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Breakfast News: Tariff Stage Is Set

April 2, 2025

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A stage with the American flag as the curtain, with a spotlight on a microphone.

1. Investors Await Announcement

President Trump is due to reveal his new tariffs at 4 p.m. ET, though markets are still in the dark as to rates and countries targeted. The White House press secretary yesterday said the president is "always up" for a phone call, which might signal last-minute talks to help make the levies milder than expected.

  • Highest tariff rates since 1872: Yale's Budget Lab predicts an inflation rise of 2.1% to 2.6% from a mooted 20% blanket tariff, which could cost the average household an annual $3,400 to $4,200. It would push the average effective U.S. tariff rate to 32.8%.
  • Auto impact: Bloomberg reports Mercedes-Benz is considering ending U.S. sales of entry-level vehicles, as tariffs could make their sales unviable. Swamy Kotagiri, CEO of auto supplier Magna (MGA -0.53%), said raised costs will have to be passed on to customers.

2. What You Might've Missed on Tuesday

nCino (NCNO -0.17%) fell 29% in after-hours trading Tuesday, after the cloud-based bank tech company posted a 35% Q4 earnings miss, though revenue did slightly beat estimates. Subscription revenue grew 16% in the quarter, with market expansion a key strategic focus.

  • Lowest level since last September: The February job openings print showed a fall to 7.57 million jobs from January's 7.76 million. That's short of the forecast that suggested no change, and around early 2021 levels.
  • Shares fell nearly 10% on Monday after closing flat on Friday's debut: AI infrastructure company CoreWeave (CRWV -0.17%) jumped 42% Tuesday to end comfortably above its IPO price. Strong results from competitor Progress (PRGS -1.73%) helped.

3. Visa Bids for Apple Credit

The Wall Street Journal reports Visa (V -1.33%) has bid around $100 million to take over Apple's (AAPL -3.82%) credit card from Mastercard (MA -0.66%).

  • Old alliance over: The move comes after Goldman Sachs (GS -1.74%), which joined Apple to launch the credit card in 2019, is moving out of consumer lending.
  • Intense competition: The reports says American Express (AXP -1.76%) is also bidding to take over and become the card's issuer.

4. Our Favorite Day

Our White Lotus pre-IPO offering was, of course, our 2025 April Fool's prank. Those who tried to invest faced wildly fluctuating prices ranging from $4.62 to $85 per share. And the system always locked them into the highest possible purchase price.

  • Lessons learned: Make sure you and your family are not lured into online scams – they are coming fast and furious these days. If an investment opportunity seems too good to be true, pause. If it seems too ridiculous to be true, wait. If someone offers investment guarantees, walk away.
  • The best investments do not come with countdown timers: Our April Fool's tradition is more than just a day of laughter. It's a reminder of the psychological forces that shape our investment decisions. Fear of missing out, blind trust, and the siren song of guaranteed returns can overpower our critical thinking skills. We hope you enjoyed this comical journey as much as we enjoyed creating it. WhiteLotusIPO.com remains open to enjoy and share.

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5. Realty Income Shakes up Financing

Dividend Investor recommendation Realty Income (O 0.49%) is launching a major debt refinancing. The real estate investment trust, on a forecast dividend yield of 5.6%, has announced a new $600 million bond offering with 5.125% yield.

  • "Repayment or repurchase of Realty Income's indebtedness": The company says some of the cash raised may be used for paying down existing debt, including its revolving credit facility and commercial paper programs.
  • "Now that Realty has swelled in size ... is it fair to ask if it's becoming a victim of its own success?": Fool analyst Anthony Schiavone observes "Per share growth seems more difficult and management has now made several investments outside the traditional net-lease space. This is something to watch, but three things remain (near) certain: A monthly dividend, high yield, and dividend growth."

6. Foolish Fun

Do you own any dividend-paying stocks? If so, what's your favorite and why? If not, feel free to share why there's no place in your portfolio for these right now. Discuss with friends and family, or become a member to hear what your fellow Fools are saying.