Chips sector sentiment soured today amid signs that further export restrictions on advanced AI products may be on the way.

• Nvidia shares fell 6.9% today after the company warned it expects to take a $5.5 billion hit from "inventory, purchase commitments, and related reserves" connected with its H20 chips.
• Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) said it's facing similar charges of up to $800 million tied to its MI309 products due to new export restrictions, sending its stock down 7.4%.

Zoom in: The U.S. government notified Nvidia on April 9 that it would require a license to export H20 chips "and any other circuits achieving the H20's memory bandwidth, interconnect bandwidth, or combination thereof," the company said in a public filing.

• "The disclosures from Nvidia and AMD serve as the first major warning signs that Trump's fierce battle with China could stifle growth for the critical components utilized in the world's largest tech innovations," CNBC reported.

The bottom line: The global AI race is colliding with the trade war between the U.S. and China — and chip makers are caught in the middle.

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Fed chair Jerome Powell today said President Trump's tariffs would likely lead to a faster rise in prices and weigh on economic growth.

• "Tariffs are highly likely to generate at least a temporary rise in inflation," Powell said in a speech at the Economic Club of Chicago, warning of the possibility that inflationary effects could also linger.

The big picture: Powell said the Fed could face a tough scenario if inflation rises alongside teetering economic growth.

• Between the lines: The Fed would have to choose whether to support the economy (likely with lower rates) or tame inflation (likely with higher rates).

Trump's tariff regime — which has shifted week-to-week — has been "significantly larger than anticipated," Powell said.

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Temu and Shein are raising prices as they grapple with President Trump's move to close a trade loophole on cheap Chinese goods.

• Zoom in: The companies separately told customers in similar messages today that they'll be hiking prices beginning April 25 "due to recent changes in global trade rules and tariffs."

The big picture: Imported shipments valued at less than $800 had enjoyed the "de minimis" exemption from U.S. tariffs, enabling foreign online retailers like Temu and Shein to sell super-cheap items to American consumers.

• Trump recently moved to close that loophole.

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🚗 Bill Ackman's Pershing Square Capital Management disclosed it had acquired about 4.1% of Hertz. The investment sent the beleaguered rental car company's stock soaring. (WSJ)

✈️ United Airlines said bookings are stable so far this quarter despite concerns about the economy stemming from tariffs. (Reuters)

🏍️ One of Harley-Davidson's largest shareholders, H Partners, wants its CEO Jochen Zeitz and two other board members to be ousted immediately. Harley blasted "mischaracterizations, inaccuracies and untruths" from a former board member now with H Partners. (Bloomberg)

🏠 Homebuilder sentiment is mired in the dumps. The NAHB's Housing Market Index ticked up a scant one point to 40 in April from the previous month, but that was before the recent mortgage-rate increase registered. (Any number below 50 indicates negative sentiment.) (Axios)

Vermont's maple syrup industry is facing a sticky situation: tariffs.

Threat level: President Trump's trade war threatens to ensnare maple syrup providers, which rely heavily on foreign equipment to keep the sweet product flowing.

• Stainless steel fixtures used to "connect sap lines and boil the liquid into syrup can originate in China," while "packaging often comes from Italy" and "the vast majority of equipment is sold by Canada," AP reports.

State of play: Syrup producers in New York, Maine and Wisconsin could also face higher costs.

The Vermont Maple Sugar Makers' Association is looking for clarity in the tariff policy so its sugarers can get back to growth mode. But that's proving challenging.

• "It's like the weather in New England," executive director Allison Hope tells AP. "You wait five minutes and it might change."