Today's Cheddlines You Need 2 Know

• Stocks soar as Trump pauses some tariffs

• How’re American stocks doing? Let’s ask the WSJ!

• Elon Musk vs. Peter Navarro: The feud heats up

• Micromoon set to appear Saturday night

• Caraway’s CEO on his non-toxic, non-stick pans

—Matt Davis, Need2Know Chedditor

Stocks in today’s newsletter

$SPX ( ▲ 0.13% )  $TSLA ( ▼ 0.08% )  

Stocks soar as Trump pauses some tariffs

Yesterday proved to be one of the most remarkable days in recent market history as U.S. stocks soared, thrust by President Donald Trump’s surprising reveal on Truth Social:

Having said since last week he would not back down, Trump’s announcement of a 90-day pause on tariffs to most countries — except China, which now faces a 125% tariff — injected a wave of optimism and volatility back into the market. All three major indexes rallied toward record highs through the course of the day and by mid-afternoon, the market had amassed an astonishing gain of $4.8 trillion in market value. $SPX ( ▲ 0.13% )  

Trump told a congressional dinner on Tuesday night, “I know what the Hell I’m doing.”

Bill “😘” Ackman, who asked for the 90-day pause on the weekend, had this to say:

Others were slightly more direct about the evident policy U-turn. The New York Times’s’s’s website, for example, led with the headline “Trump Backs Down.” But this is the graph that really matters:

How’re American stocks doing? Let’s ask the WSJ!

We spoke with Chelsea Dulaney from the Wall Street Journal about her article on the end of the ‘American Exceptionalism’ trade. From the piece:

The stark contrast in returns between U.S. markets and others is striking. "If you were to have invested in, you know, an index fund that is pretty heavily weighted on the U.S. in 2008, you would have tripled your money. You would have $3,000 to your $1,000. But if you had invested in an index fund that didn't include the U S, you would have maybe have $1,500," Dulaney said.

Looking ahead, the question is whether this market turbulence will lead to a change in global investment strategies. Dulaney says, "They're all saying this is a regime shift. It is really making people rethink their exposure to the U.S., not just because of stocks or bonds, but because of the dollar as well."

My sense is global investors will wish they’d bought American stocks yesterday morning and sold them yesterday evening. #NotFinancialAdvice

From @cheddar

Post of the day: @gaut

Elon Musk vs. Peter Navarro: The feud heats up

Elon Musk slammed President Trump’s top trade adviser, Peter “Let’s ask economics expert Ron Vara” Navarro, as “dumber than a sack of bricks” on Tuesday.

The squabble between Musk and Navarro escalated on Monday when the latter said on CNBC that Musk was not a “car manufacturer” but a “car assembler” because Tesla $TSLA ( ▼ 0.08% ) uses parts from around the world.

Mr. Musk fired back on Tuesday, calling Mr. Navarro a “moron” and “dumber than a sack of bricks” in a post on X, the social media site he owns. Later in the day, Musk doubled down, writing, “I’d like to apologize to bricks for calling Peter Retarrdo dumber than a sack of bricks. That was so unfair to bricks.”

The White House response is that “boys will be boys.”

Should you check your 401(k) today?

👍🏽

Ah, go on, then…

Micromoon set to appear Saturday night

This weekend, the night sky will feature a micromoon, where the full moon appears slightly smaller and dimmer because it's at its farthest point from Earth.

Noticing the micromoon's subtle difference might challenge the naked eye, which is why you should probably spend thousands of dollars on a Chinese-made telescope.

Micromoons, which we understand are the opposite of supermoons, occur a few times annually as the full moon's phase aligns with its orbital position. After this weekend, another micromoon is expected in May, while three supermoons will grace the skies later this year. Additionally, a colorful lunar eclipse occurred in March, displaying a coppery red moon. The moon is cool.

Quote of the Day: DJT

Caraway’s CEO on his non-toxic, non-stick pans

"I was cooking at home one night, put a Teflon fry pan on my burner, accidentally forgot I left it there with the flame on for about 45 minutes. Came back to the kitchen, whole apartment was filled with fumes and smoke and I actually started feeling sick," said Caraway CEO Jordan Nathan. The incident led him to call poison control and discover he was exposed to Teflon poisoning. "For the next few days kind of felt flu-like symptoms, so nausea, headaches, and so on," he said.

The experience sparked Nathan’s deep dive into cookware materials and the realization of how toxic Teflon is. Frustrated by the lack of alternatives, Nathan launched Caraway in 2019, starting with cookware featuring a ceramic, non-toxic, and non-stick coating. "Fast forward five years later, we now sell bakeware, food storage, knives and utensils," Nathan said.

Caraway products are made in China, which raises questions about tariffs and supply chain issues. Nathan acknowledged the challenges, saying, "I think the biggest challenge right now is the unknown on what happens tomorrow. Things are constantly changing and it's an evolving situation."

So, Caraway is exploring other manufacturing opportunities outside of Asia. Meantime I’ve just realized I left a Teflon frying pan on the stove 45 minutes ago.

Poll of the Day: Where does America stand?

Results from Tuesday’s Poll

We asked: Do you think layoffs are a good idea at the Department for Homeland Security?

You answered:

🟨🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ Yes. All government agencies are ripe for cutbacks. (151 votes, 27%)

 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 No. I want the homeland secure and we need more people for that, not less. (421 votes, 73%)

572 Votes via @beehiiv polls