The S&P 500 ETF (SPY) and the Nasdaq 100 ETF (QQQ) shrugged off President Trump’s new tariffs on eight countries, with both indexes closing in the green on Wednesday.
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Here are the eight new rates announced by Trump compared to the April 2 reciprocal tariff rates:
- Brazil: 50%, up from 10%
- Iraq: 30%, down from 39%
- Libya: 30%, down from 31%
- Sri Lanka: 30%, down from 44%
- Algeria: 30%, unchanged
- Brunei: 25%, up from 24%
- Moldova: 25%, down from 31%
- Philippines: 20%, up from 17%
These tariffs will take effect on August 1. As of now, Trump’s tariff letter tally stands at 22. Each letter notes that the tariffs could be adjusted higher or lower depending on the country’s relationship with the U.S. and willingness to support U.S.-based production and construction.
Trump has also maintained his criticism of Powell, this time accusing him of costing the U.S. over $1 trillion. “Our Fed Rate is AT LEAST 3 Points too high. ‘Too Late’ is costing the U.S. 360 Billion Dollars a Point, PER YEAR, in refinancing costs. No Inflation, COMPANIES POURING INTO AMERICA,” said Trump in a Truth Social post.
Powell’s term as Chair ends in May 2026. Today, a new contender moved up the ranks to potentially become the next Chair. White House economic advisor Kevin Hassett met with Trump twice last month to discuss the position, according to the Wall Street Journal. Prediction platform Polymarket assigns a 25% chance that Trump will announce Hassett as his Chair pick by December 31, up by 12% compared to yesterday.
Unfortunately for Trump, the odds of a July rate cut fell even lower today following the release of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) minutes. The minutes said that a “couple” of Fed officials supported a July rate cut while “some” supported no cuts in 2025. The odds of a July rate cut are now at 4.7%, down from 6.2% yesterday and 23.8% a week ago.
The S&P 500 (SPX) closed higher by 0.61% while the Nasdaq 100 (NDX) notched a 0.72% gain.
