• Regeneron Pharmaceuticals will acquire 23andMe's assets for $256 million, both companies said.
• 23andMe filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy earlier this year.
• The DNA testing company has faced major challenges including a data breach and mass lay-offs.

The assets of failed DNA testing firm 23andMe are being bought for $256 million.

Biotechnology firm Regeneron Pharmaceuticals said on Monday it would acquire 23andMe's personal genome service, total health, and research services business lines, and its biobank of customers' genetic samples.

Regeneron said San Francisco-headquartered 23andMe would continue to offer all consumer genome services.

"We believe we can help 23andMe deliver and build upon its mission to help those interested in learning about their own DNA and how to improve their personal health, while furthering Regeneron's efforts to use large-scale genetics research to improve the way society treats and prevents illness overall," said George Yancopoulos, cofounder, chief scientific officer, and president of Regeneron, in a statement.

Mark Jensen, chair of 23andMe's special committee of directors, said the deal "maximizes the value of the business and enables the mission of 23andMe to live on, while maintaining critical protections around customer privacy, choice and consent with respect to their genetic data."

Under the agreement, Regeneron must comply with the firm's privacy policies and applicable law regarding customers' personal data. The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of this year.

In March, 23andMe filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, with CEO and cofounder Anne Wojcicki stepping down immediately.

The firm that offered a popular saliva sample service for analyzing ancestry and health risks went public in 2021 and was briefly valued at $6 billion.

However, it never turned a profit and faced major challenges last year, including a $30 million settlement in a class-action suit following the data of some users becoming compromised, two failed attempts by Wojcicki to take the company private, and about 40% of employees being laid off to cut costs.

23andMe said in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing in November it had debts of $2.3 billion, about $126 million in cash and cash equivalents, and would need additional liquidity.

23andMe did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

• The yield on US 30-year Treasurys rose above 5% on Monday.
• The increase follows Moody's downgrading of the US credit rating on Friday.
• Stock futures are down in premarket trading.

The US lost its last remaining top-tier credit rating on Friday, and investors responded on Monday by reviving the "sell America" trade.

Everything from bonds to stocks to the US dollar ticked lower to start the week, with markets assessing the impact of Moody's decision to downgrade the US debt rating from Aaaa to Aa1.

The yield on the 30-year Treasury bond was up as much as 12 basis points to 5.02%, the highest level since late 2023.

The 10-year yield also rose about 10 basis points to surpass 4.5%. Bond yields rise when prices decline.

"If we stay at these levels this would be a higher yield than that seen at the worst close after Liberation Day," Jim Reid, managing director and head of global macro and thematic research at Deutsche Bank, said in a note on Monday.

The previous triple-A rating signifies top-tier creditworthiness, with the US at minimal risk of not being able to meet its obligations to debt investors. Other countries with the top rating include the European Union, Canada, and Germany.

Aa1 is the second-highest rating and still indicates a very low credit risk of a borrower.

The ratings agency's decision highlights a growing concern in the bond market. Market pros tell Business Insider that any fiscal package that adds substantially to the deficit could be met with protest from "bond vigilantes" and send yields spiking to painful levels.

"The combination of diminished appetite to buy US assets and the rigidity of a US fiscal process that locks in very high deficits is what is making the market very nervous," George Saravelos, Deutsche Bank's head of FX research, said in a note on Monday.

He added that a key problem for the US was bond and currency markets failing to properly price in fiscal risks.

Here's how other assets were moving on Monday.

US stocks

The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq 100 fell 1%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 285 points.

"The US credit rating downgrade adds to a long list of uncertainties that the stock market is weighing right now, including tariff, fiscal, inflation and economic ones," Clark Geranen, the chief market strategist at CalBay investments, wrote in a note.

"US-related stocks and investment trusts dominated the list of losers on Monday morning in London, while precious metals miners were higher as gold and silver prices moved up and the dollar weakened," AJ Bell investment director Russ Mould wrote in a Monday note.

"Significantly, the US 30-year Treasury yield flashed a warning signal as it hit the 5% mark for the first time since April, with the proposed tax cuts making their way through Congress, expected in some quarters to increase the US deficit."

The dollar

The US dollar continued to decline amid the sell-off in US assets. The US dollar index, which weighs the greenback against a basket of other currencies, traded around 100 on Monday, nearly 1% lower than its intraday peak on Friday. The index is down 7% since the start of the year.

In the past, US credit downgrades have had a "short-lived" impact on the value of the dollar, according to Kit Juckes, a chief FX strategist at Societe Generale.

"At most, it's something else to nibble away at the confidence of foreign holders of US assets," Juckes said of the downgrade in a note on Monday. "For now, the economic data is just about keeping the idea of US exceptionalism alive, but if the economy does weaken in the coming months as higher tariffs finally arrive, hindsight geniuses will look back at days like today and say it was obvious the dollar was setting itself up for a sizeable fall."

• A British billionaire emphasized the importance of an applicant's personality to work at his hedge fund.
• Chris Hohn values employees motivated by more than money.
• The hedge fund's small team prioritizes trust and teamwork, seeking open-minded candidates.

British billionaire Chris Hohn said there's one thing that really matters in job interviews.

The founder of London-based hedge fund The Children's Investment Fund, which manages about $58 billion, told Norges Bank Investment Management CEO Nicolai Tangen in his most recent podcast episode that his top-performing employees are not just motivated by a paycheck.

Hohn said they think a lot about someone's personality when they want to work at the company.

"There's a human aspect to work," he said. The best people don't simply come to work for money, Hohn explained, they also come because they enjoy the environment.

"It's really important how we treat people, how everyone treats each other," he said. "I'll never hire someone without the blessing of my senior team because we could destroy the culture."

The Children's Investment Fund has a small investment team of only seven or eight people, with an overall head count of about 200.

"We've known each other a long time, and there's something we've built which is intangible trust," Hohn said.

He shared some insight into how to get a coveted spot at the hedge fund.

Hohn said one of the questions they ask applicants is: "What makes a good business?"

