Move is latest deterioration in trade relations between neighbors with historically strong economic tiesDonald Trump announced a new 50% tariff on automobiles and crucial raw materials from Canada, the latest deterioration in trade relations between the two neighbors with historically strong economic ties.The US president said that the increased tariffs would start on 1 January 2027 on all cars, trucks, automobile parts and steel. He also derided the nation’s tariffs on American farmers, writing
Move is latest deterioration in trade relations between neighbors with historically strong economic ties
Donald Trump announced a new 50% tariff on automobiles and crucial raw materials from Canada, the latest deterioration in trade relations between the two neighbors with historically strong economic ties.
The US president said that the increased tariffs would start on 1 January 2027 on all cars, trucks, automobile parts and steel. He also derided the nation’s tariffs on American farmers, writing on social media that Canada has been “ripping off” the US “for years”.
A Russian overnight strike heavily damaged a German-owned car-parts plant in Zhytomyr Oblast, forcing it to halt production, the company said. No workers were hurt, but the destruction was extensive. One of the region's major employers now has no restart date.
Russia increasingly hits the factories and warehouses of foreign companies that kept producing in Ukraine through the war, not only Ukrainian factories, energy facilities, infrastructure, and homes. Each strik
A Russian overnight strike heavily damaged a German-owned car-parts plant in Zhytomyr Oblast, forcing it to halt production, the company said. No workers were hurt, but the destruction was extensive. One of the region's major employers now has no restart date.
Russia increasingly hits the factories and warehouses of foreign companies that kept producing in Ukraine through the war, not only Ukrainian factories, energy facilities, infrastructure, and homes. Each strike on a foreign-owned factory chips away at the jobs and outside investment propping up Ukraine's wartime economy, adding to a burden the country's partners are scrambling to offset.
A German plant knocked offline
Russia struck Zhytomyr Oblast overnight into 9 August and hit the Kromberg & Schubert plant, which reported the attack on Facebook. Its production lines and infrastructure took heavy damage.
"The most important thing for us is that no employees were hurt in the attack," the statement said.
With the damage so severe, the plant suspended operations for an indefinite period. A restart depends on a technical assessment and the full scope of repairs, the company added.
Kromberg & Schubert is a civilian manufacturer with 100% German investment. It has run in the Zhytomyr region for 11 years and employs about 3,500 people. The plant makes the wiring harnesses that thread through cars, supplying European automakers.
The Kromberg & Schubert plant ablaze after the Russian strike in Zhytomyr Oblast, overnight on 9 August 2026. Photo: Vitalii Bunechko
Vitalii Bunechko, head of the Zhytomyr Oblast Military Administration, called it one of the region's budget-forming enterprises. He said the administration and local authorities are working to help the strategic investor and keep the plant running.
The burned-out Kromberg & Schubert plant after the Russian strike in Zhytomyr Oblast, 9 August 2026. Photo: Vitalii Bunechko
Part of a wider overnight assault
Bunechko reported that Russia had launched a massive strike on the oblast overnight. The attack also damaged civilian infrastructure, he said. State Emergency Service crews contained the fires, and investigators began work at the site.
Russia has repeatedly struck Zhytomyr Oblast during the war, stepping up its drone strikes on northwestern Ukraine, often exploiting Belarusian territory.
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