Stocks are giving back some ground today along with gold and silver. Crude oil is higher, while Treasuries and the dollar are flat.
The European Union (EU) fired back today after the Trump Administration moved forward with 25% tariffs on steel and aluminum imports Monday. Those tariffs take effect March 12, and EU officials say they will announce “firm and proportionate countermeasures.”
During Trump 1.0, the US levied $7 billion in tariffs on EU imports, and the EU responded by targeting US exports like motorcycles, jeans, and agricultural goods. Both sides backed down in 2021, though the détente is clearly over now. Heading into today's session, shares of leading US steel producers Nucor Corp. (NUE) and Cleveland-Cliffs Inc (CLF) were up 17% and 25%, respectively, year-to-date, while aluminum giant Alcoa Corp. (AA) was down about 2%.
AA, CLF, NUE (YTD % Change)
Data by YCharts
The drama surrounding OpenAI heated up late yesterday when Tesla Inc. (TSLA) CEO Elon Musk and other investors offered to buy control of the ChatGPT maker for $97.4 billion. OpenAI was technically founded as a charity in 2015. It now operates as a nonprofit organization with a for-profit subsidiary.
CEO Sam Altman wants to spin that out and is battling Musk and others over valuation and control issues. As an interesting side note given Musk’s work with the Trump Administration, Altman joined the president when the $500 billion Stargate initiative was announced at the White House in January.
Finally, Federal Reserve Chairman Jay Powell will start two days of economic testimony before Congress today. His remarks deserve attention because the Fed skipped an interest rate cut at its last meeting, and policymakers have signaled their intention to sit tight for a while. Wall Street will be looking for any sign that stance is changing. The critical CPI inflation report for January is due out tomorrow.
