From Wall Street to Silicon Valley, these are the top stories that moved markets and had investors, business leaders, and entrepreneurs talking this week on Cheddar.
New Tariffs Follow U.S.-China Trade Talks: Eyes were on high-stakes U.S.-China trade talks this week, but the news was not good. After a two-day meeting, which had shown signs of hope, negotiators walked away from the table (for now) and President Trump took to Twitter, announcing a new round of tariffs. The U.S. will place 10 percent tariffs on many Chinese-made goods that were not already affected by current tariffs, like electronics and apparel. China quickly reacted, stating that they would respond to the move in kind, but have not released specifics yet. Both sides have indicated they plan on continuing to negotiate a trade deal, but Trump says the tariffs will remain in place until they strike a deal, to the chagrin of many in U.S. industries. See more
Fed Rate Cut Sparks Stock Selloff: The long-awaited fed rate cut that President Trump so desperately fought for came his way this week as Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell announced a 0.25 percent cut. But two little words in the Fed Chair’s remarks spooked investors and sent markets plunging: "mid-cycle adjustment." He seemed to indicate this cut is not the beginning of a series of rate cuts, but rather a one-off to account for trouble overseas, despite signals of strength at home. See more.
Apple Beats Expectations: On Tuesday, Apple ($AAPL) reported $53.8 billion in its third quarter earnings report — an increase of 1 percent from the year prior and slightly better than expected. Earnings per share posted at $2.18, which is up 8 cents from the expected price, but a drop of 7 percent from last year. CEO Tim Cook said that the gains were largely due to services and wearables, as the company saw a decrease in iPhone sales from the previous year. See more.
Beyond Meat Stock Sinks: The plant-based meat company's revenues came in nearly $15 million more than expected, at $67.3 million, constituting a 287 percent jump in revenue from the same period in 2018. But Beyond Meat ($BYND) concerned investors with a loss of 24 cents in revenue-per-share and the announcement that it would pursue a secondary offering, selling more shares in the company from common and company-owned stock. The company's stock plunged following the earnings report on Monday. See more.
FTC May Not Be Done With Facebook: Reports this week said Facebook ($FB) may have a new challenge coming from the Federal Trade Commission. According to The Wall Street Journal report, the regulatory agency may be looking into the social media giant for anti-competitive practices stemming from its many acquisitions. It could be a difficult case for the FTC to make, Joel Mitnick, an antitrust partner at Cadwalader, told Cheddar on Friday. Facebook's shares struggled following the report. See more.
