The Federal Aviation Administration said Friday it halved a requirement that U.S. airlines reduce domestic flights at 40 major airports from 6% to 3% starting Saturday to address air traffic control safety concerns after the end of the government shutdown. Airlines have been pushing for the FAA to end the required cuts entirely and were largely not in compliance with the FAA order that required the 6% cut on Friday. It remains to be seen if they will be in compliance with the 3% order. “The 3% reduction will remain in place while the FAA monitors system performance throughout the weekend and evaluates whether normal operations can resume,” the FAA said. Cirium, an aviation analytics firm, said airlines canceled just 2% of overall flights Friday, down from 3.5% on Wednesday and Thursday. On Friday, air traffic controllers and other FAA employees began receiving back pay equal to about 70% of what they are owed excluding overtime. Airlines have been privately making the case to the FAA that it is time to end the cuts and some said earlier they plan to cut few or no flights on Saturday, officials told Reuters. The FAA opted on Wednesday to ease those required cancellations after disruptions due to air traffic control absences declined dramatically as Congress voted to reopen the government after a 43-day shutdown. The FAA had initially planned to hike the cuts to 8% on Thursday and 10% on Friday. Separately, a group of House Democrats led by Representative Rick Larsen, the ranking member of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, asked the administration on Friday to turn over the specific safety data and how it compares to the last six months. United Airlines said it had canceled 134 flights for Friday, or almost 3% of its flights, after cancelling 222 flights on Thursday. The FAA is about 3,500 air traffic controllers short of targeted staffing levels. Many had been working mandatory overtime and six-day weeks even before the shutdown led to them working without pay. Air traffic absences led to tens of thousands of flight cancellations and delays since October 1, when the 43-day shutdown began. (Reporting by David ShepardsonEditing by Nick Zieminski, William Maclean)

The United States and Switzerland announced a framework trade agreement on Friday that includes Washington slashing its tariffs on imported Swiss products to 15% from 39% and a pledge by Swiss companies to invest $200 billion in the U.S. by the end of 2028. The United States and Switzerland, joined by Liechtenstein, aim to conclude negotiations to finalize their trade deal by the first quarter of 2026, the White House said in a statement. U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said the agreement tears down longstanding trade barriers and opens new markets for American goods. He welcomed “massive Swiss investment to help reduce our deficit in pharmaceuticals and other key sectors” that will generate thousands of jobs across the U.S. At least $67 billion of the $200 billion in pledged Swiss investments in the United States will come in 2026, the White House said in a statement. The total includes prior U.S. investment commitments including $50 billion from drugmaker Roche and $23 billion from Novartis along with pledges from engineering group ABB railway equipment maker Stadler. In addition to pharmaceuticals – Switzerland’s largest export to the U.S. – the investments in U.S. production will target medical devices, aerospace and gold manufacturing, the White House said. “This agreement puts Switzerland on an equal footing with the European Union and brings the tariff level down from 39% to 15%,” Swiss Economy Minister Guy Parmelin said in announcing the deal, which affects about 40% of Switzerland’s exports. “Of course, we would prefer (the $200 billion) to be invested in Switzerland,” Parmelin added. “And that’s why the Federal Council in parallel is doing everything to see how we can reduce costs for our businesses.” The lower tariff rate is likely to be activated within “days, weeks,” as soon as the U.S. customs processing systems can be adjusted, said Helene Budliger Artieda, director of Switzerland’s  State Secretariat for Economic Affairs. The deal guarantees a 15% tariff ceiling for Swiss pharmaceutical producers, limiting the impact of U.S. President Donald Trump’s forthcoming Section 232 national security duties for the sector, which could reach 100% on certain patented drugs. Parmelin said the 15% cap would also apply to other future Section 232 duties, including semiconductors, putting key sectors on the same footing as the EU. “The risk of much higher sector-specific tariffs is therefore ruled out,” Parmelin added. A Swiss government statement said the tariff agreement will reduce Swiss import duties on U.S. industrial products, fish and seafood and agricultural products “that Switzerland considers non-sensitive.” Switzerland will grant the U.S. duty-free bilateral tariff quotas on 500 tons of beef, 1,000 tons of bison meat and 1,500 tons of poultry meat, the government said. The White House statement said Switzerland agreed to remove a range of tariffs across agricultural and industrial  sectors including certain fresh and dried nuts, fruits, seafood and chemicals. The White House also said Switzerland will recognize U.S. motor vehicle safety standards, a step toward addressing Trump’s frequent complaint that European countries do not buy American-made cars and trucks. Swiss industrial groups welcomed the deal, saying it would put them on a level playing field with competitors from the European Union, which agreed to a 15% tariff on EU exports to the U.S. “For the industrial sector, which was subject to a 39% tariff since August 1, this is good news. For the first time, we have the same conditions in the U.S. market as our European competitors,” said Nicola Tettamanti, president of Swissmechanic, which represents small and medium-sized manufacturers. Switzerland’s machinery, precision instruments, watchmaking, and food sectors, which export to the U.S., would see the most relief, said Hans Gersbach, a director of the KOF Swiss Economic Institute at ETH Zurich. KOF forecasts Swiss economic growth of 0.9% in 2026, but this would exceed 1% with the lower tariff rate, he added. Switzerland had a $38.3 billion goods trade surplus with the U.S. in 2024, according to U.S. Census Bureau data. This rose to $55.7 billion in 2025 through July, reflecting primarily the front-loading of U.S. imports from Switzerland during the first quarter, before Trump imposed his “reciprocal” tariffs in early April. Nadia Gharbi, an economist at Swiss bank Pictet, said the tariff reduction removed the main downside risks for the country’s economy and represents a clearly positive development for Swiss industries and for the overall growth outlook. “Under the previous tariff regime, Switzerland suffered a significant loss of competitiveness — not only because of the strength of the Swiss franc, but also because neighboring European economies were subject to tariffs of only around 15%,” she said. Swiss industry on Friday reported a 14% fall in exports to the U.S. during the three months through September, technology industry association Swissmem said, while machine tool makers saw shipments slump 43%. (Reporting by John Revill in Zurich; Additional reporting by Dave Graham in Zurich, Emma Farge and Olivia Le Poidevin in Geneva, Miranda Murray in Berlin, and Doina Chiacu, Susan Heavey and Andrea Shalal in Washington; Writing by David Lawder and John Revill, Editing by Rod Nickel and Matthew Lewis)

'informed and transparent determination'

A major wildfire broke out in Mono County, California midday Nov. 13

Trinidad and Tobago: Joint US Military Exercises on the Table

Hasan Piker: Trashing Gal Gadot as a 'Terrible Actress' While Vacationing in China to Normalize the CCP

Commander Who Works With DHS Schools NC Dems Over Fear-Mongering on ICE Moving From Chicago to Charlotte