John Smyth
2024-11-06 13:59:28 UTC
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Permalink<https://www.newsmax.com/finance/streettalk/trump-white-house/2024/11/06/id/1186937/>
'Donald Trump's return to the White House after winning the Nov. 5 U.S.
presidential election may reshape American business. Much depends on
whom he appoints as deputies and cabinet members, including the role of
Tesla CEO Elon Musk, and what tariffs he enacts. Following are some
major issues and sectors to watch:
WHAT ROLE WILL ELON MUSK PLAY?
After some nudging from the world's wealthiest person, Trump has said he
would tap Tesla CEO Elon Musk to lead a new government efficiency
commission. Musk has said at least $2 trillion could be cut from the
$6.75 trillion federal budget. How that works could be a key to the next
Trump administration.
Does efficiency mean fewer rules and regulators? Musk has been a vocal
critic, for instance, of federal review of his SpaceX rocket business.
That could mean less oversight of self-driving cars (a Tesla business)
or rocket launches and much more.
The two men are not completely in sync: Trump has said he won't let
California require all vehicles in the state go electric in a decade,
but Musk runs the world's most valuable EV company. "A rising tide
raises all boats. So to the extent that Elon is able to hamper the
vilification of EVs by a potential Trump administration, all the
better," said James Chen, former head of policy for Rivian and Tesla.
How Musk would address conflicts of interest between his interests in
autos, space, health, construction and artificial intelligence is not
clear. Trump has pledged to be a "crypto president," a plan that may
start with replacing industry opponent Gary Gensler, the Securities and
Exchange Commission chair who has sued most of the industry — including
Coinbase, Binance and Kraken.
Gensler's replacement is expected to review — and potentially tear up —
accounting guidance and create industry exemptions from SEC rules. Musk,
too is a crypto supporter, as is Silicon Valley Trump supporter Marc
Andreessen and incoming Vice President J.D. Vance.
Musk is also a big proponent of carbon-free energy, with Tesla being a
major supplier of solar systems and batteries. Trump has promised to
kill the offshore wind industry and rescind all unspent funds under the
Inflation Reduction Act – Biden’s signature climate law. But Trump faces
dissent in his ranks: Republican lawmakers, oil companies and others see
massive red state gains from the law. Musk has played into that,
building his second U.S. electric vehicle factory in Texas, for
instance.
TARIFFS
Trump has proposed a 10% tariff on all U.S. imports and 60% on
Chinese-made products, which if enacted would affect the whole economy
by pushing consumer prices higher. The Tax Foundation, a non-partisan
think tank, calculated Trump tariffs would hike taxes by $524 billion
annually, shrink GDP by at least 0.8%, and cut employment by 684,000
full-time equivalent jobs potentially impacting retail workers, the
largest private sector employer. He also suggested he might impose a 25%
tariff on all imports from Mexico.
Trump's tariff proposals could reduce American consumers' spending power
between $46 billion and $78 billion each year, according to a National
Retail Federation study.
Apparel, toys, furniture, household appliances and footwear would be the
most affected categories, the study said. Retailers would shift
operations outside of China to countries including Bangladesh, India,
and Vietnam. Big-box stores like Walmart and Target would face higher
supply chain costs, while supermarkets like Kroger, Albertsons, and
Publix, which minimally source from China, could benefit.
Shipping and transportation experts say sweeping tariffs could initially
bolster their business before depressing trade. Tariffs loom over tech
as well. In recent weeks, Trump has also heavily criticized the U.S.
CHIPS and Science Act that has sought to partially subsidize companies
building factories in the United States. Instead, he said the country
should impose tariffs on chips coming into the country, especially from
Taiwan's TSMC.
Tariffs also would sharply raise costs for the renewable energy
industries in the U.S., which rely heavily on Chinese components. “Trump
actions without Congressional backing could include import tariffs of
10-20% (ex China), 60%-200% on Chinese imports which could impact the
cost of renewable projects, particularly solar and storage projects,”
according to an October research note from Bernstein.
And then there is the question of China's retaliation. It is the world's
biggest soy importer and pork consumer, but it has diversified its food
supply base since Trump's tariffs in his first administration. Moreover,
China failed to fully comply with an agreement to buy more U.S.
agricultural goods that it signed with Trump in January 2020. Trump has
vowed in his second term to impose 60% duties on imports from China,
raising concerns that Beijing will retaliate by reducing imports of U.S.
farm products.
OIL: DRILL BABY DRILL — BUT NOT IRAN
The United States is already the world’s biggest oil and gas producer,
but Trump wants to clear away remaining obstacles. He'll lift a freeze
on new liquefied natural gas export permits, expand federal drilling
auctions, speed up new pipeline permitting and try to reverse or weaken
regulations aimed at cutting power plant and auto emissions.
