Trump 'Two-Faced' Says China, US Tariff Backtrack & Hedge Funds Burned

Your morning briefing, the business news you need in just 15 minutes. On today's podcast: (1) China’s top diplomat accused Donald Trump of taking a hypocritical approach to bilateral ties and denounced tariffs, as tensions rise between the world’s largest economies. (2) President Donald Trump exempted Mexican and Canadian goods covered by the North American trade agreement known as USMCA from his 25% tariffs, offering major reprieves to the US’s two largest trading partners. (3) Wall Street traders continued to navigate intense, quick and sharp market swings amid a slew of tariff headlines, with stocks getting pummeled after almost wiping out their losses. (4) Millennium Management, Citadel and other top hedge funds posted lacklustre returns in February, as market gyrations reversed momentum on key trades and clobbered popular stocks. (5) The European Union agreed to begin discussions on a long-term reform of its fiscal rules to allow member states to spend more on defense, following a push from Germany. (6) European Central Bank officials are bracing for tough negotiations over whether to cut interest rates further or hold fire when they next set borrowing costs in April, according to people familiar with their thinking. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.