China Growth Surprise, US Bearing Tariff Pain, Europe’s Investor Appeal

On this special holiday edition of Bloomberg Daybreak US edition, host John Tucker discusses President Trump recent criticism of Fed Chair Powell with Michael McKee and Stuart Paul. He also talks about ETF inflows with Eric Balchunas and looks at the future of antitrust litigation with Jennifer Rie. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

(1) US investors could be forced to offload around $800 billion of Chinese equities “in an extreme scenario” of financial decoupling between the world’s two largest economies, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. estimates.(2)  The Trump administration is preparing to pressure nations to curb trade with China in negotiations over US tariffs, according to people familiar with the matter. (3) Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell again stressed the central bank must ensure tariffs don’t trigger a more persistent rise in inflation. Powell said policymakers would balance their dual responsibilities of fostering maximum employment and stable prices. (4) Economic data just confirmed what anecdotal evidence had suggested: Consumers are rushing to make major purchases of cars, electronics and appliances in an attempt to get ahead of tariffs that could raise prices. (5) Gold hit another all-time high as warnings from Federal Reserve Chief Jerome Powell about the impact of the trade war fueled volatility on Wall Street, leading to sharp declines in stocks and the dollar.(6)  Vladimir Putin has ordered his government to draw up a new legal framework for companies seeking to invest in Russia. It’s the most concrete sign yet that Moscow is preparing for a day when it believes sanctions will be lifted and some investment welcomed back. But, said one Kremlin official, “nobody is knocking on the door yet” underlining the tentative nature of the approaches taken by companies — some of whom never fully left — to restoring their operations in the country, as US President Donald Trump pushes for a deal to end Russia’s war in Ukraine.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Your morning briefing, the business news you need in just 15 minutes. On today's podcast: (1) China’s economy showed surprising strength in early 2025 with a sharp uptick in March, though a trade impasse with Donald Trump has prompted calls for stimulus to offset the tariff shock. (2) President Donald Trump called on China to reach out to him in order to kick off negotiations aimed at resolving the escalating trade fight between the world’s two largest economies. (3) President Donald Trump’s administration has barred Nvidia from selling its H20 chip to China, an escalation of Washington’s tech battle with Beijing that will cost the company billions of dollars and hamstring a product line it explicitly designed to comply with previous US curbs. (4) Import prices for March came in soft – but not soft enough. Bloomberg Economics's calculations of tariff-inclusive import prices indicate that, two months into Trade War 2.0, US importers have borne the brunt of almost all the tariffs so far. (5) Americans are increasingly looking for jobs in Britain amid President Donald Trump’s funding cuts and a darkening economic outlook. (6) Donald Trump's push to reshape global trade and security has shocked European markets into life, driving investors to assets from stocks to bonds and the euro, in a way few could have imagined even 6 months ago.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Your morning briefing, the business news you need in just 15 minutes.On today's podcast:(1) “The president has been very clear that he’s willing to talk to his counterpart,” US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer tells Fox News about Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping.(2) President Donald Trump’s administration pressed forward with plans to impose tariffs on semiconductor and pharmaceutical imports by initiating trade probes led by the Commerce Department. (3) Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent played down the recent selloff in the bond market, rejecting speculation that foreign nations were dumping their holdings of US Treasuries, while flagging that his department has tools to address dislocation if needed.(4) European Commissioner for Trade and Economic Security Maros Sefcovic met with US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer today in DC, “seizing the 90-day window for a mutual solution to unjustified tariffs,” he says in a post on X. (5) UK households increased their spending in March as consumer demand defied an imminent rise in household bills, according to reports from the British Retail Consortium and Barclays.(6) The Trump administration followed through on its threat to pull federal funding from Harvard University hours after the oldest and richest US college refused to agree to a list of government demands.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Your morning briefing, the business news you need in just 15 minutes.On today's podcast: (1) President Donald Trump pledged he will still apply tariffs to phones, computers and popular consumer electronics, downplaying a weekend exemption as a procedural step in his overall push to remake US trade. (2) Strategists at Goldman Sachs Group cut their targets for key Chinese stock indexes for a second time this month, citing heightened trade tensions with the US. (3) The dollar fell for a fifth day as traders looked past a reprieve on the imposition of certain electronic tariffs and after President Donald Trump downplayed his exemption for the technology sector. (4) Treasuries gained after last week’s rout as President Donald Trump paused import duties on a range of consumer electronics. Investors also await speeches from Fed officials Christopher Waller and Patrick Harker. (5) British companies’ finance chiefs had adopted their most defensive positions since the pandemic even before US President Donald Trump’s tariffs sent global markets into a tailspin. (6) UK officials are rushing to secure the raw materials needed to keep Britain’s last primary steel manufacturer running, with other businesses offering to provide help.