Sustainable Finance Newsletter - Fear of tariffs plays out even among US guitar makers
For my column this week I looked at the potential impact new U.S. tariffs could have on musical instrument sales, a small but telling slice of the economy.You can read more below, plus find links to stories about tariff-related comments from major CEOs. If you want to dig deeper into our coverage you can subscribe to our new "Tariff Watch" newsletter .I've also added a few Exxon items this week, including that the oil major will not face any shareholder resolutions at its upcoming spring meeting.Please follow me on LinkedIn and/or Bluesky. Or get me via And, we have a favor to ask: Reuters Econ World , our weekly economics podcast, has been nominated for a Webby Award in two categories and we would appreciate your vote. It’s for the pod’s "Swiftonomics" episode. If you like what you hear, please vote here and here . Fear of tariffs plays out even among US guitar makersSometimes the smaller industries can shed the best light on bigger trends.I think that is the case with the U.S. musical instruments sector, which fears the sweeping tariffs announced by U.S. President Donald Trump last week, the head of a trade group told me.John Mlynczak, CEO of the National Association of Music Merchants, explained how the tariffs are poised to disrupt supply arrangements with countries like Vietnam. "This is a highly specialized industry, it's not like you could send CNC drawings to a different factory tomorrow," he said, using an industry term for technical drawings.You can read more in my column this week by clicking here.Company news On Monday JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon warned in his annual letter that trade wars could have lasting negative consequences. On Monday, BlackRock CEO Larry Fink said stock markets could fall 20% further as steep tariffs give rise to recession talk among other corporate leaders.The pay of Exxon CEO Darren Woods rose 19% to $44.1 million for 2024, a regulatory filing showed. On my radar Speaking of Exxon, its recent proxy shows it will face no shareholder resolutions at its May 28 annual meeting, following litigation against investors last year. Were investors scared off? "We are vocal in advocating against ideas that destroy value," Exxon said in a statement sent by a representative. Exxon added it received only one resolution this year, which regulators allowed it to leave aside.Meanwhile, investors at UnitedHealth said they withdrew a resolution that had called for the insurer to report on practices that "limit or delay access to healthcare," citing new guidance giving more power to corporate executives.A memo seen by Reuters shows the U.S. Justice Department is disbanding its National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team.