Jul 25, 2018

Tariffs are popular topic on corporate earnings calls

Source: Axios Visuals

President Trump's trade wars are a popular topic this corporate earnings season, with CNBC reporting that "tariffs have been mentioned in some form [by] more than 40% of the 146 S&P 500 companies that have already reported second-quarter earnings."

Bottom line: Some companies, such as Whirlpool and Coca-Cola, say that tariffs already have negatively affected their business, but the broader economic impact won't really be known until third quarter numbers are released by both companies and federal agencies.

Go deeper

Dave Lawler, Barak Ravid

27 mins ago - World

Trump announces normalization of ties between Israel and UAE

Israel Prime Minister Netanyahu, Trump and UAE Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed. Photo: Artur Widak/NurPhoto; Samuel Corum; Odd Andersen/AFP via Getty Images

President Trump announced a "historic" deal Thursday which will see Israel and the UAE open full diplomatic relations and Israel suspend its annexation plans in the West Bank.

Why it matters: This is a major breakthrough for Israel, which does not have diplomatic recognition in many Middle Eastern countries but has been steadily improving relations in the Gulf, largely due to mutual antipathy toward Iran.

Go deeper (1 min. read)

Shane Savitsky

Updated 49 mins ago - Politics & Policy

Trump vows to block stimulus funding for mail-in voting and USPS

President Trump on Thursday told Fox Business' Maria Bartiromo that Democratic demands to fund mail-in voting and the U.S. Postal Service in ongoing coronavirus stimulus negotiations were a non-starter.

Why it matters: Trump directly linked Democrats' desired $3.6 billion for mail-in voting and $25 billion for the USPS to his continued baseless claims that increased mail-in voting will lead to widespread voter fraud.

Go deeper (2 min. read)

Ben Geman

2 hours ago - Energy & Environment

Wind and solar power hit record global market shares in first half of 2020

Reproduced from Ember; Chart: Axios Visuals

A steep decline in coal-fired power combined with rising wind and solar output drove the carbon-free sources to record global market share in the first half of 2020, per a new analysis from the environmental think tank Ember.

Why it matters: The report shows how the coronavirus pandemic is speeding the ongoing shakeup of the global power mix — but also how it's occurring too slowly to reach international climate goals.