Global stock markets up amid Trump tariffs exemptions for electronics
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(NEW YORK) — Major stock markets in Asia and Europe rose in Monday trading following the U.S. announcement that key consumer electronics would be temporarily exempted from President Donald Trump’s reciprocal tariffs.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index led the regional gains, closing 2.4% up with the Hang Seng Tech Index up more than 2%.
On the mainland, Shanghai’s Composite Index rose 0.76% and Shenzen’s Component Index rose 0.51%.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 in Tokyo rose 1.18% while the broader Topix index rose nearly 0.9%.
Elsewhere, South Korea’s Kospi index grew 0.95% and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 closed 1.34% higher. Taiwan’s Taeix index slipped by 0.08%.
Tech stocks performed particularly well. Tokyo Electron grew 2%, Advantest — a testing equipment maker — rose 5.4% and South Korea’s Samsung Electronics gained 1.4%.
In Europe, the pan-continental STOXX 600 rose 1.8% on opening. Germany’s DAX index rose more than 2%, France’s CAC 40 rose 1.9% and Britain’s FTSE 100 rose 1.95%.
U.S. futures were also trending up. Dow Jones futures were up 0.71% as of Monday morning, S&P 500 futures were up 1.19% and Nasdaq futures up 1.57%.
Smartphones, computers, flat panel TV displays, memory chips, semiconductor-based storage devices and other electronics are among the items excluded from the Trump administration’s reciprocal tariffs, according to a bulletin from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection published Friday night.
The news suggested possible relief for tech companies concerned by Trump’s 145% tariffs on all goods from China. But the president and his economic advisers stressed over the weekend that any reprieve would be temporary, with specific tariffs to be imposed on goods put under a new national security classification.
Trump posted to Truth Social on Sunday saying there was “was no Tariff ‘exemption’ announced on Friday” and that semiconductor tariffs will “just be moving to a different Tariff ‘bucket.'”
“NOBODY is getting ‘off the hook’ for the unfair Trade Balances, and Non Monetary Tariff Barriers, that other Countries have used against us, especially not China which, by far, treats us the worst!” Trump wrote.
“We are taking a look at Semiconductors and the WHOLE ELECTRONICS SUPPLY CHAIN in the upcoming National Security Tariff Investigations,” Trump added.
Trump did not push back Saturday night when a reporter asked for details on “exemptions.”
“I’ll give you that answer on Monday. We’ll be very specific on Monday,” Trump said. “We’re taking in a lot of money. As a country, we’re taking in a lot of money.”
ABC News’ Selina Wang, Fritz Farrow and Joe Simonetti contributed to this report.
(NEW YORK) — A representative of the Securities and Exchange Commission served Elon Musk earlier this month with a copy of a complaint alleging he misled investors when he bought millions of dollars in Twitter stock in 2022, according to a court filing on Thursday.
An employee of a Virginia-based process server delivered the SEC complaint to Musk at SpaceX’s Starbase facility in Brownsville, Texas, on March 14, according to a sworn filing.
The process server said three different security guards refused to accept service of the legal documents, so he left it on the ground outside at the SpaceX facility.
“Upon arrival, I stepped one foot past the gate, but security told me to step back and that I was trespassing. I then spoke to three different security guards who refused to accept. I placed the documents on the ground then a security guard started taking pictures of me and my car as I departed,” he said in the filing.
According to a docket update, Musk was served on March 14.
Confirmation of the service came the same day that an attorney with the SEC mmission admitted to practice law in Texas filed a notice of appearance in the case.
The new developments are largely procedural and do not guarantee the lawsuit will move forward. Since Trump has taken office, the SEC has moved to drop some cases previously initiated under the Biden administration.
On Jan. 14 – six days ahead of Trump’s inauguration – the SEC filed the lawsuit against Musk, arguing he underpaid more than $150 million by failing to disclose his stake in Twitter. Musk’s failure to disclose his purchase to the public made the stock price he paid “artificially low,” according to the SEC.
