Trade

Buying a new band or orchestra instrument could get a lot more expensive. Kansas City business owners who import musical instruments have been hit hard by on-again, off-again tariffs with Europe and China, and the path forward remains unclear.

Haitao Li, chair of the supply chain analytics department at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, says that the Trump administration's rollout of tariffs in recent months appears to neglect the ways modern supply chains operate.

A private prison in Leavenworth, Kansas, could reopen to hold detainees for federal immigration authorities. Plus: Farmers fear the trade war could cause another farm crisis.

The U.S. trade war with China is coming at a tough time for American farmers, who are already dealing with lower crop prices and higher costs for farm necessities. Tariffs are likely to push crop prices further down, while increasing the costs for fertilizer and farm equipment.

President Trump said that he is standing up for skilled workers and farmers by slapping tariffs on imports but farmers aren't happy. "It is being economically drawn and quartered," one Kansas farmer said.

The Trump administration’s tariff announcements this week are bringing uncertainty to farmers going into planting season. Farm groups warn that retaliatory tariffs will add an additional “burden” to U.S. producers.

Incoming president Donald Trump has threatened to impose tariffs on products from countries such as China, Mexico and Canada. Many economists and commodity groups say these import taxes could boomerang and harm U.S. agriculture.

As he runs for re-election this November, Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley’s about-face on right to work is seen by some as a welcome shift toward pro-labor policy and by others as election year pandering.

The United States has imported $20 billion more in agricultural products than it exported — putting the sector on pace to run a record deficit. A look at what’s behind the numbers.

Bills to legalize sports betting in Missouri are stalled in the legislature, even a year after Kansas lawmakers signed off on gambling. Plus: Why Mexico’s president is trying to ban the import of genetically modified corn from the U.S.

Touting its long history and cultural significance, Mexico’s president says genetically modified corn has no place in his country. That puts Mexico and the U.S. on a collision course over a major trade agreement.

Mexico’s plan to ban all genetically modified corn imports has upset U.S. corn farmers, trade groups and officials. The two nations are in talks and have until April 7 to resolve it before the U.S. can take action under the free trade agreement between North American countries.