"We ask for a case study or two, and it becomes immediately obvious whether you know what you're doing," he said. "It's not enough just to be a good investor; you have to want to work in a team — not everyone wants that."

Hohn also said you need to be able to get along with people, in a way that you should be open-minded to being wrong.

"You can't be too dogmatic," he said. "The personality does matter a lot."

• Ground beef prices in US cities reached a record high of $5.80 per pound in April.
• The US cattle herd is at its smallest in decades following a severe drought and the pandemic.
• Consumers will likely be paying more for hamburgers, hot dogs, and steaks.

US beef prices are on the rise, meaning summer barbecues are likely to be more expensive this year.

Live cattle futures for June hit a record $2.17 per pound on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange on Monday. Prices are up nearly 12% this year, and have jumped a fifth in the past 12 months.

The rise means barbecue favorites such as hamburgers and steaks are set to become more expensive in the coming weeks.

"Many consumers have reached the ceiling of what they can afford," Till Dudler, managing director of global consumer goods and services strategy for Accenture, told Business Insider.

"Faced with rising beef prices, they'll inevitably start making trade-offs, either reducing beef consumption, switching to more affordable meats like chicken or pork, or embracing plant-based alternatives."

According to Federal Reserve Bank of St Louis data, the average price of a pound of ground beef in US cities in April was a record $5.80. Prices have risen by almost 11% in the past year and it's not looking like there'll be a decline anytime soon.

The price rises are due to the smallest cattle herd for decades. The Department of Agriculture expects cattle inventories to decline to 86 million head this year, which would be the lowest level in 74 years.

Lance Zimmerman, a senior animal protein analyst for Rabo AgriFinance, previously told BI there were a number of factors involved.

When the pandemic struck, the US experienced one of the worst droughts in the past century, so suppliers started to reduce cattle herds.

Now, beef supplies are much tighter, and an increase in US exports of beef has further cut domestic availability. Also, unlike poultry, it takes close to three years to rear cows before they are ready for slaughter.

"Businesses relying heavily on beef — restaurants, retailers, and food service providers — will need to fundamentally rethink and reinvent their strategies," Dudler said.

• JPMorgan revised its recession forecast after President Donald Trump's tariff truce with China.
• Trump and China agreed to lift most tariffs on each other for 90 days for further negotiations.
• A JPMorgan analyst said that the chances of a US recession are now below 50%, but risks remain.

JPMorgan is revising its 2025 recession prediction after President Donald Trump reached a temporary tariff truce with China.

In a Tuesday note, the bank said the chances of a US recession this year had fallen below 50%, down from a previous estimate of 60% after Trump announced sweeping tariffs on April 2.

"The administration's recent dialing down of some of the more draconian tariffs placed on China should reduce the risk that the US economy slips into recession this year," wrote JPMorgan chief US economist Michael Feroli. "We believe recession risks are still elevated, but now below 50%."

JPMorgan found that the tariff change meant the average effective tariff rate had reduced from 24% to 14%, representing a tax cut of almost $300 billion.

"Most of that prior tax was likely to have been borne by US consumers in the form of higher prices," Feroli said. "The rolling back of this tax should provide some relief to consumer spending, and in our modeling is enough to tip the second-half growth outlook from one of modest contraction to one of modest growth."

He added that the lower tariffs are still a boost to inflation, however, which will affect disposable income and in turn, consumer spending.

The shift follows Trump's announcement of a 90-day tariff pause that scales back duties on US imports from China from up to 245% to 30% as negotiations continue.

Although stocks have rallied and regained losses since April 2, some — including Federal Reserve board governor Adriana Kugler — have said the economy is not out of the woods yet.

JPMorgan also raised its projection for US economic growth this year to 0.6%, up from 0.2% before the China tariff pause.

Feroli also predicts that the personal consumption expenditures price index, a key measure of inflation, will rise to 3.5% rather than 4%, but still higher than 2.2% at the start of the year.

Feroli's note also addressed a mild risk in the job market as businesses hold off on new hirings and investments due to economic uncertainties brought on by tariffs. A long list of major companies, including Morgan Stanley, Wayfair, UPS, and Meta, have been laying off staff this year.

"We still project a modest contraction in employment later this year, as labor demand is projected to slow even more than labor supply," wrote Feroli.

"Our updated labor market outlook is less demanding of immediate action to stem employment risks; for the Fed, we are pushing back the timing of the resumption of rate cuts from September to December."

• AMC Theatres said it will offer 50% ticket discounts on Wednesdays for Stubs Members.
• The move follows its successful Tuesday discounts.
• AMC's move follows a box office resurgence, despite a fall in attendance at its locations.

AMC Theatres is making discount tickets available on a second day of the week in a bid to lure more moviegoers back to the big screen.

Starting July 9, members of the AMC Stubs loyalty scheme will be able to buy tickets at a 50% discount on Wednesdays.

The world's largest movie theatre operator said it would also continue to offer cheaper tickets on Tuesdays, which vary depending on location.

The offer has made Tuesdays one of the best-attended days of the week because moviegoers looked for "great value," CEO Adam Aron said in a statement on Monday.

"With the introduction by AMC of 50% off Wednesdays, we're looking to turn Wednesday into a similarly strong-attendance day for moviegoers at our theatres."

AMC Stubs is free to join and the scheme has about 36 million members. For every $1 spent at a branch, 20 points can be earned and spent on snacks at theaters.

The offer comes ahead of the much-anticipated releases of "Superman," "Jurassic Park Rebirth," and "The Fantastic Four: First Steps."

The Kansas-headquartered firm said strong box office takings in recent weeks had made it possible to bring in the offer.

"Realistically, we could not afford to have made this change to our ticket pricing strategy until the box office showed true signs of sustained recovery," Aron said.

"But in April and now in May, the box office has been booming, and the remainder of 2025 appears poised to continue that upward box office trend."

"A Minecraft Movie" is the year's highest-grossing film in the US, taking more than $400 million, followed by "Sinners" and "Captain America: Brave New World."

