Business/Markets/Stocks/Economics Random, Random

[dryrunguy]

One in nine jobs in the Los Angeles area are tied directly or indirectly to the area's ports? I had no idea.

[ti-amie]

Short-term debt issued by corporations surged in April as companies sought to bolster their liquidity in the wake of economic uncertainty wrought by the Trump Administration’s tariff policies, according to strategists at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Issuance of non-financial commercial paper swelled by $100 billion last month, which is above the monthly average of $27 billion seen from 2019 to 2024, excluding 2020, JPMorgan strategists led by Teresa Ho wrote in a note to clients on Friday, citing data from the Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation. At its peak, the gap between the highest-rated paper — known as Tier 1 — and T-bills stood at the widest level since August 2022. The spread to less credit-worthy paper — known as Tier 2 — reached its widest level since June 2023.

“Anecdotally, it appears companies are raising cash as a precautionary measure in response to the heightened uncertainty following Liberation Day,” they wrote.

The Trump Administration’s tariff announcement on April 2 unleashed turmoil in the financial markets, with the S&P 500 losing more than 10% in two sessions. The benchmark index reversed course a week later, when the White House delayed most of the duties for 90 days, with the exception of tariffs on China. The uncertainty also caused Treasury yields to soar and sparked a rush for cash.

Corporations are bolstering cash positions due to economic uncertainty spearheaded by Tariffs.

Source: https://finance.yahoo.com/news/companie ... 04436.html

These were my thoughts when Bezos publicly announced he was selling a huge amount of shares. If the rush is to liquidity then we'd all better buckle our seatbelts.

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President Xi Jinping will use his state visit to Moscow this week to showcase his tight ties with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, and capitalize on a trade war that’s isolating Washington.

“Key on the agenda is what kind of opportunities there are, and how to coordinate Russia’s and Chinese actions to use these four years to undo the US hegemony,” said Alexander Gabuev, director of the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center. The two men will want to “help Trump to destroy American supremacy and arrive at a multipolar world order where Russia and China can thrive.”

Source: https://finance.yahoo.com/news/xi-heads ... 12489.html

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Trump Accidentally Admits He Hasn’t Made Any Trade Deals
Donald Trump has continually insisted that deals over his tariffs are coming.

Donald Trump claimed Tuesday that the U.S. doesn’t “have to sign” any trade deals, inadvertently admitting that his administration hasn’t made any progress during the 90-day pause on his disastrous tariffs.

During a tense meeting to discuss tariffs with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, the president attempted to move the goal posts on actually completing any agreements with foreign countries.

“Everyone says, ‘When, when, when, are you going to sign deals?’ We don’t have to sign deals!” Trump said.

“We don’t have to sign deals. They have to sign deals with us. They want a piece of our market, we don’t want a piece of their market. We don’t care about their market. They want a piece of our market,” Trump rambled.

The president’s unwieldy statements downplaying the importance of the trade deals seemed to be cushioning the likelihood that negotiations would ultimately fail. Trump’s remarks also revealed that his administration has yet to complete a single trade deal.

Last month, Trump claimed to have already struck 200 trade agreements with foreign countries, a remark so outlandish it sent members of his administration scrambling to make it make sense. (There are also only 195 countries in the world.)

Instead of pledging to sign deals, Trump presented his own plan Tuesday. The president claimed that “at some point over the next two weeks,” he intended to sit down with members of his Cabinet and offer individualized deals to each country seeking tariff relief.

“We’re gonna say, ‘Here’s what this country—what we want, and congratulations we have a deal!’ And they’ll either say ‘Great,’ and they’ll start shopping, or they’ll say, ‘Not good, we’re not gonna do it,’” Trump said.

Trump claimed that the offers would include “very fair numbers,” but that they might also include other requests. He also said that his administration would be open to adjusting the deals based on how the countries responded.

“And then you people will say, ‘Oh it’s so chaotic,’ no, we’re flexible,” Trump said, referring to the press.

In any case, Trump continued to emphasize that his goal wasn’t actually to make deals, just to put out offers. “In some cases we’ll sign some deals, it’s much less important than what I’m talking about,” he said. He warned that in one day, he could present 100 offers, but “they don’t have to sign.”

Still, Trump said he wanted countries to “pay for the privilege of being able to shop in the United States of America.”

https://newrepublic.com/post/194920/don ... rade-deals

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‪Carl Quintanilla‬
‪@carlquintanilla.bsky.social‬
· 1h
INBOX: “.. While in Switzerland, Secretary Bessent will also meet with the lead representative on economic matters from the People’s Republic of China (PRC).

home.treasury.gov/news/press-r...

Going live with my meta glasses
‪@mustache-era.bsky.social‬

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As they can customize headlines about the “dealmaking” process, the Chinese now have full control of the US stock market. As if they needed more leverage points.

‪Kimbell’s Mowgli‬ @kimbellsmowgli.bsky.social‬
· 37m
And Japan has the bond market. Great job Donald.

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The Chinese




US right now

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Kevin M. Kruse‬
‪@kevinmkruse.bsky.social‬
· 2m
Now they’re claiming that tariffs will lead to a surge in home ownership?

It’s simplistic, but they keep harkening back to 1890-1913 as the golden age they’ll recreate. Let’s take a look …

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Joey Politano‬
‪@josephpolitano.bsky.social‬
· 3h
This is genuinely insane