Category: Flash News

On April 9, Lawrence Summers, professor of economics at Harvard University and former US Treasury Secretary, said on the 8th that due to the tariff measures being implemented by the Trump government, the US may be heading for economic recession, which may lead to unemployment of about 2 million Americans, and each family will face an income loss of at least 5000 dollars.

On April 9th, JPMorgan Chase announced that the probability of an economic recession in stocks closely related to the US economy has skyrocketed to nearly 80%. At the same time, although financial pressure may intensify, credit product investors remain optimistic. According to J.P. Morgan’s market-based recession indicator dashboard, the Russell 2000 index, which has been hit hard in the recent sell-off, currently reflects a 79% likelihood of an economic recession. Other asset classes are also issuing warnings: the S&P 500 index shows a 62% probability of an economic recession, base metals show a 68% probability, and 5-year US Treasury bonds correspond to a 54% probability. In contrast, the probability of economic recession digested by the investment grade credit market is only 25%, which was zero in November last year. As a more cyclical index, the Russell 2000 should better reflect the position of the US economy in the cycle. Currently, the average degree of economic recession probability digested by the index is as high as 80%, “said Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou, a strategist at JPMorgan Chase.” The market has almost 100% digested the scenario of mild recession

On the evening of April 9th, the media office in the Gaza Strip issued a statement stating that it firmly opposes Israel’s plan to directly control the distribution of humanitarian aid, believing that this is a blatant attempt by Israel to create false legitimacy for its illegal occupation of Gaza and evade its international obligations as an occupying power.

On April 9th, Venezuelan President Maduro posted on social media that the US tariff trade war against the world will have negative effects in both the short and medium to long term, and is a war without winners. Maduro stated that the “tariff war” is a self harming act of the US economy, and the US should not use this approach to undermine the global economy and the interdependent economic and trade ties between countries. The US is attempting to make other countries submit by imposing sanctions on the world.

On April 9th, according to a statement released by the Israeli Defense Forces, on the morning of the 8th local time, Israeli Chief of Staff Zamir and other senior officials went to the southern Gaza Strip to inspect Israeli troops and approved the Israeli military’s continued operation plan. Zamir said in a speech to the Israeli 36th Division on site that this was the first military operation carried out by the Israeli army in the “Morag Corridor”, during which dozens of armed personnel were killed and a large number of weapons were seized by the Israeli army. He demanded that the Israeli military exert greater pressure to defeat the Hamas Rafale Brigade.

On April 9th, the Israeli High Court held a hearing lasting several hours local time on the 8th, and finally issued a temporary injunction, ruling that Ronan Bar would remain as the director of the National Security Agency (Shin Bet) until further notice from the court. During this period, the government shall not take any action to dismiss him. The Israeli High Court has also requested that the Israeli government and the Israeli Attorney General’s Office reach an agreement on the legal dispute surrounding Ronan Bar’s dismissal before April 20th.

On April 9th, the Canadian Ministry of Finance announced on the 8th that the 25% tariff on US cars will take effect at 00:01 Eastern Time on the 9th. Canadian Finance Minister Shang Pengfei stated that Canada will continue to respond strongly to all unreasonable tariffs imposed by the United States on Canada. The Canadian government is firmly committed to lifting these US tariffs as soon as possible to protect Canadian workers, businesses, economy, and industry. Shang Pengfei said that Canada will also implement a reduction plan for car manufacturers to incentivize their production and investment in Canada, and help maintain employment opportunities in Canada.

On April 9th, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Rudenko stated on April 8th local time that Russia is currently not negotiating any peace treaty with Japan. If the Japanese government does not change its policy towards Russia, Russia does not see any prospects for future peace treaty negotiations with Japan. Russia Japan relations have always been plagued by territorial disputes. These islands are known as Iturup Island, Kunashir Island, Hikotan Island, and Habomai Islands in Russia, and as the Satsuma, Kunashir, Sedan, and Sawa Islands in Japan. Japan refers to the four islands as the Northern Territories, while Russia calls them the Southern Kuril Islands. These islands belonged to Japan before World War II, were occupied by the Soviet Union after World War II, and were effectively controlled by Russia after the dissolution of the Soviet Union. Russia and Japan have not yet concluded a peace treaty due to disputes over the ownership of these islands.

On April 8th, Guangliang Media announced that its controlling shareholder, Guangliang Holdings, proposed to distribute a cash dividend of RMB 2 (including tax) for every 10 shares in the company’s 2024 profit distribution plan. It is expected to distribute a total of RMB 585 million, without bonus shares or conversion of public reserves into share capital. Ray Holdings will vote in favor during the shareholders’ meeting. The company stated that the proposal complies with relevant laws and regulations and will not affect normal operations and long-term development. The specific plan needs to be reviewed and approved by the board of directors and shareholders’ meeting before implementation.

On April 8th, Musk reposted a video of Milton Friedman (1912-2006), a renowned American economist, professor of economics at the University of Chicago, and winner of the 1976 Nobel Prize in Economics, on his social media. Friedman held a pencil as an example to discuss the division of labor and cooperation in the global industrial chain, jointly producing goods and benefiting each other. Musk’s move is seen by the public as a public opposition to the Trump administration’s tariff policies.