Lakshmi Singh

trade deficit jumped more than expected in December.

NPR's Scott Horsley reports for all of last year, the trade gap barely budged despite President Trump's much higher tariffs.

From Washington, this is NPR News.

All but one of the Trump-appointed members of the U.S.

Commission of Fine Arts are signing off on construction of the White House ballroom despite heavy public opposition.

A commission staff member says 99 percent of the roughly 2,000 written comments sent in were negative.

A new study shows the expanded federal care subsidies that expired at the end of last year led more people in the U.S.

to sign up for health insurance.

Scott Massioni with member station WYPR says that is according to researchers at Johns Hopkins University.

U.S.

stocks are trading lower this hour.

The Dow is now down nearly 400 points, or more than three-quarters of a percent at 49,261.

The Nasdaq is down 150 points.

S&P is off 42 points.

It's NPR.

Live from NPR News, I'm Lakshmi Singh.

President Trump says the U.S.

will contribute $10 billion to the Board of Peace, which held its inaugural meeting today in Washington, D.C.

The Board of Peace was created and is controlled by Trump with an initial mission to help rebuild Gaza.

Other countries have promised to contribute a total of $7 billion to the effort as well.