Tariffs will be front and center next week.
That’s because U.S. President Donald Trump has tweeted that he’ll know what he wants to do about tariffs soon after a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the two-day G-20 Summit in Osaka beginning on Friday.
Tariffs and Trade: Both Trump and Xi are expected to meet Saturday morning. Talks were ongoing between the two countries Friday, with U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer meeting in Osaka with China’s top trade dealmaker Vice Premier Liu He. But there’s still much debate over whether Trump and Xi will find enough common ground to call a truce to the trade war. But if there’s even a hint of progress, Trump could decide to go ahead with a 10 percent tariff on Tranche 4 goods instead of the planned 25 percent tax.
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Meanwhile, the extended public hearings at the U.S. Trade Representative’s Office ended this past Tuesday, and the requisite seven-day rebuttal period ends next week. That means that a decision on tariffs should be forthcoming–it’s just a matter of what will Trump decide to do.
The RealReal: With The RealReal raising $300 million in its initial public offering, any firm looking to test the public markets later this year is going to be keeping a close eye on how this newly listed fashion stock performs this summer. They’ll want to know if the momentum in investor receptivity continues so they too can join the party. The RealReal joined e-commerce platform Revolve, Levi Strauss & Co. and VF Corp. spinoff Kontoor Brands as the fashion names that went public so far this year.
Online fashion marketplace Poshmark is said to be considering a possible IPO this fall. Also possibilities this year are J. Crew’s Madewell and Gap’s spinoff of Old Navy. And the possible wild card is StockX, which just closed on a $110 million funding round. While one venture capitalist said an IPO is probably further down the road, companies also have been known to up their timing if they think there’s a chance the IPO window could be in danger of closing.
Retail Sales: In the U.S., the July 4th Independence Day holiday is next week. While many families and friends will be sharing some fun and sun at a holiday picnic or BBQ–and maybe even catch some fireworks displays to boot–retailers are hoping they’ll head to the stores over the long, four-day weekend to take advantage of sales and deals for summer apparel and outdoor gear. And if they do, that’ll be a plus for second-quarter earnings results.
