Bloomberg Audio Studios, Podcasts, radio news. Good morning, I'm Nathan Hager and I'm Karen Moscow. Here are the stories we're following today.
We begin with tensions rising potentially between the US and China. With a red headline just crossing the Bloomberg terminal. President Biden is imposing sweeping tariffs on China. Let's get the details now from Bloomberg Steve Potisk in Washington.
In an election year move, the President is hiking tariffs on a wide range of Chinese imports, including semiconductor chips, batteries, solar sales, and critical minerals. The White House says the changes are projected to effect around eighteen billion dollars in current annual imports. The moves represent Biden's most comprehensive update to the China tariffs first imposed by Donald Trump. It's a recognition that a hawkish approach to trade with Beijing
remains popular with voters. None of Trump's tariffs will be reduced. Biden will ratchet uprates on goods the US struggle to import during the coronavirus pandemic, and for key industries like chips and green energy that he sought to bolster since he took office. Still, Biden must strike a careful balance. Additional tariffs risk increasing prices for consumers already hurting from inflation. It also could inspire the ire of China, which could
choose to retaliate in kind. In Washington, Steve Potis Bloomberg.
Radio, all Right, Steve, thank you well. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen says she hopes China will not retaliate any coming trade restrictions. Speaking exclusively to Bloomberg, Yellen said, China is really not playing by the rules.
We do think that the playing field should be fair, and China engages in unfair practices like massive subsidies of industries they've decided are critical, and those are cases where we will like to protect ourselves.
Treasury Secretary j Yellen added that the US cannot allow these emerging sectors to be wiped out by Chinese competition. Get the full conversation on the Bloomberg Talks podcast feed.
And sticking with geopolitics, Karen. The Biden administrations giving an in person show of support to Ukraine. Secretary of State Anthony Blincoln is in Kiev. He's highlighting the battlefield gains Ukraine could make with sixty one billion dollars in just past US assistants. Polish President Andre's Judah says Russia cannot be allowed to win in Ukraine.
If they managed to wan in Ukraine, if they managed to accomplish their goals, they will keep on attacking. They will attack other countries. Perhaps these could be the Baltic States. Perhaps this could be Finland, Perhaps this could be Poland on or perhaps these could be other countries which used to be part of the Russian sphere of influence.
Polish President Dudah spoke through an interpreter with Bloomberg News editor in chief John Mickelthwaite at the Katar Economic Forum in Doha. Secretary of State bl Lincoln's visit to Ukraine comes as Russia has mounted one of its biggest attacks since the invasion more than two years ago, in the northeastern region of Harkiev. Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelenski told Blincoln Ukraine needs two air defense batteries to protect Kharkiv from Russia's attacks.
Well, Nathan back here in the US, this star prosecution witness and the hush money trial against Donald Trump returns to the stand this morning and We get the details from Bloomberg Law host Jun Grosso in New York.
The Michael Cohen that jurors saw on the stand was subdued and unemotional, just answering the prosecutors' questions without any hint of his ill feelings toward Trump. His testimony is the most damaging against the former presidents so far, giving a first hand account of Trump allegedly directing him to falsify financial records to cover his hush money payment to
adult film star Stormy Daniels. The test will be whether Cohen can be shaken on cross examination in New York June Grosso of Bloomberg Radio June Thanks.
Turning to the economy, now Wall Street gets the first of two key inflation reports this morning with the release of the Producer Price indexs for April, and we get a preview from Bloomberg's Michael McKee.
Inflation week kicks off with the Producer Price Index headline. Wholesale prices are expected to rise a tenth of a percentage point on the back of higher energy costs. Core PPI, however, is forecast to fall back, resuming the downtrend in inflation that was interrupted at the start of the year. Producer prices don't translate directly into consumer price changes, but do offer an overview of the inflation picture. The CPI is released tomorrow. They also provide a picture of profit margins
in some industries, including retailers. Michael McKee Bloomberg.
Radio Mike, thank you well in company news sources say Walmart is acting hundreds of corporate jobs and asking most remote workers to return to offices. Companies around the world are encouraging employees who's commute to worry shape by the pandemic to return to offices. Walmart, the world's biggest retailer, is also the largest private employer in the US and all rates some four thousand, six hundred stores domestically.
In markets Karen Memestocks are once again in focus following monster gains for Game Stop. Let's get the details from Bloomberg's John Tucker, John and Nathan.
GameStop surged one hundred nineteen percent at one point. This all started when the investor known as Roaring Kitty suggested he was back after a three year absence with a cryptic post on x. By the end of the day, game Stops market cap increased by four billion, dollars. Trading was halted for volatility nine times within the opening ninety minutes of trading. That rallies spilled over into other meme stocks AMC Entertainment that surged seventy eight percent.
Well.
