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The trade war between the U.S. and China is heating up: On Friday, U.S. President Donald Trump lashed out at Beijing after China said it would tighten control over rare earth mineral exports, with the president saying he would impose a new 100% duty on Chinese goodsover and above existing tariffs. The reignited trade war has rocked markets, particularly tech stocks, with the Nasdaq closing 3.6% down on Friday. Analysts are warning that the escalation could lead to an even more economically turbulent market outlook than was seen earlier this year after Trump made his Liberation Day tariff announcement. Trump made the threat on social media, writing that he would impose the new 100% tariff on Chinese goods by Nov. 1.,. Trump also said that the U.S. would limit exports of “any and all critical software.” It is impossible to believe that China would have taken such an action, but they have, and the rest is History, Trump wrote. Earlier on Friday, Trump indicated he might cancel an anticipated meeting with Chinas leader, Xi Jinping. One of the Policies that we are calculating at this moment is a massive increase of Tariffs on Chinese products coming into the United States of America, he said on Friday in a post. There are many other countermeasures that are, likewise, under serious consideration. Why is the trade war escalating again now? Washingtons latest tit-for-tat comes after China announced new trade curbs on rare earth mineralsthe country controls the vast majority of these materials, which are vital for technology manufacturing, as well as for making magnets, batteries, and vehicles. Trump said that China’s move would clog the markets, and that Beijing was holding the world “captive.” Analysts have echoed the presidents concerns, with many cautioning that China’s new regulations will have major impacts for the U.S.’s ability to access materials necessary for technology manufacturing and even military equipment. “These restrictions undermine our ability to develop our industrial base at a time when we need to. And then second, it’s a powerful negotiating tool,” a critical minerals analyst at the Center for Strategic and International Studies said, per NPR. Tariff threats roil markets, and analysts are worried U.S. markets responded quickly to the new tariff threats. On Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 876 points, while the S&P 500 fell 2.7%, and the Nasdaq composite closed 3.6% down. Tech stocks in particular took a hard hit: chipmaker Nvidia, Amazon, and EV-manufacturer Tesla fell by around 5%. And while the global economy has shown remarkable resilience so far in the face of trade upheaval and Trumps tariffs, analysts believe this period of turbulence is far from over. “This is all a game of high stakes poker going on between the US and China in this AI Revolution as we are also seeing more scrutiny in Beijing around Nvidia’s golden chips,” Wedbush Securities analyst Dan Ives said in a research note to clients. Ives added, “These moments we view as buying opportunities to own the winners in semis, software, Big Tech, and the AI future as in our view these tensions will not bubble up into a much more tense time vs. the nervous period of time we saw in April.”
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E-Commerce
Theres a chill in the airand not just from the weather. A newly arrived La Nia pattern is setting the stage for a potentially wild winter, with experts predicting snow-packed northern states, a drier South, and maybe even more late-season hurricanes. Meanwhile, markets caught their own cold snap after fresh U.S.China trade tensions sparked a global sell-off. Still, not all the weeks headlines were gloomy. Uniqlo is going on a U.S. growth spree with 11 new stores planned for next year. But other industries are feeling the squeezefrom whiskey makers battling tariffs and falling demand, to airlines struggling through a government shutdown thats leaving thousands of flights delayed. Throw in a nationwide Listeria pasta recall, a soda study that might make you rethink your next Diet Coke, and the threat of delayed Social Security paymentsand its safe to say this week had something for everyone. Heres a look at what made headlines: La Nia Is Backand Winter Might Get Weird The National Weather Service says La Nia officially kicked in last month, bringing cooler Pacific waters that tend to shake up global weather patterns. Expect snowier-than-normal conditions across the northern U.S. and drier, warmer weather down South. It could also mean more hurricane activity into late fall, even though experts are calling this a weak La Nia. Uniqlo Bets Big on Brick-and-Mortar The Japanese clothing brand known for minimalist staples is going on a U.S. expansion tear. Uniqlo will open 11 new stores next year, including four in New York City and new flagships in Chicago and San Francisco. The move bucks the trend of retailers downsizing as shoppers cut backproof that Fast Retailing, Uniqlos parent company, sees plenty of life left in American retail. Markets Tank After Trumps Tariff Threats Stocks took a nosedive this week after President Trump reignited his trade feud with China, threatening a massive increase in tariffs. Beijings new export controls on rare earth minerals hit tech and defense sectors hardbut ironically sent U.S. rare-earth companies like MP Materials and USA Rare Earth