Russia is preparing its response to President Donald Trump’s call to accept a ceasefire after Ukraine agreed to a 30-day truce at talks with the US in Saudi Arabia. Pending details of the agreement reached in the city of Jeddah, the Kremlin hasn’t ruled out a phone call between Trump and President Vladimir Putin. 

We’re told the Russian leader will probably agree to eventual terms with Ukraine, but wants to ensure his own conditions are included, and will likely drag out the timeline before any cessation of hostilities takes effect.

Trump’s tango with Putin is about to begin.— Caroline Alexander

What You Need to Know Today

Trump’s 25% tariffs on steel and aluminum imports came into force today, triggering concern across export-reliant Asian economies and immediate reprisals from the European Union and Canada. The UK reaffirmed its commitment to US trade talks. Other countries, including South Korea, Taiwan, Japan, and Australia, also held off on instant retaliation. China, which wasn’t explicitly targeted in the latest trade salvo, didn’t immediately respond.

 

Rheinmetall is projecting sales will grow as much as 40% this year at its main defense business as Europe ramps up military spending. The maker of the Boxer armored vehicle is poised to expand production as Germany’s incoming government plans to unlock hundreds of billions of euros for military spending and pushes EU leaders to follow suit. With the race to rearm delivering a bonanza to equity investors, credit funds are scrambling to get a share of the windfall, too. In Estonia, startups also see an opportunity. 

Israel and Lebanon held preliminary talks on potentially completing an Israeli troop withdrawal from the Arab country and could eventually discuss properly delineating their long-disputed land border. Delegates from the countries, which do not have formal relations, met along with US and French mediators at a border liaison position.

A vehicle drives past buildings destroyed in Israeli strikes, near the border wall in Ramia, Lebanon, on March 5. Photographer: MAHMOUD ZAYYAT/AFP

A JPMorgan Chase quant unit has amassed a $100 billion derivatives-powered trading book, offering hedge fund-like investing on the cheap to investors of all stripes. The bank’s Strategic Indices business has been at the forefront of the boom in what are known as Quantitative Investment Strategies, or QIS, which turn well-known systematic trades into swaps or structured notes — making copycat products that are easier and more cost-effective to deploy.

Greenland’s voters unexpectedly picked a party backing a slower approach to independence in a general election overshadowed by Trump’s plans to take over the Arctic Island. Portugal, meanwhile, is heading to its third early election in nearly as many years after parliament toppled the government in a confidence vote. And in Romania, the largest far-right party is scrambling to find a candidate after the independent front-runner it supported was barred from May’s presidential ballot amid a political crisis that’s drawing attention from Trump and JD Vance. 

Elon Musk’s fans are known for their commitment to Tesla, but even long-term believers are backing away. The stock is now down 52% from the all-time high touched in mid-December and has given back all of the gains it experienced after the election, when traders were betting Tesla would benefit from its owner’s close ties to the new president. The retreat from the EV company — the biggest decliner in the S&P 500 Index this year — has been so extreme that Trump intervened, saying he would buy a new Tesla to support Musk.

If Musk were to get his way, Trump would preside over an economic overhaul befitting a fellow 1980s icon: Margaret Thatcher. In his attack on the role of government in America, Musk has targeted $1 trillion in cuts in the next year — a figure many experts see as unlikely but one that shows the scale of his ambition. As a share of GDP, the annual pace of cuts Musk envisions would surpass Thatcher’s in the 1980s, when the Iron Lady dramatically cut UK government spending to close budget deficits and fight inflation, and ended up triggering a recession for which she was unrepentant.

Margaret Thatcher in 1988. Photographer: Mirrorpix/Getty Images

What You’ll Need to Know Tomorrow

For Your Commute

New apartments in the Maybourne Saint-Germain, an ultra-luxury hotel in Paris, could be among the most expensive homes (on a per-square-meter basis) in the city, with apartments starting at around €6 million ($6.54 million). The building where the 23 properties will be located was home to a convent in the 17th century, then a literary salon visited by Benjamin Franklin and Voltaire, and later the Ministry of Defense, where figures from Napoleon to Charles de Gaulle roamed the halls. The project is expected to be completed in 2027, with sales launching in April.

Street facade Source: Sotheby's

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