This latest rally, though, is short of the two thousand and one frenzy when game Stops surged two thousand percent. This time, only twenty four percent of the stock is sold short. Checking shares at GameStop at AMC this morning, they're both up more than thirty seven percent. John Tucker, Bloomberg.
Radio, All right, John, thank you.
Well.
Banking is also very much in focus this more aring, and we caught up with several CEOs at that Choose France summit in Versailles. Bank of America as CEO Brian Monahan says, US consumers, helped by wage growth, remained in good shape even amid elevated interest rates.
The shows of the resilience and American consumer grat.
Structure may be higher, and we can talk about that, but the reality is it's in decent shape. There's a thousand things that can go wrong tomorrow, for right now, everything's in pretty good shape.
In an interview with the Bloomberg John Faraoh Monahan says consumer spending climb three to four percent in May from a year ago.
And we also spoke with Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon in France, Karen. Last year, Solomon found himself under pressure amid slumping profits at Goldman Fast Forward. The bank stock recently hit record highs, thanks in part to a first quarter jump in net income.
When times are good, you know, things feel good. When times are tougher, things don't feel as good. But we kind of take a long view execute against that strategy, and we just know that if we have really really smart people working together, working collaboratively, really driving for excells to serve our clients, we're going to do just fine.
Goldman's David Solomon says, after a long quiet spell, the market for initial public offerings has opened up.
Nathan, it wasn't just banking leaders that we caught up with at the Choos France summit. We also heard from a world leader. Francis President Emmanuel mccron said he'd be open to the takeover of a major French bank by a rival in the European Union to deepen financial integration in the region. The Crown told the Bloomberg News editor in chief John michels Way that the European Union needs a fresh approach to business.
Dealing as Europeans means that you need consolidation as Europeans your notes.
So it could be cross the board, emergency forest directions.
This is a totally new world and we do need this new business model for the Europeans. More innovation, more investment, single market and capital marketuion and a relevant trade policy.
And that's French President Emmanuel mccron. Here the full conversation in all of our Newsmaker conversations from the Choos for and Summit on the Bloomberg Talks podcast feed on the Bloomberg terminal and at Bloomberg dot com. And as time now we're look at some of the other stories making news in New York and around the world, and for that we're joined by Bloomberg's Michael Barr.
Michael, Good morning, Good.
Morning, Karen. Ceasefire talks have apparently stalled between Israel and hamas it comes. United Nations confirms an AID worker was killed and another injured after their vehicle was struck in Gaza yesterday. Another AID worker was wounded a spokesman says israel defense forces were not made aware of the vehicle or its realm. Meanwhile, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan pushed
back against criticism of Israel's actions inside Gaza. Sullivan says, while they have some concerns on some of the IDF's conduct, they don't believe it rises to the level of a genocide like some claim.
We believe Israel canon must do more to ensure the protect and well being of innocent civilians.
We do not believe what is happening in Gaza is a genocide.
We have been firmly on record rejecting that.
Sullivan says the US still believes it would be a mistake to launch a major military operation in RUFFA Jerry selection continues today in the bribery trial of New Jersey Senator Bob Menendez. The Democratic senator is charged with taking bribes including gold bars, cash Anna Mercedes to help send aid and weapons to for Egypt and Cutter and to stop a federal case against a friend and businessman Menendez. His wife, Nadine, is also charged, but will be tried
separately and later this summer. It has been almost two years since a mass shooting took the lives of ten people and injured three others at a New York State tops market. New York Governor Kathy Okel went to Buffalo to unveil the design for the five fourteen memorial honoring the vic MS. Hokel talked about the powerful outreach of the community immediately following the tragedy.
It didn't break us.
Instead, it revealed a strength that runs deep in the veins of the city, the strength of a community that finds together and refuses to be defined by acts of hate.
The victims, who were black, were killed by a white supremacist in the attack. Maryland, Nebraska, and West Virginia hold presidential primaries. Today, Global News twenty four hours a day and whenever you wanted with Bloomberg News. Now, I'm Michael Barr, and this is Bloomberg here.
All right, Michael Barr, thank you, nice time now for the Bloomberg Sports update. But John stash Hour, John, good morning.
Good morning care.
The Rangers were us second chains to finish off with Carolina Hurricanes at the guard. They our short handed goal second period from Jacob Truba took that one, upping late to the third one. They Cane scored twice in a span of just over three minutes.
And they weren't done there. Miss Truber means you have the way to meet us out in front market store.
Natchis to Martin Hook and it's.
An offensive explosion.
In the third period.
Carolina has a three to one lead.
Ninety nine nine.
The fan Hurricanes at an empty ninner one four to one, and suddenly this series has gotten very interesting. Game six done until Thursday in Raleigh, where the Canes are tough to be. If there's a Game seven, it would be on Saturday at MSG where tonight it's the Nixon Pacers. Game five series tie to two Oklahoma City and Dallas tied to two. Oka See beat the MAVs one hundred to ninety six. Celtics now four to zero on the road. They won in Cleveland one on nine, one oho two.
