Breakfast News: Trump Threatens New Tariffs

Breakfast News: Trump Threatens New Tariffs

1. Trade Tensions Rise on Digital Tax and Magnets

President Trump has threatened new tariffs on countries if they don't remove digital service taxes, while warning China against curbing exports of magnets, as existing trade negotiations continue.

• "Digital taxes, legislation, rules or regulations are all designed to harm, or discriminate against, American technology": The digital services tax, imposed on the U.S. by countries including the U.K. and France, yields significant revenue, with the U.K. raising over $1 billion annually from its levy.
• "If they don't give us magnets, then we have to charge them 200% tariffs or something": China controls about 90% of global rare-earth magnet supply, providing leverage in trade talks as the U.S. relies heavily on importing them for the manufacturing sector.

2. Alphabet and Fox in YouTube TV Standoff

Alphabet (GOOG -1.04%)-owned YouTube has warned Fox Corporation (FOX -1.08%) channels from the network could be removed imminently if no ongoing deal can be struck, risking a larger fallout between the two companies.

• "Fox is asking for payments that are far higher than what partners with comparable content offerings receive": A YouTube spokesperson said they are seeking a fair deal for both sides without passing on additional costs to their subscribers.
• "We are disappointed that Google continually exploits its outsized influence by proposing terms that are out of step with the marketplace": The Fox standoff has implications for advertisers and viewers, as people continue to ditch cable, with delivery networks looking to work more with content companies.

3. $900 Billion Trade Deal Funds Progressing

South Korea has established an agreement on how to structure and operate the $350 billion of investment funds with the U.S., with details of the Japanese $550 billion pledge coming this week, highlighting the progress being made on trade deals.

• Up to $150 billion allocated to shipbuilding alone: Funds would go toward minerals, batteries, chips, quantum computing and more, although some disputes – such as the profit split – are still to be decided.
• "That's $550 billion at the hand of Donald Trump": Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick spoke on the freeness the president will have with Japanese funds, with some likely going toward semiconductors and antibiotics.

4. Next Up: Client Growth Eyed For TMF Recs

Stock Advisor recommendation Okta (OKTA 0.16%) is set to report after the market closes, with a focus on growing the number of large clients spending over $1 million, following momentum from last quarter.

• Missed revenue expectations only once in the past two years: Rule Breakers rec MongoDB (MDB -2.33%) will release earnings following the closing bell, with progress on expanding its AI toolset and embedding models of major interest.
• 2,600 net new customers added in the previous quarter: MongoDB shareholders will be hoping the largest quarterly customer gain in six years was indicative of further growth, with more users likely to help boost profitability.

5. IBKR Jumps 5% on S&P 500 Inclusion

Interactive Brokers (IBKR -0.45%) is set to join the S&P 500 on Thursday – with the stock rising 5% in post-market trading – as it gets ready to replace Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA -0.54%), which has been taken private.

• IBKR up 37.5% in 2025, with market cap now above $100 billion: One factor in the inclusion has been the company growth, in part driven by the build out of different financial products and expansion into cryptocurrency.
• Notable companies missed out: Both Robinhood (HOOD -0.48%) and Strategy (MSTR 0.21%) were seen by many as in the running for promotion, but will now have to wait for the more formal quarterly rebalancing.

6. Your Take

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