“They spend their time on s— like this when there are so many actual crimes that go unpunished,” Musk said on X to respond to the lawsuit in January.
The SEC, Musk and the process service company could not be immediately reached for comment.
(NEW YORK) — While Elon Musk has vaulted into a powerful role overhauling government agencies and upending Washington, the world’s richest person has suffered a $106 billion drop in wealth due to steep decline in shares of his Tesla electric car company.
Tesla’s stock price has plummeted 30% from its all-time high in December, including a 21% selloff since Inauguration Day. The losses have sent Musk’s net worth tumbling from a peak of $486 billion on Dec. 17 to its current level of about $380 billion, according to Bloomberg.
The stock woes have divided current and former Tesla shareholders. Critics of Musk fault his new role and polarizing reputation, blaming recent reports showing lackluster sales in some regions on his foray into politics. They say Musk must step away from the Trump administration for the company to thrive.
Supporters, on the other hand, say Musk’s role in the White House has little to do with the selloff, noting that Tesla shares remain higher than where they stood on Election Day. Instead, some say, the company is suffering growing pains as it weathers stiff competition in electric vehicles and pursues new ventures like self-driving taxis.
“I don’t have a problem if Elon wants to save a bunch of money for America. I say, ‘Where’s the good part in this for Tesla'” Ross Gerber, a prominent Tesla investor, told ABC News, referring to cost-cutting efforts undertaken by Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency.
Tesla representatives did not respond to ABC News’ request for comment.
Despite disagreement over the effect of Musk’s government role, both current and former Tesla shareholders who spoke to ABC News broadly acknowledged the company’s recent business hiccups.
Tesla sold fewer cars in 2024 than it did the year prior, marking the company’s first year-over-year sales decline in more than a decade, earnings released in January showed.
As rivals have challenged Tesla’s dominance over the electric vehicle market, the company has promised a future revenue stream from autonomous taxis, also known as robotaxis.
Musk announced in late January that the company would roll out its robotaxi test program in Austin, Texas, in June. But within days, China-based competitor BYD unveiled advances in self-driving technology, which the company said was set to be included in models costing as little as $9,600.
Gary Black, managing partner of The Future Fund, which manages $100 million in assets, including Tesla shares, said the recent selloff of Tesla is primarily the result of investor jitters about whether the company can dominate self-driving technology the way it did electric vehicles.
“Over time, you will see Teslas and other cars self-drive. But Tesla is not going to be the only one,” Black told ABC News’ Elizabeth Schulze.
The stock also faced downward pressure this week when a Musk-led group of investors offered to buy OpenAI for $97.4 billion, making possible a scenario in which Musk would sell some of his Tesla shares to finance the deal, Black said.
Black said that, in his opinion, the downturn has nothing to do with Musk’s government role.
“It’s always good to know the president of the United States — to be able to pick up your phone and say, you know, ‘I need this favor, that favor,'” Black said.
A jump in Tesla shares after Trump’s victory suggests many investors viewed the relationship that way. The stock price soared about 85% over a six-week period following Election Day.
But some investors lay the blame for the downturn squarely at Musk’s feet.
Nell Minow, Vice Chair of ValueEdge Advisors and a longtime critic of Musk, said Musk has been “absent” from the company.
“I think that he is a huge drag on the stock right now,” Minow told Schulze. “No question, he’s a problem.”
“Elon Musk is to the Tesla brand what the Green Giant is to corn,” Minow said. “He has made himself the brand and that is always very risky.”
Minow, who said she donated nearly all of her Tesla shares to charity last year, also criticized the Tesla board for what she said was a failure to hold Musk to account, or update shareholders and the public about a leadership plan while Musk runs DOGE.
“We don’t know what the board is thinking. They have not spoken out in any way,” Minow said. “They have not made a filing with the SEC about what the impact of this side hustle is, and the employees and the shareholders need some kind of certainty.”
