Fashion footwear company NineWest on Friday filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
Why it matters: This is the latest in a growing list of private equity-backed consumer brands to go bankrupt, in large part due to large debt loads related to their originals acquisitions.
In an interview with CNBC Friday, Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin said that the Trump administration has been "very well-organized" in its handling of tariffs on Chinese goods, and that their "objective" is to avoid a trade war, but warned that "there is the potential of a trade war."
Mnuchin is breaking with White House economic advisor Larry Kudlow, who has tried to instill a sense of calm with the president, who has denied trade war fears on Twitter, and through the roller coaster markets this week by insisting the U.S. is not in a trade war with China.
President Trump said Friday that the World Trade Organization "is unfair" to the U.S., unlike China, who he claims gets "tremendous perks and advantages" for their status as a developing nation. Note: China has responded to the U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods by filing a complaint through the WTO.
The facts: There are no definitions of "developed" or "developing" countries within the WTO. Countries in the WTO are designated on the basis of self-selection, per the WTO website. The WTO cannot determine what China designates itself as.
White House economic advisor Larry Kudlow came out on television again Friday to try to calm fears on the escalating tariff situation with China, maintaining for the second time this week that the U.S. is not in a trade war, negotiations are still in the works, and that China is to blame — not President Trump.
"We are considering adding tariff pressures. Considering. ... I don't want to disrupt the economy. The president doesn't want to disrupt the economy ... This a moderate, temperate approach we are taking ... this is not a trade war."
Why it matters: The Trump administration insists they aren't engaging in a trade war with China, but the country's latest comments have increasingly made it appear to be just that.
"Now that stocks, bonds and other assets are moving in strange ways, many investors view continued volatility as one of the year’s most dependable bets," the Wall Street Journal reports on A1:
"The Cboe index, known as the VIX, is up 72% since the start of the year."
Hedge funds and asset managers are "buying futures contracts pegged to the VIX, a profitable bet if volatility continues to rise."
Goldman Sachs wrote in an April 2 report: "Hedge what you fear."
