It took just a couple of social media posts for Donald Trump to rattle markets across the world. He vowed to slap an additional 10% tariff on goods from China and 25% on all products from Mexico and Canada, all part of his mission to clamp down on migrants and illegal drugs flowing into the US. The biggest uncertainty centers on whether China will reprise a playbook used during Trump’s first trade war. Read our explainer on why his plan has many haters. Market reaction was swift. The dollar rallied as Canada’s currency hit a four-year low, and the Mexican peso and Chinese offshore yuan dropped. European and Asian shares also fell. Traders around the world are now bracing for ever more volatility. Remember Joe Biden? His administration proposed a rule that would require the government to cover weight-loss drugs. It would slash out-of-pocket costs by as much as 95% for the drugs that can carry a price tag of $1,000 a month, according to a White House official. The plan requires approval from the Trump administration to become official. On the economy, the Federal Reserve’s Neel Kashkari said it’s reasonable to consider another interest rate cut next month. Austan Goolsbee, another central bank official, also argued for easing barring signs of the economy overheating. But Citigroup strategists said the Fed should pause, opposing the bank’s own economists who see a half-point move in December. Watch the interview with Kashkari on Bloomberg TV. In corporate news, Qualcomm’s takeover interest in Intel is said to have cooled due to complexities associated with it. But there’s some good news for Intel—it secured nearly $7.9 billion in federal grants (although $635 million smaller than an earlier proposed award) to boost chip manufacturing. Elsewhere, Tesla is in the crosshairs of Gavin Newsom. California’s governor proposed to offer rebates to EV buyers if a federal subsidy is repealed, but Tesla will be excluded. Elon Musk was quick to respond, calling the idea “insane.” |