Despite soaring ticket sales in theaters this year, AMC's attendance declined by 11% in the first quarter of 2025, and it reported a near-7% fall in revenues year-on-year.

AMC recently altered terms and prices for its A-List offering, meaning subscribers can now see up to four movies a week rather than three.

The stock rose 0.4% in premarket trading.

• The US and China agreed to reduce tariffs for 90 days after trade talks in Geneva.
• The US will cut tariffs on Chinese goods from 145% to 30% during this period.
• China will lower tariffs on American imports from 125% to 10% in the same timeframe.

The US and China have agreed to slash some tariffs for 90 days.

"We have reached an agreement on a 90-day pause and substantially moved down the tariff levels," Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in Geneva on Monday following trade talks over the weekend.

The agreement will see the US slashing tariffs on Chinese goods from 145% to 30% for 90 days, he said.

China will lower its tariffs on American imports from 125% to 10% over the same period.

Bessent said the talks with China were "robust" and that both sides had shown "great respect."

The White House released a joint statement on the trade agreement reached by the two countries.

It said the US and China would "establish a mechanism to continue discussions about economic and trade relations" after the pause takes effect.

The statement also said the two countries recognized "the importance of their bilateral economic and trade relationship to both countries and the global economy."

Tariff uncertainty and an escalating trade war between the world's two largest economies roiled global markets. After President Donald Trump announced his "Liberation Day" levies on April 2, stock markets were rocked by historic levels of volatility.

Stocks jumped following the news, with the three main indexes now recouping all their losses since Trump's tariffs first tanked markets, as investors welcoming the de-escalation.

Markets in Asia and Europe also made gains and the dollar rose against major currencies.

• John Shipton, 93, enjoys working at a supermarket and says he has no plans to stop.
• He joined Waitrose in 2011 after a long career in the electronics business and the army.
• Shipton lives with Ukrainian refugees and prioritizes learning on a daily basis.

John Shipton starts work three days a week at 8 a.m. on the checkouts at a supermarket in Exeter, southwest England. He's no different from his colleagues — apart from being 93 years old.

"It's so much fun. I've got lovely customers," he told Business Insider. "I think I'll hang about a bit — I won't dash off at 95."

Shipton started working at Waitrose, an upmarket British supermarket chain, on a three-month contract in 2011 before being offered a permanent role.

"Every week the same customers are coming back time and time again," he said. "They're great, I love them."

"I don't feel like it's work — it's more like play, to be honest."

He described Waitrose as an incredible employer. Shipton said when he'd only been working at the store for about four years, he broke his hip while gardening but was given three months paid leave to recover.

"And when I went back, they made sure that I had everything I needed to make life easy for me," he said.

Shipton decided to apply for the supermarket job after reading a book by John Spedan Lewis, who established the John Lewis Partnership, which owns Waitrose along with the John Lewis department store chain. It's the UK's largest employee-owned business and all staff have a stake in the business.

"I figured this man was going to be good to work for," he said. "I figured, although he died, his business was still running, and it was running as they organized it."

Shipton said he'd previously worked at another supermarket for six years but wasn't entirely happy there.

His career spanned a range of industries. He worked in electronics, as a maintenance controller for his city council and on a freelance basis as a computer programmer, and repairing antique furniture.

Shipton attended college for two years but decided it wasn't for him.

"They weren't teaching me what I wanted to know," he said, so he decided to join the army.

"I thoroughly enjoyed it, but I could see that when I got to the age of 45 I was going to become grown out," he said.

Shipton then worked in sales and marketing for big electronics companies. "I've always wanted to do something."

'Curious about the world'

Shipton said he was "at a loss" for about a year when his wife, Julia Marise, died in 2021, followed by his cat a year later.

"Then I thought, 'right, I'll take on some Ukrainian refugees,'" he said.

Shipton said he spent his school days with Jewish refugees after World War II.

"There was a lot of information about Auschwitz and so on, which made me think, you know, how can people start a war and treat people so badly?" he said. When Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, Shipton felt he had to do something to help.

He wrote to the chairman of John Lewis to help Oksana get a job with the retailer. Her son, Illia, is in his final year of school and due to go to college next year.

"They're fabulous people," he said. "I might have cooked three dinners in the last three years."

Shipton said he and Illia have bonded over their shared interest in math. "I'm very interested in anti-matter and I'm studying that at the moment."

No retirement plans

The 93-year-old also regularly paints and reads. "I try and learn on a daily basis almost. I'm curious about the world. I'm curious about people."

Shipton said he's never retired — and has no plans to do so: "I just enjoy working. As I say, it's not work, it's play."

A few months ago Shipton said he was thinking of working until 95, but has decided to continue even longer. "My life is very full."

• HSBC has created a loan designed to help businesses handle the cost of tariffs.
• HSBC TradePay for Import Duties is an extension of an already existing program.
• Businesses have been scrambling to work out how to deal with the cost of tariffs.

Banking giant HSBC has launched a new financing service to help its customers manage the extra costs caused by the trade war triggered by President Donald Trump’s tariffs.

HSBC TradePay for Import Duties allows businesses to access credit and make payments. It adds to an already existing program launched in 2023 to help businesses deal with the costs of international trade.

The London-headquartered bank and financial services firm said the platform could be used to cover the cost of import duties, helping address the extra costs associated with tariffs.

According to HSBC, since launching TradePay, it has made $2.3 billion of trade finance accessible worldwide.

"By settling import duties directly and frictionlessly through HSBC TradePay, our US clients have more visibility and control over their working capital at the time they need it most," Vivek Ramachandran, head of global trade solutions, said in a statement.

Since Trump announced his so-called "Liberation Day" tariffs in April, US businesses have been scrambling to address the cost of the increased levies on goods. Some have said they will absorb costs, while many have passed these costs onto customers.

Last week, HSBC posted a profit before tax of $9.5 billion, compared to forecasts of $7.8 billion, in its first quarter of 2025. It surpassed expectations of revenue by $980 million and announced a share buyback of up to $3 billion.

