US judges ordered Trump to reinstate thousands of fired workers
Federal judges in California and Maryland have ordered President Donald Trump’s administration to reinstate thousands of probationary federal workers who were fired during mass layoffs at 19 government agencies.
These back-to-back court rulings are a significant setback to efforts by Trump and his advisor, Elon Musk, to reduce the size of the federal workforce. Government agencies were facing a Thursday deadline to submit plans for a second round of mass layoffs and budget cuts.
In Baltimore, U.S. District Judge James Bredar ruled in favour of a lawsuit brought by 20 Democratic-led states. The judge found that 18 federal agencies violated regulations when they conducted mass firings of probationary employees in recent weeks.
Judge Bredar’s restraining order applies to several key agencies that have been targeted for deregulation and budget cuts by the Trump administration, including the Environmental Protection Agency, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and the U.S. Agency for International Development.
The order also covers major federal departments including Agriculture, Commerce, Education, Energy, Health and Human Services, Homeland Security, Housing and Urban Development, Interior, Labor, Transportation, Treasury and Veterans Affairs.
Elon Musk’s Tesla is worried about risks from Trump’s tariff wars
U.S. automaker Tesla has warned that it and other major American exporters could face retaliatory tariffs in response to President Donald Trump’s aggressive tariff policies.
Tesla’s comments echo concerns raised by many U.S. businesses about Trump’s tariffs, but are especially notable coming from Tesla given its CEO’s relationship with the administration.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk, a close ally of President Trump, has been leading White House efforts to reduce the size of the federal government. The billionaire heads the so-called Department of Government Efficiency.
The comments appeared in a letter to the U.S. Trade Representative’s Office, available on the office’s website. Dated Tuesday, it is one of hundreds of letters sent by companies to the office regarding U.S. trade policy.
However, it remains unclear who at Tesla wrote the letter, which appears on company letterhead but is unsigned
Trump threatened tariffs on European wine and spirits
Stock markets dropped following the announcement as investors worried about stricter trade barriers affecting the world’s largest consumer market. The S&P 500 ended the day more than 10% below its record high from last month, officially entering correction territory.
Trump’s threat comes as a response to the European Union’s planned tariffs on American whiskey and other products scheduled for next month. The EU’s planned tariffs are themselves a reaction to Trump’s 25% tariffs on steel and aluminium imports that went into effect on Wednesday.
Dangote cut petrol loading cost to N815/litre
The price war in the downstream oil sector continued on Thursday as the Dangote Petroleum Refinery quietly implemented a price reduction at its loading gantry, reducing the loading cost of its petrol from N825 per litre to N815 per litre.
Oil marketers responded enthusiastically to the new pricing structure introduced on Thursday, choosing to bypass private depot owners and begin sourcing their products directly from the refinery.
This N10 price reduction is expected to trigger a competitive response from private fuel depots, which may lower their prices to maintain their market position.
On Tuesday, The PUNCH reported that the landing cost of petrol imported into Nigeria had dropped to N774.72 per litre, with marketers predicting that the continued price decline could lead to pump prices for PMS falling to around N800 per litre.
The House of Reps exempted military personnel from personal income tax
The House of Representatives has exempted military personnel from paying personal income tax (PIT).
This decision was made on Thursday after lawmakers adopted a report on tax reform bills. The new exemptions also apply to certain agricultural businesses and other categories of income.
Personal income tax is a government-imposed tax on individual earnings, including salaries, wages, bonuses, dividends, and other income forms.
The categories of individuals exempted from personal income tax are outlined in Section 164 of the Nigeria tax bill.
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