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Bloomberg Daybreak Weekend with Tom Busby takes a look at some of the stories we'll be tracking in the coming week. In the US – a look ahead to U.S Retail sales and earnings from Netflix. In the UK – a look ahead to next week’s ECB meeting. In Asia – a look ahead to earnings from TSMC. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Your morning briefing, the business news you need in just 15 minutes.On today's podcast:(1) Less than 24 hours after President Donald Trump backtracked on his once-in-a-century trade war to prevent a meltdown in financial markets, frantic selloffs hit US stocks, bonds and the dollar yet again as fears of a worldwide recession engulfed Wall Street.(2) The dollar extended losses after its biggest plunge in three years, with the cost of hedging against further slides climbing to the highest since the Covid pandemic shuttered cities in early 2020.(3) President Donald Trump said his tariffs may cause “transition problems” but expressed confidence in his plan, after the White House clarified US tariffs on China rose to 145%.(4) Top European Union officials are making plans to visit China for a meeting with President Xi Jinping, the South China Morning Post reported — a sign Brussels may be keen to develop better ties with Beijing amid the Trump administration’s tariff onslaught.(5) Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago President Austan Goolsbee said tariffs are a “stagflationary shock” and they pit the central bank’s goals of price stability and full employment against one another.(6) A sightseeing helicopter crashed into the Hudson River, killing all six people on board, including three children from Spain and the pilot.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Your morning briefing, the business news you need in just 15 minutes. On today's podcast: (1) President Donald Trump announced a 90-day pause on higher tariffs that hit dozens of trade partners after midnight, while raising duties on China to 125%.  (2) Five gut-wrenching days after Donald Trump’s America-versus-the-world trade war threw stock and bond markets around the globe into disarray, he backpedaled and, in the process, pulled the financial system back from the brink. (3) China’s top leaders are poised to meet Thursday to discuss additional economic stimulus after US President Donald Trump ratcheted up tariffs, according to people familiar with the matter. (4) President Donald Trump called the bond market a thing of beauty on Wednesday. For traders of government debt, the day meant pure mayhem. (5) The murmurs spread quietly at first, then exploded into a roar as the news hit — President Donald Trump was pausing the bulk of his tariffs and putting his global trade war on hold. Mostly. (6) The UK housing market is in danger of being “blown off course” by US President Donald Trump’s trade war, estate agents warned after activity weakened sharply last month.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Your morning briefing, the business news you need in just 15 minutes.On today's podcast:(1) US President Donald Trump spent the final hours before his tariffs were set for full implementation lining up negotiations with US allies, but his insistence on pushing forward with 104% tariffs on many Chinese goods dimmed optimism that a brutal trade war would be avoided.(2) Chinese Premier Li Qiang said his country has ample policy tools to “fully offset” any negative external shocks, and reiterated his optimism about the growth of the world’s second-largest economy in 2025, despite the latest tariff threat from US President Donald Trump.(3) For the better part of a day, it seemed as if the panic that Donald Trump’s trade war unleashed had largely subsided as US equities built on strong rallies in Asia and Europe.(4) President Donald Trump’s steeper-than-expected tariffs have traumatized financial markets and triggered recession fears all over the world.(5) President Donald Trump’s tariffs are rattling US consumers, who are stocking up on everything from cars to olive oil and iPhones. The behavior offers some good news for businesses that are rushing to figure out how to respond to the upheaval caused by Trump’s global trade war.(6) “We are going to be announcing very shortly a major tariff on pharmaceuticals,” President Donald Trump says at a National Republican Congressional Committee Dinner.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Your morning briefing, the business news you need in just 15 minutes.On today's podcast:(1) China pledged to retaliate against Donald Trump’s latest tariff threat and stepped up efforts to support the market, raising the risk of a prolonged trade war between the world’s two largest economies. (2) Japan looks set to get priority in US tariff talks, moving to the front of a long line of countries seeking to roll back President Donald Trump’s so-called reciprocal duties, which are scheduled to kick in on Wednesday. (3) President Donald Trump threatened to slap China with an additional 50% import tax, while Washington and Wall Street remained engulfed in confusion about how to gain exceptions from his sweeping global tariffs.  (4) At just after 10 a.m., shouting erupted on the Siebert trading floor in downtown Manhattan. Mark Malek, the firm’s chief investment officer, rushed out of his office to hear his head trader screaming that President Donald Trump was weighing suspending the across-the-board tariff roll-out that had been sinking stock markets for days. (5) Billionaire Ken Griffin said President Donald Trump’s latest tariffs amount to a hefty tax on families and are a “huge policy mistake” by the administration. (6) European Union trade ministers closed ranks and signaled readiness to deploy a full spectrum of countermeasures including potential taxes on digital companies in response to US President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.