• Tariffs on Chinese goods may boost the secondhand clothing industry in the US.
• A senior leader at Goodwill told BI that thrifting often increases in times of economic uncertainty.
• ThredUp predicts the secondhand market to reach $350 billion by 2028, up from $197 billion in 2023.

As tariffs push the price of goods in the US higher, the secondhand clothing industry could reap the benefits.

President Donald Trump first imposed a 10% tariff on Chinese goods in February. Since then, both countries have been stacking up retaliatory levies on each other.

As it stands, the US tariff on goods imported from China is 145%, and a trade loophole called "de minimis," which meant retailers didn't have to pay import taxes or duties on shipments valued at less than $800, expired on Friday. China has placed a 125% tariff on American goods.

The loophole had been especially friendly to fast-fashion giants like Shein and Temu, which previously could send ultra-low-cost items from China direct to customers in the US without paying any duty.

Price hikes

Millions of American consumers were attracted to these online stores for their affordable products and clearance sales, offering rock-bottom prices and massive sales. But both firms said they would be raising prices as a result of tariffs.

This could really help secondhand clothing stores, which are likely to prove a cheaper alternative.

"We've already seen consumer slowdown and spending in the US," Danielle Testa, assistant professor at the Arizona State University Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising, told Business Insider.

The University of Michigan's consumer sentiment index was down almost 20 points from the start of the year to 52.2 in April, its lowest level since 2022, when inflation hit 9%.

'Made in America'

"A lot of our clothing comes from outside of the US, very little is made in the US, so we do expect price increases across the board on fashion products, which will drive people to some secondhand options because you bypass the tariffs if they're already in the US apparel market," Testa said.

According to the American Apparel and Footwear Association, only about 3% of clothing and shoes in the US are made domestically. The rest are predominantly imported from China, Vietnam, India, Bangladesh, and other countries — all of which now face tariffs.

"During periods of economic uncertainty, consumers seek value, and thrifting often increases," David Eagles, chief operating officer at Goodwill Industries International, told BI.

"Economic pressures tend to heighten the focus on smart spending and meaningful giving, so we expect interest in secondhand shopping to increase, driven by both economic and sustainability factors."

The secondhand market is already growing sharply. Reseller ThredUp predicts it will reach $73 billion by 2028 in the US and $350 billion globally, up from $197 billion in 2023.

Slowing production down

With prices likely to increase further, US consumers may soon be forced to look for options outside the fast fashion industry.

ThredUp was one of the voices advocating for closing the de minimis exemption, calling it "a critical step in addressing the unsustainable flow of ultra-fast fashion into the US" in a recent statement.

"We cannot be going through things so quickly, between, you know, producing them, wearing them, or sometimes not wearing them, before disposing of them," Patsy Perry, reader in fashion marketing at the Manchester Metropolitan University, told BI.

"But we really need to keep things in use for longer, otherwise it's a complete waste of all the resources," she said, outlining the numerous steps that are part of making clothes, including sourcing raw materials, production in a factory, transporting the finished good, and all of the people involved at the different stages of the supply chain.

Perry explained that recycling isn't a solution yet because we don't have the technology at scale. Also, retailers that do produce clothes from recycled materials are usually beyond the average consumer's budget range.

"We've really got to kind of marry up the production of better things with the usage, or the more considered usage, of things," she said.

There's something for everyone, no matter what your budget is, Perry said. You have your kilo sales, thrift stores and charity shops, as well as luxury consignments, she added.

• Ikea just opened a new store on London's Oxford Street.
• The retailer is opening more city-center locations so shoppers don't have to visit its big-box stores.
• The store has thousands of items to take home and also has a Swedish deli.

Ikea has opened a new store in the heart of London as part of a drive to expand its presence in city centers.

The Swedish homewares retailer aims to reach more consumers who don't live near one of its traditional suburban stores.

Its newest store opened last Thursday on Oxford Street, with more than nine million visitors expected a year.

"This is going to be like the crown jewel in Ikea superstores," Jesper Brodin, CEO of Ikea's parent company, Ingka Group, told Business Insider in November.

"We learned that a lot of the people who visit us in the big stores on the outskirts of town don't have cars, and they asked us to bring Ikea closer to them," he said.

"So we've been doing that for seven years, testing and trying, and I think this is going to be the biggest investment and one of the coolest places we have," he said.

Ikea also has city-center stores in San Francisco and Toronto.

The new store has a capacity of about 2,200 customers.

The new store spans 5,800 square meters (about 62,000 sq ft) over three floors, making it considerably smaller than the average Ikea location, which is about 30,000 square meters.

A "small" store opened three years ago in Hammersmith, west London. Ingka Centres also owns the mall that houses the store.

Tolga Öncü, retail operations manager for Ingka Group, said in a statement: "Adding Oxford Street to the Ikea map is a special moment for us. This store, on one of the busiest and most well-known streets in the world, exemplifies our ambition to innovate our retail presence and bring Ikea to where our customers live, work, and socialise."

About half the products on show can be taken home

About 6,000 products are on display — 3,500 can be purchased and taken home, while the rest need to be ordered online.

They can either be delivered or collected from an Ikea pick-up point.

All units were curated following home visits.

Ikea's room displays can be seen throughout the store. There fun twist is that they've been co-created with Londoners based on their actual homes.

The spaces can provide inspiration for people ranging from those living in smaller flats to larger houses.

'Curated shops' aim to reflect London's diversity and character.

On the ground floor, there are three "curated shops," or displays created by Londoners inspired by their own tastes.

Throughout the year, different residents will be invited in to assemble a selection of products.

This one was curated by Carrot, a nonbinary drag artist.

The new store features IKEA's first live studio.

The Oxford Street store also boasts a studio with broadcasting capabilities.

It mimics "skögen" — the Swedish term for the forest — and allows for interactivity on the screen like drawing. The retailer plans to invite local chefs and designers to host events in the space.

There's a 130-seater Swedish deli.

Like most Ikea stores, this one also has a Swedish deli.