Trump's support for the oil and gas industry could also lead him to
temper his opposition to the Inflation Reduction Act, since oil
companies are receiving some funding from it for carbon-free endeavors
like carbon capture and sequestration.
The big oil policy wildcard is how Trump will treat rival exporters,
including Russia, Saudi Arabia, and Iran. It is likely that Trump would
relieve sanctions on Russian energy, but leave in place those on Iran,
said Ed Hirs, an energy fellow at the University of Houston. Jesse
Jones, an analyst with consulting firm Energy Aspects, expects even
more. “We think that the impact of a Trump administration returning to a
maximum pressure campaign on Iran could lead to a million barrel per day
decrease in Iranian crude exports,” he said.
LABOR UNIONS
Organized labor made great strides under President Joe Biden, who joined
a picket line with U.S. auto workers. The UAW wants to expand and in
future strikes the federal government could be asked to intervene in a
way that undercuts worker bargaining power, something Democrats have so
far declined to do.
Republicans have typically been unfriendly to unions, but Trump has
played a different game, reaching out to blue-collar workers. Strong
support among many union workers may pressure Trump to protect those
voters, said Anthony Miyazaki, a marketing professor at Florida
International University.
Still, his record of appointing leaders to the National Labor Relations
Board resulted in a roll back of workers' rights to form unions. If this
cycle repeats, it could potentially reverse the gains unions have made
since the pandemic, including successful organizing efforts at Starbucks
and Amazon and other fledgling movements at Apple, REI and Trader Joe's.
OTHER TOPICS INCLUDE:
FINANCE
Within banking, JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs, Bank of America and other
lenders will likely enjoy a reprieve from stiff capital hikes, M&A
hoop-jumping, and Biden's "junk fees" crackdown. Trump is expected to
quickly install industry-friendly Republicans at the financial
regulators. But those gains may be offset if Trump follows through on
tax and trade policies that will widen the deficit and fuel inflation,
in turn boosting lending rates. That could push existing loans into the
red, say analysts.
ANTITRUST AND TECH
Trump may walk back the Department of Justice's bid to break up
Alphabet's Google and prefer settling with companies over competition
issues in mergers, rather than new trials, attorneys said. The nation's
tough, top merger cop, Federal Trade Commission Chair Lina Khan, is
almost certainly headed for the door. More broadly, Trump's backers in
Silicon Valley, including investors Peter Thiel and Marc Andreessen and
Tesla chief Elon Musk, want less regulation of new technology, from
artificial intelligence to rockets. They have a champion in former
venture capitalist Vance.
MEDIA: WATCH WHAT YOU SAY
Washington Post owner Jeff Bezos decided days before the vote that the
paper would not endorse anyone for president, describing it as a
principled move to regain credibility. Hundreds of thousands of
subscribers left, many saying it was political cowardice. USA Today and
the LA Times also declined to endorse a candidate.
“The message is pretty clear right now,” said former FCC Chairman Tom
Wheeler. "That is conceding to the tyrant in advance before you're asked
to," said New York University School of Professional Studies adjunct
associate professor Helio Fred Garcia, an author of two books about
Trump.
During the campaign, Trump called on the Federal Communications
Commission to strip ABC and CBS of their broadcast licenses. FCC Chair
Jessica Rosenworcel has denounced Trump's calls to revoke licenses for
broadcast stations, citing free speech protections.
But the independence of the FCC could be at risk if Trump follows
through on a campaign pledge to bring regulatory agencies, such as the
FCC, under presidential authority, Wheeler said. The president also
could invoke his emergency powers under the Communications Act to exert
control over broadcasters, citing “national security” concerns.
Even so, a new Trump presidency will likely give cable TV news networks
like CNN, Fox News and MSNBC and news outlets including The New York
Times and Washington Post the same big jolt to viewers and audience that
his first term generated.
PHARMACEUTICALS
Trump recently said he would let former presidential candidate and
anti-vaccine advocate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. "go wild" on vaccine and
healthcare policy. Kennedy has said that Trump promised him control over
the FDA, CDC, HHS, and the USDA.
Those jobs could potentially give him control over what vaccines are
approved and whether Americans are recommended to receive them. Trump
transition co-chair Howard Lutnick has said Kennedy is not going to be
put in charge of the Department of Health and Human Services, but
suggested he could advise on vaccines.
Jeremy Levin, CEO of biotech company Ovid Therapeutics and former
chairman of biotech lobby group BIO, said he would be alarmed if Kennedy
was given oversight over vaccines, and that other executives had also
expressed concern.
"Vaccine denialism, which is a central plank of RFK's, is perhaps as
dangerous as anything you can imagine," he said, adding that President
Trump's previous appointments for the COVID vaccine effort and the FDA
suggest to him that more moderate positions will win out. Some
executives also were concerned that Kennedy's influence could harm the
U.S.'s reputation and ability to review new drugs'