The Cavs had to play without the injury Donovan Mitchell. Boston got to combine sixty points from Jason Tatum and Jalen Brown.
They leave the series three to one.
It's opening night in the WNBA, and how much of a difference does Caitlin Clark make The Connecticut Sun Tonight hosting Clark and Indiana have sold out there near nine thousand seed Arena. It's something they haven't done since their first game ever in two thousand and three. Matt's spending the week with the Phillies, who have baseball's best record. Two James at City Field M two and Philly Mets took a four to two lead to the ninth inning. Phil's tied it off Edwin Diaz, and then one five
to four in ten. The full schedule comes out tomorrow, but the NFL leaked out that opening night. September fifth will be Baltimore at Kansas City, battle of the two time winning MVP quarterbacks Lamar Jackson and Patrick Mahomes. Detroit's QB Jared Goff just agreed to a four year contract extension. He'll make fifty three million a year. Only the Bengals Joe Burrow makes more. John Stansheward Bloomberg.
Sports Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon spoke with Bloomberg's Jonathan Farrow about the federal deficit, the economy, and opportunities around the globe. Let's go to part of that conversation.
The level of debt in the United States, the level of spending is something that we need a sharper focus on and more dialogue around than what we've seen. We obviously had a pandemic. We made a bunch of decisions, you know, in that pandemic, but we're long out of that pandemic, and the spending levels, you know, are continuing at a pace that I think is our debt level and creating issues for us down the road. We're obviously in an election year, so I'm not you know, I
don't have my head in the sand. I don't think you're going to see that get on a lot of attention prior to the election. But I do think it's something that requires focus. We need to deal with the debt and the deficits, and you know, hopefully there'll be a lot more discussion as we come through the election and move into the next administration.
Well let's give it a bit of time now, if we can. I think I often say that the United States has the privilege of behaving recklessly. Sometimes that might be the likes of the Europeans. Do not if you sense there's been any kind of pushback from the treasury market, from investors against the backdrope and this risk that we're talking about currently.
The reserve currency is a great privilege, and you know, I'm not going to sit here and say that I see in the near term, you know, a threat to that in any way, shape or form, but it's not something that you can take for granted. And the United States ability to spend without constraint is not unlimited. Ultimately, the market will challenge that hasn't challenged it yet. Not saying that's something that's coming soon, but it's certainly something that we should be very cognitive of and.
Very protective of.
And do you think the experience of the UK company years bank was maybe a case study for what we could face in America.
You know that that was a disruption to the guilt market and it's one of the things I think you need to be concerned about to risk issue I've highlighted before. You know, at the time the Bank of England had to reserve, had to reverse its course and become very accommodative to deal with that blip in the markets. We've
had disruptions of the treasury market before. We certainly had a disruption in March twenty twenty to the degree that we had a significant disruption in the treasury market sometime in the future. We don't have a lot of capacity through the banking system to intermediate that. It would require very accommodative policy. If that came at a time where that was not right for the Central Bank to be accommodative, that would be a risk issue that would have to be monitored.
We've had some big moves in the last three full months. I can just think about a start of twenty twenty four. We were looking ahead, so maybe seven rate cuts priced into markets from the Federalserve went all the way down to none I think Ian Hassius and team and down to two July and November. Big swings and equity markets too, David, can we talk a little bit about that. I think we're seeing ten percent swings in trition dollar names post earnings.
Is that good for business? That kind of market environment, It's not what you want to see.
You know, the market's the market, and you know, I think there are a handful of things that are driving these platforms to grow earnings very significantly and gain a larger importance in the overall market capitalization. These hyper scalers, as they're called, I think have enormous competitive advantages in the world that we're operating in, and it's you know, it's not been surprising, given some of the changes in technology in the last twelve months, that their market caps
have accelerated, don't. I don't worry about that from a market perspective. I think markets are relatively efficient. I do worry that the structure of the equity markets, particularly in the United States, but this is true all over the world, are bringing fewer and fewer public companies, and that is concerning.
That is concerning.
There's obviously an abundance of capital available in private markets, but I do think it's important that we have open, accommodative, strong public markets. There's tremendous disclosure transparency in public markets. I think that's good, yeah, for our capital deployment. And you know, I am concerned that the breadth of the public markets is getting a little bit more nar and I think that's something for us all to watch and think about.
That was Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon speaking with Bloomberg's Jonathan Farrow, and you can catch that entire interview on the Bloomberg Talks podcast. Download all our high profile discussions on Apple, Spotify, and everywhere you get your podcasts.
This is Bloomberg Daybreak Today, your morning brief on the stories making news from Wall Street to Washington and beyond.
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And I'm Karen Moscow.
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