A number of the store's classics can be purchased in the store, including hot dogs for 85 pence ($1.13) each as well as meatballs and plant balls.

It also offers some British favorites such as fish and chips.

Customers can scan barcodes as they shop.

Shoppers can purchase goods using the "Scan & Go" function on Ikea's app that customers scan barcodes as they shopp and then pay quickly at the checkout.

• Warren Buffett said on Saturday he will step down as the CEO of Berkshire Hathaway by year's end.
• The board has voted to make Greg Abel, now a vice chair at the company, its CEO and president.
• Abel is expected to maintain Buffett's existing investment approach.

Hours after Warren Buffett stunned the crowd at Berkshire Hathaway's annual shareholder meeting by announcing that he'd step down at the end of the year, its board voted unanimously for Greg Abel to replace him.

Buffett — who is 94 and has been the CEO of Berkshire Hathaway for 55 years — will remain as chairman of the board of directors, according to a press release. Greg Abel will become the new CEO and president as of January 1, 2026.

"I think the time has arrived where Greg should become the chief executive of the company at year end," Buffett told the audience on Saturday, referring to Abel, one of his top hands.

Abel, 62, has been Berkshire Hathaway's vice chair of non-insurance operations since 2018. He's also chair of Berkshire Hathaway Energy, which Buffett hailed as one of the conglomerate's four "jewels" in his annual shareholder letter in 2021, the same year Buffett first tapped Abel as his successor.

While Buffett's approval was a major plus, the company's board of directors was tasked with confirming his successor, and did so on Sunday.

Investors and shareholders expect that Abel will maintain Berkshire Hathaway's investment philosophy. He told shareholders at this weekend's meeting that he would start by maintaining the company's "fortress of a balance sheet," which allows it to make large investments without relying on banks, Barron's reported.

Abel is known, however, for having a more hands-on management style than Buffett.

He was estimated by Forbes to be worth $484 million in 2021. In 2022, he sold his 1% stake in the company's Berkshire Hathaway Energy unit for $870 million.

Abel has risen through the ranks with a persistent focus on energy.

The Canadian native played hockey in his early years and attended the University of Alberta. He graduated in 1984 with a degree in commerce.

He joined PwC after graduation and quickly moved on to a small company called CalEnergy. In 1999, CalEnergy acquired MidAmerican Energy and adopted its name. That same year, Berkshire Hathaway bought a controlling interest in MidAmerican Energy. Abel took over the reins of MidAmerican in 2008 — renamed Berkshire Hathaway Energy in 2014 — and helmed it until 2018.

He's also served on the board of several major companies, including Kraft Heinz, and has been affiliated with organizations and institutions like the Mid-Iowa Council Boy Scouts of America, Drake University, American Football Coaches Foundation, and the Horatio Alger Association.

He lives in Des Moines, Iowa. Those who've spotted him at a hockey rink in town, watching his son practice, say he comes across as a "regular guy," the Des Moines Register reported.

Buffett also has a reputation as a folksy and down-to-earth person, living in Omaha, Nebraska.

At Berkshire Hathaway, succession doesn't seem to be just about handing over a job. With the title, Buffett said he's passing down traditions — like writing letters — and a mindset, too.

In Berkshire Hathaway's 2024 annual report, Buffett wrote, "At 94, it won't be long before Greg Abel replaces me as CEO and will be writing the annual letters. Greg shares the Berkshire creed that a 'report' is what a Berkshire CEO annually owes to owners.

"And he also understands that if you start fooling your shareholders, you will soon believe your own baloney and be fooling yourself as well."

• The de minimis trade loophole has expired, affecting international shipping costs.
• The loophole allowed shipments under $800 to avoid import taxes and levies.
• Shein and Temu have said they will raise prices due to the tariff rates on Chinese goods.

A trade loophole called de minimis, which allowed for cheaper international shipping, expired one minute past midnight on Friday.

The de minimis exemption meant retailers could save a lot of money on parcels sent to the US by not having to pay import taxes or levies. It applied to shipments valued at less than $800 that were sent directly to customers.

Why has de minimis expired?

President Donald Trump first closed the loophole in February. But a few days later, he signed an executive order that said de minimis — also known as Section 321 — would remain in place until customs officials could establish a new process for collecting duty on packages sent using the provision.

Now, the tariff exemption is being scrapped altogether.

The White House has called closing de minimis a "critical step in countering the ongoing health emergency posed by the illicit flow of synthetic opioids into the US."

Trump said on Wednesday that the loophole was "a big scam going on against our country."

Why does closing de minimis matter?

According to the US Customs and Border Protection, de minimis shipments account for over 90% of all cargo entering the US.

This loophole has been especially friendly to Chinese fast-fashion giants Shein and Temu, which, up until Friday, could send ultra-low-cost items from China to the US without paying any duty. From February, other companies that manufactured goods in China were subject to tariffs.

Now, shipments from China that previously didn't face any tariffs will be exposed to a tariff rate of 145%.

Millions of Americans were attracted to both Shein and Temu for their low prices and clearance sales, sometimes up to 90% off. But it is primarily the de minimis exemption that allowed them to offer these price tags.

The rival companies said they would be raising prices following increases in tariff rates.

"To keep offering the products you love without compromising on quality, we will be making price adjustments starting April 25, 2025," Shein said in a statement earlier this month.

It added that its "operating expenses have gone up" due to "recent changes in global trade rules and tariffs."

Meanwhile, Temu added "import charges" to customers' orders at the end of April.

• Several European banks reported better-than-expected profits amid market volatility in early 2025.
• The uncertainty and fast-moving news cycle around Trump's tariffs led to huge market swings in Q1.
• UBS, Barclays, Deutsche Bank, and HSBC all say they benefited from increased trading activity.

Since President Donald Trump announced his "Liberation Day" tariffs, the stock market has been rocked by historic levels of volatility.

Market turbulence, while disruptive, hasn't been all bad news. Several European banks said in recent earnings that massive market swings benefited their trading operations.

