By Emma Tucker

President Trump's attacks on the Federal Reserve make clear that the central bank will not only be blamed for any economic downturn, but its independence will also come under fire. Trump's threats to remove Fed chief Jerome Powell stoked the stock market rout, which is taking on historic dimensions. Even if the market calms down, dealmakers say the chill on mergers and acquisitions will persist until they can make sense of Trump's stance on antitrust regulation.

Today's Headlines

The Vatican said the funeral of Pope Francis will take place on Saturday. It is expected to draw tens of thousands of Catholic faithful as well as world leaders.

From fake eyelashes to Care Bears, U.S.-bound goods are stuck in tariff limbo as companies try to adjust to Trump's new trade war with China.

Big oil companies are offshoring their prized engineering jobs to lower-cost labor pools in countries such as India, while cutting jobs elsewhere.

Florida is contending with a condo crisis as ballooning ownership costs spark a wave of sales, flooding the market and straining prices.

Live From The Markets

The Dow is headed for its worst April performance since 1932 as investors send a "no confidence" signal.

The FDA's new commissioner sent a bullish signal to the biotech sector, helping fuel a rally in riskier biotech names, David Wainer writes.

Read It Here First

Trump is laying the groundwork to blame Powell for any downturn.

Trump is signaling that he will blame the Fed for any economic weakness that results from his trade war if the central bank doesn't cut interest rates soon. In the process, he might also be seeking to delegitimize the historically independent institution in a way that could undermine its effectiveness, Nick Timiraos reports.

Dealmakers are struggling to make sense of Trump's antitrust policy.

Capital One's $35 billion acquisition of Discover got the greenlight from bank regulators last week. In another world, that would be a bullish signal for mergers and acquisitions. But given the lack of big deals so far this year, dealmakers have yet to make complete sense of the Trump administration's position on antitrust policies. Lauren Thomas looks into the messages Trump's antitrust enforcers are sending to dealmakers, with more test cases ahead.

Expert Take

Q: Who might succeed Pope Francis?

The last time the Catholic Church's cardinals picked a pope, they wanted an outsider to overhaul a scandal-plagued Vatican. Now, cardinals are expected to seek a successor who can restore calm after years of ideological polarization in the church, Marcus Walker reports.

A: The cardinals got more of a disruptor in Pope Francis than many had bargained for. Some of them now say they want a successor who can steady the ship and defuse tensions between progressives and conservatives.

Francis appointed 108 of the 135 cardinals who can vote, so it's unlikely a majority will abandon his efforts to bring the church closer to ordinary believers by emphasizing its pastoral role over doctrinaire finger-wagging. Only a small number of traditionalist cardinals want to return to a papacy that enforces a universal orthodoxy on sexual morality and gender issues. But a larger minority of moderate conservatives could block contenders whom they view as too radical on questions such as women's ordination, priestly celibacy and blessings for same-sex couples.

Many cardinals would prefer a pope with enough charisma to continue Francis' outreach, including maintaining a strong voice on political and economic issues, such as wars, migration and climate change. Yet the ideal candidate needs technocratic skills to fix the Vatican's chronic and growing budget deficit, an area where Francis struggled.

None of the men seen as papabile, Italian for "popeable," tick every box. That makes this conclave one of the most open contests in recent history.

See The Story

This bridge promised to boost U.S.-Canada trade. Then tariffs arrived.

The $4.6 billion Gordie Howe bridge linking Detroit and Windsor, Ontario, is nearing completion. But with tariffs rising and trade slowing, its vision of stronger U.S.-Canada ties may be unraveling.

Happening Today

Earth Day

Earnings: Tesla, GE Aerospace, Verizon, Lockheed Martin, Elevance Health, 3M, Capital One, Kimberly-Clark

Number Of The Day:

43%

The share of Canadian voters who said Mark Carney was the better candidate to handle Trump, compared with 36% who chose Pierre Poilievre, leader of Canada's Conservative Party, in an April 16 poll by Abacus Data. At the start of 2025, Poilievre seemed set to become Canada's next prime minister. His party had a 20-point lead in opinion polls for more than a year. Then Trump's trade war and threats to annex Canada upended the country's politics.

And Finally...

For Starbucks cup doodles, smiley faces are in, animals are out.

Starbucks baristas are indulging their inner artists, drawing smiley faces, dogs and other doodles on cups and scribbling "Have a great day!" Part of a bigger overhaul to woo back customers, the doodles have drawn delight, confusion and shrugs. It's also prompted Starbucks to rein in some of the artistry and rebuff baristas who take shortcuts.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

April 22, 2025 06:11 ET (10:11 GMT)

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