And Trump's immigration approval drops to record low.

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Daily Briefing

Daily Briefing

By Kate Turton

Hello. India and the EU slash tariffs in a landmark trade deal, Trump and Minnesota's governor talk after fatal shooting and Hamas seeks a role for its police in Gaza.

Plus, Japan bids farewell to last giant pandas as pair leave for China.

Today's Top News

 

Law enforcement officers guard a hotel where Greg Bovino is reportedly staying, in Maple Grove, Minnesota. January 26, 2026. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton

United States

  • President Donald Trump and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz struck a conciliatory note after a private phone call, a sign the two sides want to defuse a crisis over the Trump-ordered deportation drive that has left two US citizens dead.
  • Meanwhile, Gregory Bovino was removed from his role as the "commander at large" for the US Border Patrol, and American approval of Trump's immigration policy fell to its lowest level since his return to the White House.
  • Trump will travel to Iowa, seeking to shore up political support in a state critical to his rural coalition, as mounting stress in the farm economy and delays on biofuel policy test the patience of farmers and renewable-fuel producers.
  • One year after its launch, Trump’s Golden Dome missile-defense initiative has made little visible progress, bogged down by technical disputes and concerns over space‑based components that have delayed the release of billions of dollars and stalled one of his most ambitious national security projects.

In other news

  • Meta, TikTok and YouTube go on trial today over allegations their platforms are fueling a youth mental health crisis. Courtney Rozen tells the Reuters World News podcast that a verdict against the companies would crack the legal shield that's protected Big Tech for decades. 
  • Hamas is seeking to incorporate its 10,000 police officers into a new US-backed Palestinian administration for Gaza, sources say, a demand likely to be opposed by Israel as the militant group debates whether to surrender its arms.
  • Poverty in Britain has deepened, with approximately 6.8 million people now living in "very deep poverty", the highest level in three decades. 
  • Russian drones and missiles hit Ukraine's second-largest city, Kharkiv, knocking out power during freezing winter weather, while 23 people were wounded in an overnight attack on the southern city of Odesa, officials said.
  • A major heatwave across Australia's southeast stoked bushfires, forced hundreds of residents in rural towns to evacuate and brought record-breaking temperatures, with Melbourne recording its hottest day in nearly 17 years.
 

Business & Markets

 

European Council President Antonio Costa, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi. REUTERS/Altaf Hussain

  • India and the European Union have finalised a long-pending landmark trade deal, both sides said, as they seek to hedge against fickle ties with the US. The deal reduces tariffs on nearly 97% of EU exports.
  • World shares sat around record highs as investors hoped for the best from this week's barrage of US large-cap earnings, and while Trump's latest tariff moves left stocks largely unmoved it did boost gold and silver still further.
  • Saudi Arabia has suspended planned construction of a colossal cube-shaped skyscraper at the center of a downtown development in Riyadh while it reassesses the project's financing and feasibility, four people familiar with the matter said.
  • As artificial intelligence firms jostle for the Nvidia chips needed to power the AI boom, Dutch firm ASML has carved out a key niche in the supply chain: building the laser-using machines needed to print them.
  • The specter of coordinated yen buying by Tokyo and Washington has propped up Japan's currency, but history suggests the impact of an actual intervention could be limited, especially because Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is basing her snap election campaign on expanded stimulus measures.
  • In the latest episode of The Big View podcast, Peter Thal Larsen talks to Mike Musheinesh, CEO of Detroit Axle, about how the auto parts distributor is coping with import uncertainty — and his decision to sue the US government.
 

Inside Starbucks' supply struggles

 

A barista puts whipped cream on a drink at a Starbucks coffee shop in Fountain Valley, California. REUTERS/Mike Blake/File Photo

Four Starbucks CEOs over five years have blamed lost sales on its struggle to keep its thousands of US stores reliably stocked with coffeehouse essentials like milk, pastries, and cup lids.

Current CEO Brian Niccol has made fixing the shortages a main measure of his turnaround campaign.

But shortages at Starbucks are a more deeply rooted problem than has been publicly reported. And Niccol’s ongoing efforts to keep shelves stocked have so far met with limited success as he encounters outdated technology and a splintered network of suppliers, according to Reuters interviews with 10 current and former Starbucks corporate employees, including senior managers.

Read our insight
 

And Finally...

Female giant panda Lei Lei at Ueno Zoo during the last viewing day before the planned return of twin giant pandas Xiao Xiao and Lei Lei to China, January 25, 2026. REUTERS/Issei Kato

Hundreds of Japanese panda lovers bid an emotional farewell to the country's last two giant pandas, Xiao Xiao and Lei Lei, as they left Tokyo's Ueno Zoo for China.

Spectators, braving the winter cold and some wearing panda hats and waving flags, held up their smartphones to record the moment as a truck carrying the zoo's star attractions left for Narita Airport.

Read more