UBS, Barclays, Deutsche Bank, and HSBC all reported better-than-expected profits in their most recent quarters, with all four lenders mentioning the boost provided by tariff-driven volatility.

UBS

Swiss powerhouse UBS reported net profits of $1.7 billion in the first quarter of 2025, surpassing analyst estimates of $1.3 billion.

"The power and scale of our diversified global franchise, coupled with our continued focus on clients, drove strong business momentum in the quarter and net new inflows in our asset-gathering businesses," CEO Sergio Ermotti said in a statement on Wednesday.

The Swiss investment bank said revenues rose 32% in its global markets unit.

"The second quarter kicked off the unveiling of significant changes to tariffs on trading partners by the US administration, increased uncertainty, and market volatility," Ermotti told investors on the earnings call.

"The investments we have made to reinforce our infrastructure are paying off with our operations proving stable and resilient as we facilitate client activity across asset classes," he said.

Barclays

Barclays reported an unexpected 19% jump in pre-tax profit in the three months ending March 31.

The London-headquartered bank increased its guidance for income from £12.2 billion ($16.30 billion) to £12.5 billion for 2025.

The group saw an 11% rise in income, thanks in part to market turbulence.

"In the past, Barclays has drawn fire for its investment banking division and its role within the group has been heavily questioned," Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, said in a note.

"This part of the business shone in the first quarter as increased market volatility provided its trading operations with a major boost."

Deutsche Bank

German investment bank Deutsche Bank posted a 39% lift in pre-tax profits to 2.8 billion euros ($3.18 billion) in its most recent quarter.

Revenues advanced 10% year-on-year to 8.5 billion euros.

"We are very happy with first-quarter results, which put us on track for delivery on all our 2025 targets," CEO Christian Sewing said in an accompanying statement.

"Our best quarterly profit for fourteen years, achieved through revenue growth combined with lower costs, demonstrates that our Global Hausbank strategy is working well."

"The global banking industry may be impacted by a weakening real economy in 2025 due to escalating trade tensions but should be less severely affected than many other industries," Deutsche Bank said in its first quarter earnings report, adding that credit losses could increase, and mergers and acquisitions activity may slow, affecting investment banking and asset management.

"By contrast, trading business could benefit from higher volatility," it said.

HSBC

HSBC also beat analyst estimates in its first quarter.

The financial services firm posted a profit before tax of $9.5 billion compared to forecasts of $7.8 billion. It surpassed expectations of revenue by $980 million.

The British universal bank announced a share buyback of up to $3 billion.

"Revenue increased due to growth in wealth in our IWPB [international wealth and premier banking] and Hong Kong business segments, supported by higher customer activity, and in foreign exchange and in debt and equity markets, driven by volatile market conditions," HSBC said in its earnings report.

"Volatility has definitely benefited us in this quarter, so it may not repeat at the very high levels that we've seen in this quarter, but we are still continuing to see underlying growth as we have progressed through in quarter two," Pam Kaur, chief financial officer at HSBC told investors in an earnings call.

• DHL is resuming shipments worth over $800 to US consumers after a temporary suspension.
• The pause followed the introduction of new customs rules under Trump's tariffs.
• DHL engaged in "constructive dialogue" with US authorities before resuming these shipments.

Delivery giant DHL is resuming its shipments worth over $800 to American consumers, the German firm said on Monday.

This follows an announcement from the company earlier this month that it would temporarily suspend the delivery of packages from all other countries to the US valued at more than $800 from April 21, down from the previous limit of $2,500.

The pause took effect after President Donald Trump introduced more stringent customs rules under his new tariffs framework.

A shift in customs enforcement lowered the threshold for simplified import procedures starting from April 5. Now, shipments worth over $800 require formal entry processing.

"Adjustments to US customs regulations will allow DHL to resume accepting B2C shipments with a declared value exceeding $800 into the US," it said in a statement on Monday.

DHL said it had a "constructive dialogue" with US authorities before resuming the shipments, which is effective immediately.

Business-to-business deliveries were not affected by the threshold introduced.

• The US Dollar Index has fallen more than 8% since the start of the year.
• Uncertainty around President Donald Trump's tariffs and recession fears have hurt the dollar.
• Experts warn of inflation, trade war risks, and potential shifts in global currency reliance.

The dollar is getting weaker. The US Dollar Index is down more than 8% since the start of the year, putting the currency at its lowest point in about three years.

Uncertainty around President Donald Trump's tariffs and fears of a looming recession have hurt the dollar.

Here's what smart people and institutions have to say about its depreciation.

Deutsche Bank

Analysts at Deutsche Bank in a note on Thursday said they foresee a "major dollar downtrend."

"The dollar bear market is finally here," they wrote.

"At the core of the dollar bear market are three assessments: a reduced desire by the rest of the world to fund growing twin deficits in the US; by extension, a peak and gradual unwind in elevated US asset holdings; and a greater willingness to deploy domestic fiscal space to support growth and consumption outside of the US."

Jan Hatzius, Goldman Sachs

"I believe that the recent dollar depreciation of 5 per cent on a broad trade-weighted basis has considerably further to go," Jan Hatzius, chief economist at Goldman Sachs, wrote in an op-ed.

He listed one of the consequences of dollar weakness as putting upward pressure on consumer prices, which tariffs have already hit.

"Dollar depreciation reinforces our view that the 'incidence' of higher US tariffs will fall predominantly on American consumers, not foreign producers," Hatzius said.

Ken Griffin, Citadel

Ken Griffin, Citadel's billionaire founder, told Semafor's World Economy Summit in Washington, DC, on Wednesday that Trump's trade war was putting the US's brand at risk.

He said when comparing the dollar to the euro, America "has become 20% poorer in four weeks" because of the dollar's slide against the single currency.

"All you're trying to do is tread water and not drown," he added.

Torsten Slok, Apollo

"By depreciating the dollar and starting a trade war about goods, which make up less than 10% of US GDP, the US is risking that the rest of the world will slow their imports of the 80% of the US economy that is services, such as iPhones, Windows, Facebook, and large language models," Torsten Slok, partner and chief economist at Apollo Global Management, wrote in a newsletter on Thursday.

