Trump Rescinds Biden-Era AI Chip Curbs, Fed Holds Rates Amid Inflation Concerns

Semiconductor Policy Shift

• ⚡ Trump administration plans to rescind Biden-era II chip curbs, aiming to revise semiconductor trade restrictions.
• 🎯 This move, not yet final, seeks to refashion a policy that tiered countries for regulating chip exports from companies like NVIDIA.
• 💡 The Trump administration will not enforce the "AI diffusion rule" scheduled to take effect on May 15th.

Trade Tariffs and Economic Impact

• 💰 President Trump stated he is not open to pulling back his 145% duties on Chinese imports, citing significant annual trade losses.
• 📈 The decision comes ahead of a scheduled meeting between U.S. and Chinese trade representatives.
• ⚠️ Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell indicated that tariffs could lead to higher inflation and unemployment.

Federal Reserve Interest Rate Stance

• 📊 Officials voted unanimously to keep the benchmark federal funds rate unchanged, citing a growing risk of both higher inflation and rising unemployment.
• 🗣️ Powell noted that near-term inflation expectations have moved up, with survey respondents pointing to tariffs as a driving factor.
• 📉 The potential inflationary effects of policies could be short-lived or more persistent, depending on tariff impacts and inflation expectations.

Apple's Safari and AI Search

• 🍎 Apple is exploring reshaping its Safari Web browser to focus on AI-powered search engines.
• 🔍 This consideration arises due to the potential fallout of its deal with Google and broader industry shifts.
• 📉 Apple's senior vice president of services disclosed this during testimony in the U.S. Justice Department's lawsuit against Alphabet, noting a recent dip in Safari searches attributed to AI usage.

Papal Conclave

• 🇻🇦 Cardinals have begun the centuries-old ritual to elect a successor to Pope Francis, with the first election resulting in black smoke, indicating no new pope was chosen.