Dollar Near Two-Week High as Stock Rout, AI Concerns and Global Events Drive Market Volatility 
Gold Prices Slide Below $5,000 as Strong Dollar and Central Bank Outlook Weigh on Metals 
Fed Governor Lisa Cook Warns Inflation Risks Remain as Rates Stay Steady 
Vietnam’s Trade Surplus With US Jumps as Exports Surge and China Imports Hit Record 
Bank of Japan Signals Readiness for Near-Term Rate Hike as Inflation Nears Target 
Oil Prices Slide on US-Iran Talks, Dollar Strength and Profit-Taking Pressure 
Dow Hits 50,000 as U.S. Stocks Stage Strong Rebound Amid AI Volatility 
Asian Stocks Slip as Tech Rout Deepens, Japan Steadies Ahead of Election 
Thailand Inflation Remains Negative for 10th Straight Month in January 
Global Markets Slide as AI, Crypto, and Precious Metals Face Heightened Volatility 
Trump Lifts 25% Tariff on Indian Goods in Strategic U.S.–India Trade and Energy Deal 
Singapore Budget 2026 Set for Fiscal Prudence as Growth Remains Resilient 
Trump Signs Executive Order Threatening 25% Tariffs on Countries Trading With Iran 
Japan Economy Poised for Q4 2025 Growth as Investment and Consumption Hold Firm 
South Korea Assures U.S. on Trade Deal Commitments Amid Tariff Concerns 
U.S. Stock Futures Slide as Tech Rout Deepens on Amazon Capex Shock 
Gold and Silver Prices Slide as Dollar Strength and Easing Tensions Weigh on Metals 
A shortage of visas for foreign workers and pandemic-caused disruptions hobbled Maryland’s crab industry, forcing two-thirds of the major seafood processors to rely on a few employees or close business.
New visas issued at the start of October finally allowed guest workers to enter the US, but Washington's prolonged deadlock over immigration policy has left Maryland crab industry leaders to fret for their future.
According to Jack Brooks, president of the Chesapeake Bay Seafood Industries Association, it remains to be seen whether they would survive the staffing problem.
Blue crabs from the Chesapeake Bay are Maryland’s best-known export, with the state being the second-largest producer in 2018 due to a harvest valued at $188.4 million, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Crab processors are enjoying a boom this year as prices rose due to the pandemic.
Processors rely on Mexican and other Latin American workers on temporary H-2B visas to extract the crab meat from their shells.
The Maryland crab industry only needs only around 450 H-2B visas, but a change in the procedure for allocating the visas resulted in only three processors being given the authorizations as the crab season began in April.
The US government in March announced it would release 35,000 more visas, but the pandemic caused the plan to be abandoned.