"In addition, a depreciating dollar puts upward pressure on inflation and the term premium, which can create new macroeconomic challenges."

PIMCO

"The US has long enjoyed a privileged position, with the dollar serving as the global reserve currency and Treasuries as the go-to reserve asset," analysts at PIMCO wrote in a note, adding that this status was not guaranteed.

"If global capital flows into US assets dwindle, it could point toward a more multipolar world with a diminished reliance on a singular reserve currency."

UBS

Strategists at UBS wrote in a note that the dollar has "weakened significantly."

"Volatility in FX markets has moved up to levels last seen in 2022," they said.

Following the recent dollar sell-off, the bank wrote that it's refraining from dollar-based trades.

Adam Turnquist, LPL

Adam Turnquist, chief technical strategist at LPL Financial, said: "Building trade war tensions with China have intensified growth concerns and increased expectations for Fed rate cuts, weighing on dollar demand."

"Hedging costs to protect against downside in the dollar have surged to multi-year highs," he said.

"A breakdown from the dollar's consolidation range would not only be technically significant but could also stoke fear over the health of the US economy."

Bank of America

The dollar has entered a secular decline, said analysts at Bank of America led by Michael Hartnett.

They wrote that the currency is trading 4.6% below its 200-day moving average: "Weaker US dollar will play out either slowly with lower yields or quickly with higher yields, it's brutally flagged by soaring gold price."

Shannon Saccocia, Neuberger Berman

"The US dollar has continued to lose value even as US equity and bond markets have stabilised," Shannon Saccocia, managing director and chief investment officer of wealth at Neuberger Berman, said in a newsletter on Thursday.

"This is concerning for the longer term, as a simultaneous sell-off in both currency and bonds is associated with risky rather than haven countries and suggests structural damage to global demand for US dollar assets."

If the dollar continues to lose ground, short-term investors outside the US may decide that "the pain from the currency outweighs the gain from the yield," she said.

• Citigroup is closing an office in Spain opened to offer junior bankers a better work-life balance.
• The office in the coastal city of Málaga was open for just three years.
• The closure comes as Wall Street readjusts its workplace expectations in the post-pandemic world.

Citigroup is closing its coastal office in the south of Spain, which was opened just three years ago to offer staff a better work-life balance.

The Málaga workplace was set up to promote eight-hour Monday-to-Friday workdays for junior investment bankers.

In a statement on Wednesday, Citi confirmed to Business Insider that it told colleagues the office would be closing as the New York-headquartered bank continues to execute its "strategy to simplify the firm" and improve its operations.

The office was opened in 2022 following the COVID-19 lockdowns. Its scenic location in Spain's famous Costa del Sol region proved competitive for the bank, offering a stark difference from the 100-hour weeks junior bankers on Wall Street had grown accustomed to.

Most staff will be relocated, but six will leave the bank, Citi said.

"Our emphasis on fostering colleague mobility efforts and integrating our hubs is evident in the successful applications by many of our colleagues from Málaga for positions in our London and Paris hubs," Citi said.

According to a Financial Times report, when the bank first launched the Málaga initiative, 27 analysts were chosen from over 3,000 applicants.

"Our primary Spanish location is Madrid, where we employ more than 220 people who are not impacted by this action," the firm said.

"Citi continues our strategic growth in Spain with a strong presence in our core business lines, which include Investment Banking, Wealth and Markets."

Wall Street's shift to RTO

Citi's closure of its Málaga office comes as Wall Street moves back toward pre-pandemic norms regarding attitudes to work.

This has been most evident in the sweeping return-to-office mandates enacted by many major financial institutions.

While Wall Street's biggest names have eagerly gotten employees back to their desks in downtown offices, Citi has stood by its hybrid work policy.

The majority of employees have the option to work from home three days a week, unlike most of its competitors. Goldman Sachs mandated staff to come into the office five days a week, and since March, all JPMorgan workers have had to work from the office Monday to Friday as well.

In June 2023, Citi told its UK employees it would start monitoring office attendance data. Staff found consistently not coming into the workplace on required days risk being disciplined, from having their bonuses adjusted to being fired.

• Kenneth Rogoff warned that the likelihood of a US recession had increased "sharply."
• He said President Donald Trump's tariffs were affecting consumer confidence.
• Rogoff said consumers who didn't vote for Trump "think it's the end of the world."

Kenneth Rogoff said the odds of a recession had risen "sharply" in the wake of President Donald Trump's tariffs.

The Harvard University economist told the In Good Company podcast: "It's sort of funny but the nature of the recession we might get is a loss of confidence, not an oil shock, not a pandemic, not a global financial service, but among consumers — particularly consumers who didn't vote for Trump, which is about half of people.

"They think it's the end of the world. They think it's 2008/9, the global financial crisis, the pandemic," he said.

Rogoff told presenter Nicolai Tangen, the CEO of Norges Bank Investment Management, it was difficult to determine how much of Trump's actions were "bluster, theater."

"It seems like he's spinning a wheel when he wakes up every morning, and first he spins the wheel to see what country it points at, and then he spins the wheel to see what tariff he wants to put on, and then he changes his mind the next day," Rogoff said in response to a question about what tariffs might look like a year from now.

"You don't know what's coming — it's like he wants everyone to hide from him."

Rogoff compared countries seeking trade deals to penguins in the North Pole that don't want to get eaten by polar bears, but didn't want to fight them either.

He also described the dollar as "middle-aged," adding: "We sort of reached the peak 10 years ago in terms of the dollar's footprint and dominance in the global economy."

Rogoff described the situation as a "wild" time. "I think it feels a little like the 70s to me. Trump actually feels a little like Nixon to me," he said, highlighting what he called a lack of understanding about the president's actions and plans.

• President Donald Trump's tariffs exclude services, focusing only on goods imported into the US.
• The US has a huge trade surplus in services, unlike its deficit in the trade of goods.
• Services account for over two-thirds of the US economy and 80% of private sector jobs.

