Sam Klebanov

2 weeks ago | morningbrew.com | Sam Klebanov

As if to honor The Great Gatsby centennial,President Trump made markets glow green yesterday by announcing a 90-day pause on most “reciprocal” nation-specific tariffs that had kicked in hours before. The president left in place the recently imposed 10% baseline duty. Importers and investors cued the confetti, but Chinese fireworks weren’t part of the celebrations: Trump hiked tariffs on China to 125% in the latest salvo of the all-out trade war between the two countries.

2 weeks ago | morningbrew.com | Sam Klebanov

In a defeat for tumbleweed, Zara won’t be joining the parade of retailers that have ditched San Francisco’s embattled Union Square shopping district. The fast-fashion purveyor revealed this week that it plans to replace its current Union Square store, slated to shutter in 2026, with a new flagship location down the street. The move to a nearby building that’s stood empty since 2021 will nearly double its square footage in the area, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.

2 weeks ago | morningbrew.com | Sam Klebanov

Finance big dogs are loving President Trump’s tariffs as much as cats enjoy water—and they’re starting to kvetch like bathing kitties. As markets took a nosedive last week and opened with a further plunge yesterday that briefly pushed the S&P 500 into bear market territory, disgruntled VIP soundbites began pouring out. JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon said yesterday in his annual letter to shareholders that the faster the trade disputes are resolved, the better.

2 weeks ago | morningbrew.com | Sam Klebanov

Fed Chair Jerome Powell said yesterday an interest rate cut isn’t imminent even as markets matched the color of investors’ bloodshot eyes after President Trump unveiled historic tariffs earlier in the week. Though a rate cut would be a boon for stocks—which on Thursday experienced the biggest one-day selloff since 2020 and kept plummeting yesterday—Powell thinks there’s too much uncertainty about exactly how tariffs will affect the economy to make a decision now.

2 weeks ago | morningbrew.com | Sam Klebanov

Microsoft is celebrating its 50th birthday this week looking like a formerly washed up A-lister who’s suddenly rebounded and getting Oscar noms again. Ever since Bill Gates and Paul Allen huddled in a garage in 1975 to start a company that’d define the experience of sitting in front of a boxy white PC monitor, Microsoft has had an uneven run.