New York City Comptroller Brad Lander echoed concerns about the board’s ability to reign in Musk. Lander, who oversees $1.25 billion in Tesla stock through the city’s five pension systems, said the lack of oversight was a “long-standing problem.”
“Independent governance is designed to provide a voice for shareholders at the table,” Lander, who is running for New York City mayor and has publicly sparred with Musk, said in a statement to ABC News. “When companies are controlled by a set of directors with either family or aligned interests, they lose this.”
For his part, Musk has looked to hype up Tesla’s prospects, saying on an earnings call last month that he believes there is an opportunity for it to be “the most valuable company in the world.”
During the call, AllianceBernstein Research analyst Daniel Roska questioned Musk on how Tesla plans to meet its ambitious projections given its high valuation.
Musk emphasized Tesla’s focus on real-world AI, claiming the company is making significant strides.
“We’re working on perfecting real-world AI and making rapid progress week over week, if not month over month,” Musk said. “I go where the problem is, essentially … I focus where the challenges are the greatest.”
Some Tesla shareholders remain bullish on the company despite its short-term drop. Angel investor Larry Goldberg, known as “Tesla Larry,” posted on X that he supports Musk’s political efforts, even if they impact the company’s stock price.
“If the Trump administration (and DOGE) does not fix the deficit, my Tesla shares — and everyone’s US stocks and bonds will be worthless,” Goldberg wrote.
(NEW YORK) — U.S. consumers are going on a tariff-induced shopping spree. From furniture, to appliances, to alcohol, Americans are rushing to buy before President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs are felt at the checkout counter.
Economists say the tariffs are expected to increase prices for everyday items and many are now raising the likelihood that the economy will fall into a recession.
Auto sales surged 11.2% in March as car buyers flocked to dealerships to beat the 25% tariffs on all imported cars, which went into effect April 3.
Once Noel Peguero heard about the wider tariff announcements, he said he hit the stores. The 50-year old school worker from Queens, New York, says he spent about $3,500 this past week on car parts, gardening supplies and electronics, including a 40″ Hisense television and Macbook laptop for his son.
“Now is the time to buy,” he told ABC News, adding they were items he was planning to purchase anyway but decided to buy sooner rather than later to avoid any potential price increases.
While stocking up on some items now may make sense, experts caution consumers to buy only what they can afford and not go into debt to get ahead of the “tariff effect.”
“A lot of people are dealing with diminished savings and rising debt, so they may not be in a position to make a big purchase or put together a large stockpile,” Ted Rossman, a senior industry analyst at Bankrate, tells ABC News. “Take the long view. It might make more sense to drive your existing car for a bit longer or live with the old kitchen cabinets another year or two.”
With nearly all U.S. trading partners now subject to a 10% tariff and even higher “reciprocal tariffs” to come April 9 for about 60 trading partners that have a high trade deficit with the United States, some consumers worry that everyday items may soon not only be more expensive, but harder to find.
The mere thought conjures images of empty store shelves during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, when Americans were scrambling for everything from toilet paper to baking flour.
Billionaire entrepreneur Mark Cuban added to those worries this week, posting on the social-media platform BlueSky that people should “buy lots of consumables” now before prices go up.
“From toothpaste to soap, anything you can find storage space for, buy before they have to replenish inventory,” Cuban said. “Even if it’s made in the USA, they will jack up the price and blame it on tariffs.”
Experts say they don’t anticipate any shortages.
“Of course, if everyone heeded [Cuban’s] advice, there probably would be some issues, but we’re not seeing evidence this is happening at scale,” Rossman said. “Thankfully the supply chain is in much better shape than it was during the pandemic.”
With the average American household carrying about $6,600 in debt, according to TransUnion, experts say it’s important to take a measured approach and consider your long-term financial situation and goals.
“I realize sometimes people need to carry debt for various reasons,” said Rossman, “but don’t make it worse by panic buying. Rushing to make a big purchase often doesn’t end well.”
