000, in Hail reached 3,664,000, worth SR200,701,000, in Abha reached 3,014,000, worth SR149,975,000, in Buraidah reached 4,820,000, worth SR305,116, number of POS transactions in Al-Khobar reached 4,584,000, worth SR376,708,000, in Dammam reached 9,006,000, worth SR659,977,000, the in Jeddah reached 26,252,000, worth SR1,916,028,000, in other cities reached 73,801,000, worth SR3,643,821,000.
