Ata mārie and welcome to your Friday recap of international business and political news.
In developing news, the Trump administration is ending its immigration crackdown in Minnesota that killed two US citizens amid arrests and violent protests over the past two months, news agencies reported.
Border chief Tom Homan said Minnesota was now less of a “sanctuary state” for criminals. “I have proposed, and President [Donald] Trump has concurred, that this surge operation conclude.”
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) launched Operation Metro Surge in December. Homan said ICE operations would continue as they did before the operation began, Al Jazeera reported.
“Through targeted enforcement operations based on reasonable suspicion, and prioritising safety and security, ICE will continue to identify, arrest, and remove illegal aliens who pose a risk to public safety, as we’ve done for years.”
Homan announced last week that 700 federal officers would leave Minnesota immediately, but that still left more than 2000 on the streets. At the time, he cited an "increase in unprecedented collaboration" resulting in the need for fewer federal officers in Minnesota, including help from jails that hold deportable inmates, the AP and ABC reported.
In Canada, hundreds of mourners gathered in the town of Tumbler Ridge and in Vancouver to remember the victims of this week’s mass shooting.
Police said suspect Jesse Van Rootselaar was found dead at the scene with a self-inflicted gun injury. The victims included the suspect's mother and step-brother, who were found in a home in the town, the BBC reported.
Police said they had previously attended the suspect's family home on multiple occasions.
Russia has blocked messaging service WhatsApp because of alleged legal breaches, urging users to switch to a state-backed alternative, Al Jazeera reported.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov described WhatsApp’s “reluctance” to comply with the norms and letter of Russian law. He advised Russians to turn instead to Max for messaging and online government services.
Experts said the Max service doesn’t use end-to-end encryption that ensures messages remain private, leaving users vulnerable to state snooping.
A defamation lawsuit brought by Trump against the BBC is set to go to trial in February 2027. US District Judge Roy Altman rejected the broadcaster’s application to halt discovery in the lawsuit, Reuters said.
The broadcaster had applied to stay the merits-based discovery phase, when both sides can obtain evidence from other parties in the lawsuit. Trump accused the BBC of defaming him by splicing together parts of a January 2021 speech, including one section where he told supporters to march on the Capitol and another where he said: "fight like hell".
Trump is seeking US$10 billion in damages.
Meanwhile, Trump’s tariffs on foreign imports of steel could fuel mergers and acquisitions in the US metals industry this year, according to Wells Fargo analyst Timna Tanners.
Bloomberg reported that the tariffs had been a positive for domestic steelmakers who were benefiting from less competition from cheaper imports and enticing buyers to US-produced material.
“Just because of all these massive tariffs, that means a lot of cash flow to these companies, and they have to decide what to do with it,” Tanners said.
Meanwhile, German automotive giant Mercedes-Benz posted a 57% drop in full-year profit because of tariff costs, tough competition in China, and foreign exchange headwinds, CNBC reported.
The operating profit of €5.8 billion last year was significantly lower than analyst expectations of €6.6b.
“Amid a dynamic market environment, our financial results remained within our guidance, thanks to our sharp focus on efficiency, speed, and flexibility,” board chair Ola Källenius said.
Elsewhere, ongoing industrial action at a Guinness canning plant in Belfast has been cancelled after workers secured a meaningful pay rise. The Unite union said pay would increase 15.5% in a three-year deal, with the first year backdated to September 2024, the Guardian reported.
General secretary Sharon Graham described it as “excellent” pay increase because of union strength in the workplace and the determination to take strike action. “Their strike in December shut down the plant and secured this significant win on pay.”
The UK economy expanded by just 0.1% in the December quarter, as weaker business investment and consumer spending led to little momentum into 2026. Economists had expected a rise of 0.2%, the Guardian reported.
Despite that, the economy grew 1.3% over 2025, an improvement on growth of 1.1% in 2024. Chancellor Rachel Reeves noted there was "more to do" to boost the economy. “We've created the conditions for growth, and I am confident this will be the year we will see the results of that.”
Finally, Switzerland will hold a landmark vote on a proposal to restrict the nation’s population to just 10 million, amid divisions over immigration, CNN reported.
The proposal, put forward by the Swiss People’s Party (SVP), would require the government to act before the population – currently at 9.1 million – rises to the proposed 10 million limit.
If passed, the government would have to refuse entry to new people including asylum seekers and the families of foreign residents once the population reaches 9.5 million. If the population hits 10 million, the government would be forced to end its free-movement agreement with the European Union, Switzerland’s largest trading partner.
The vote is due to be held on June 14.