soaring before they cooled off. Crypto investors didnt fare as well, with nearly $125 billion wiped out in a single day. Whiskey Country Feels the Burn Americas whiskey makers are facing a hangover thats about a lot more than tariffs. Spirits exports fell 9% in the second quarter according to the Distilled Spirits Council, and domestic drinking is down to its lowest level in decades. Distilleries in Kentucky and Tennessee are cutting jobs or closing doors, while smaller producers struggle to stay solvent. Your Daily Soda Habit Could Be Hurting Your Liver A new European study suggests that even one can of soda a dayregular or dietcould raise your risk of liver disease by up to 60%. Both sugary and artificially sweetened drinks were linked to fat buildup in the liver and other metabolic issues. Researchers say the safest bet is to skip the fizz and stick with water, no matter how tempting that afternoon “fridge cigarette” sounds. Flight Delays Pile Up During Shutdown If youre flying anytime soon, brace yourself. More than 16,000 flights have been delayed this week as the government shutdown drags on. Air traffic controllers and TSA agents are working unpaid, and airports from Chicago to D.C. are feeling the pinch. With a long weekend ahead, experts say to double-check your flight before leaving for the airportand maybe pack some patience. Kroger Joins the Pasta Recall Parade Kroger is pulling two pasta saladsBasil Pesto Bowtie and Smoked Mozzarella Pennefrom shelves after possible Listeria contamination. The recall affects stores in more than two dozen states and follows similar moves by Walmart, Trader Joes, and Albertsons. At least 19 people have been hospitalized and four have died in a multi-state outbreak linked to ready-to-eat pasta meals. Social Security COLA Bump Could Be Delayed Yes, Social Security checks are still going outbut next years cost-of-living increase may be stuck in limbo. The Bureau of Labor Statistics, which calculates the inflation data needed for the 2026 adjustment, is mostly furloughed during the shutdown. Without those numbers, the SSA cant finalize the expected 2.7% boost in monthly benefits, leaving retirees waiting for answers.
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E-Commerce
If you’ve ever been startled while watching a show on a streaming service that was interrupted by an unreasonably loud commercial and thought to yourself, that should be illegal, soon it will be. At least in California. California Gov. Gavin Newsom this week signed a bipartisan bill into law that bans video streaming services that serve customers in the state from airing audio of commercial advertisements that are louder than the video content it accompanies. It goes into effect July 1, 2026. “We heard Californians loud and clear, and whats clear is that they dont want commercials at a volume any louder than the level at which they were previously enjoying a program,” Newsom said in a statement about the legislation, SB 576. The bill was introduced because of a baby. California state Sen. Thomas Umberg, an Orange County Democrat, said he sponsored the bill because of the daughter of his legislative director, a baby named Samantha who was finally put to bed one night only to be woken up by a much louder commercial. “This bill was inspired by baby Samantha and every exhausted parent whos finally gotten a baby to sleep, only to have a blaring streaming ad undo all that hard work,” Umberg said in a statement. The California law is patterned after federal law, extending the rules of the Commercial Advertisement Loudness Mitigation (CALM) Act to streamers in the state. The 2010 CALM Act was passed by Congress and mandates commercials have the same average volume as the programs they accompany, according to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). The CALM Act was also meeting a real demand. A 2010 Harris poll found 86% of respondents believed commercials were louder than shows. The law only applies to TV commercials, though, not commercials on streaming platforms, radio, or internet. The CALM Modernization Act, which would have extended the rules to streamers, was introduced in 2023 by a pair of Senate Democrats, Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island and Tammy Duckworth of Illinois, but it never got a vote. Even if your state passes similar legislation, be warned: the commercials may still sound louder, and there’s a reason why. That’s because even if commercials can’t be louder on average than the programs they accompany, they are trying to be as loud as they legally can to capture your attention in the 30 short seconds or less they have you. In other words, while a TV show might have its loud moments for effect here and there throughout a program, it’s not yelling at you the whole time like a commercial might. “Most TV commercials are created to be loud simply so you can hear the advertisement and get your attention,” Sony says on a support page for handling loud commercials. “[I]f you are watching a program with soft dialog, when the program cuts to a commercial you will most likely hear a boost or fluctuation in the volume.” California’s new law will be welcome news to parents across the Golden State, but if you’re really worried about waking your baby during commercial breaks in a Hulu binge session, subtitles could be your best bet.
Category:
E-Commerce
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