News Headlines - 02 March 2018

▽U.S. steel, aluminum stocks up on Trump's tariffs, but other industries fear price rises

Stock prices of U.S. steel and aluminum makers rose on Thursday after President Donald Trump announced hefty tariffs on metal imports to protect them from foreign competition, but many other companies saw stock price falls as they may face higher prices for raw materials which will force them to raise prices for consumers.

▽Taiwan receives direct threats of war from China over US passage of Travel Act | Taiwan News

After the United States Senate unanimously passed the Taiwan Travel Bill on Wednesday, Feb. 28, China has been angered and has sent warnings as well as stated its dissatisfaction with both Taiwan and the United States... In a strong and direct editorial, the state publication China Daily mentions its fear of Taiwan pushing for independence once the bill becomes law, which would then force Beijing to act with force to bring Taiwan under its control.

▽Improper shaving of frame caused crack in shinkansen: JR West

A probe by the railway operator has found that the steel frame of the undercarriage in question was 4.7 millimeters thick at its thinnest point, undershooting the minimum 7 mm required for the component, JR West President Tatsuo Kijima said at a press conference in Osaka.
According to Kawasaki Heavy, which separately held a press conference in Kobe, workers scraped off the bottom of the undercarriage frame to smooth the surface before welding work, even though scraping was prohibited in the production manual as it could weaken the product strength.

▽German SPD minister expects 60 percent party support for coalition

Germany’s Social Democrat (SPD) environment minister said on Thursday she expects party members to support a new coalition government with Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservatives by a margin of 60 percent.

▽Exiled Former Catalan President Drops Bid to Return as Leader

The former leader of Spain's separatist-minded Catalonia region unexpectedly announced Thursday that he was dropping his bid to return to his job... He said in a video message posted on a website that under current conditions, standing aside and letting someone else lead Catalonia was the way to get a new government.