There's something missing from President Donald Trump's "reciprocal" tariffs: services.

His tariffs only apply to goods imported into the US, overlooking the sector of the economy worth about $8.8 trillion globally last year. It encompasses industries from financial services and legal services to tourism and education.

It might seem strange for Trump to exclude a huge chunk of the US economy from one of his landmark policies, but there are several reasons he may have done so.

Services surplus

The US trade surplus in services was $293 billion in 2024, in stark contrast to the $1.2 trillion trade deficit in goods, Bureau of Economic Analysis data shows.

The Trump administration's formula for calculating its "Liberation Day" tariffs was ostensibly based on the US trade deficit in goods with other countries. If services had been factored in, the major economies the US exports services to would have faced lower tariffs.

Some of the country's biggest trading partners in terms of services are the UK, Ireland, and Canada.

"These flows are mostly determined by the fact that many US companies have large offices in these countries," Steve Hanke, a professor of applied economics at Johns Hopkins University and a former senior economist on President Ronald Reagan's Council of Economic Advisers, told Business Insider.

The White House could have made the case for tariffs on services to counter non-tariff constraints on US services.

"Although services are not subject to tariffs, they are subject to trade barriers such as nationality and local presence requirements," reads the website of the Office of the US Trade Representative. "These barriers severely limit the services export potential of US suppliers."

It also says the service industries account for more than two-thirds of GDP and 80% of private sector jobs in the US.

Purba Mukerji, an economics professor at Connecticut College, told BI that the US trade surplus in services is a "bright spot" in its balance of payments with the rest of the world. "Services are a good area for growth for the US and might remain so for a while," she said.

For Adnan Rasool, an assistant professor of political science at the University of Tennessee at Martin, the US does not impose tariffs on services because its surplus is so big: "We would just be shooting ourselves in the foot."

Another risk of service tariffs would have been retaliation from trading partners that would harm US service exporters, hurting a lucrative part of the economy.

Consumer confusion

Trump may have pursued sweeping goods tariffs because they're more tangible to consumers and easier to explain than duties on obscure services. They also align with his rhetoric around revitalizing US manufacturing and bringing factory jobs back to the US.

Rasool said: "When stuff from China is being tariffed, they see it and feel it in their wallets, but when you, say, start tariffing logistical support services for deep-sea internet cables, they cannot see it nor will they understand its impact on their wallets."

Bermuda bonus

The international financial services industry is heavily reliant on the US. Visa, Mastercard, and American Express are all based in the US, as are many major investment banks and asset managers.

The same is true for Big Tech companies that dominate the US stock market and represent a large piece of Americans' portfolios.

"Think of Facebook, Amazon or even Google getting hit with serious tariffs. That just cannot work for the US," Rasool said.

This is good news for countries such as Bermuda. The US imported services worth nearly $40 billion from the island nation in 2024, per BEA data.

Bermuda only imported $46 million of US goods last year, meaning it would likely have faced a much higher tariff rate than 10% if tariffs had included services.

"Indeed, a lot of Americans park their money in Bermuda," Hanke said. "This has resulted in a US services trade deficit of $30.6 billion with Bermuda. Luckily for Americans using Bermudan financial services, this deficit wasn't accounted for in Trump's nonsensical calculation."

'Murkier' distinctions

The difficulty of taxing services was probably a big reason for the White House to give them a pass on tariffs.

Ramesh Mohan, a professor of economic analytics and visualization at Bryant University, told BI: "Unlike tangible goods that cross borders and can be inspected, recorded, and taxed at ports of entry, services are often delivered digitally or remotely."

He said trying to establish where a service has actually been performed can be "complex" and "ambiguous."

"Even in goods trade, debates persist over definitions — what constitutes 'manufacturing' versus 'assembly,'" Mohan said. "With services, such distinctions are even murkier, making enforcement of tariffs logistically difficult."

Many large multinational firms have US-based subsidiaries, even if their services are performed offshore, he said. "This blurs the lines of jurisdiction and makes it even more difficult to determine where the service was actually carried out."

• David Solomon said a trade deal format would give investors clarity and help them plan for the future.
• The Goldman Sachs CEO said investors were concerned about the level of policy uncertainty.
• Solomon said a clear road map for deals would boost confidence and help stock markets.

David Solomon said it would be useful for the Trump Administration to start striking some trade deals to show investors how they could work.

The Goldman Sachs CEO told CNBC's "Squawk Box" on Tuesday: "It would be good to see a deal or two put forward so there's a construct that people can understand, and people can say OK, so that's what these deals are going to look like, this is a framework that we can start to think about and we can start to plan as we look forward."

"The one thing I know for sure is that if you can create a road map and a clear understanding as to where we're going and what the desired result is, confidence will improve equity market prices," he added.

Solomon explained that financial markets tended to overreact in the short term because investors take time to digest macroeconomic changes such as President Donald Trump's "reciprocal" tariffs.

"If we don't get to a policy place of certainty, where people can trust and they can rely, it will have longer-term implications," he said.

Investors were concerned by the level of uncertainty and the pace of change, Solomon said: "We're in a very different macro environment than we were in just a few months ago."

Solomon used the words "certainty" and "uncertainty" more than five times in the interview.

As Trump's inauguration neared in January, there was optimism about the prospect of lower regulation, he said.

"Now we're a few months into the administration, and instead of policy becoming more certain, we actually have a greater sense of uncertainty broadly, and it's having a big impact on asset prices and markets," Solomon told CNBC.

"Markets are looking to reprice the value of things based on the uncertainty they have around what these policies will ultimately look like, and how they will ultimately be implemented, and that is therefore causing shifts in fund flows on a very significant basis."

IMF downgrade

On Tuesday the International Monetary Fund slashed its forecast for US economic growth this year by 0.9 percentage points to 1.8% compared with its January forecast.

The IMF did not expect a US recession, but now rated the odds at 40% compared with 25% in October.

Its forecast for global growth was also downgraded by 0.5 percentage points to 2.8%.