The U.S. agreed to reduce tariffs to 18% on India, which in turn will stop buying Russian oil, President Trump said, in a deal aimed at easing trade tensions between the two countries, the WSJ’s Gavin Bade and Anthony DeBarros report.

As part of the agreement, Trump said India would move to reduce tariffs and non-tariff trade barriers against the U.S. to zero and commit to buying $500 billion worth of energy and agricultural goods. Trump last year levied a 25% tariff on India for its purchases of Russian oil, on top of a 25% “reciprocal” tariff that he imposed on the nation. The president said Monday that India would buy more oil from the U.S. and, potentially, Venezuela.

The pact comes days after New Delhi announced a broad trade deal with the European Union, the latest among U.S. allies seeking to diversify away from an overreliance on the American market.

• India’s finance minister earmarked the equivalent of about $1.1 billion to boost container manufacturing, along with the expansion of 20 waterways and promotion of coastal shipping. (Business Standard)

The Trump administration is preparing to develop a roughly $12 billion stockpile of critical minerals aimed at helping U.S. manufacturers navigate supply shortages and overcome reliance on China for rare earths and metals.

A White House official said the expected stockpile—called Project Vault—will be the fruition of roughly $1.67 billion in private capital along with a $10 billion loan from the U.S. Export-Import Bank to assemble the minerals from automakers, manufacturers and tech companies.

The WSJ’s Ken Thomas and Gavin Bade write that President Trump’s move comes after the Chinese government has used its dominance over the supply chain for critical-minerals processing to squeeze key U.S. industries.

• The European Union needs to improve how it tracks supplies of critical raw materials for batteries and solar panels to address its vulnerability to foreign governments, the bloc’s auditing body says. (WSJ)
• Japan’s Cabinet and marine research institution said they successfully retrieved mud believed to contain rare-earth elements from the floor of the Pacific Ocean near the island of Minamitorishima. (Nikkei Asia)

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• Walmart is readying a new cross-border shipping program called Walmart Exports for sellers using its third-party fulfillment service. (SupplyChainDive)

• Asian factory activity increased in early 2026, with Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan showing strong growth in orders and output. (WSJ)
• A private gauge of China’s manufacturing sector showed factories there continued to expand activity in January, contrary to an official survey showing an unexpected contraction last month. (WSJ)
• U.S. cattle herds may be smaller for the foreseeable future as ranchers show few signs of building up the nation’s livestock supply, Tyson Foods executives said. (WSJ)
• Brookfield Asset Management is buying Peakstone Realty Trust, which owns and operates industrial outdoor storage, in an all-cash deal valued at about $1.2 billion. (WSJ)
• Devon Energy and Coterra Energy agreed to merge in a roughly $58 billion all-stock deal, including debt. (WSJ)
• The parent of Saks Fifth Avenue plans to wind down its partnership with Amazon to focus on shoring up its own businesses after filing for bankruptcy protection last month. (WSJ)
• A federal judge cleared Denmark’s Orsted to proceed with its Sunrise Wind project off the coast of New York. (Reuters)
• GenLogs secured $60 million to develop tools for service providers to find available trucking capacity and reduce cargo theft and fraud. (Journal of Commerce)
• Morocco indefinitely froze a $1 billion plan to develop a liquefied natural gas terminal on the Mediterranean coast. (Bloomberg)
• The European Union will consider restricting foreign ownership of ports as part of a review of security risks. (Lloyd’s List)
• The captain of a containership that hit an anchored tanker last year was convicted in the U.K. of gross negligent manslaughter for the death of a seafarer. (The Maritime Executive)
• Pennsylvania and Arizona are adding spaces as part of plans to rapidly increase the availability of safe parking areas for truckers. (Transport Topics)

Mark R. Long is editor of WSJ Logistics Report. Reach him at mark.long@wsj.com. Follow the WSJ Logistics Report team on LinkedIn: Mark R. Long, Liz Young and Paul Berger.