U.S.-China trade talks enter new phase following tariff increase

Catch up on the top industries and stocks that were impacted, or were predicted to be impacted, by the comments, actions and policies of President Donald Trump and his administration with this weekly recap compiled by The Fly:

1. U.S.-CHINA TRADE TALKS: On Sunday, President Trump said in a series of tweets that, "For 10 months, China has been paying Tariffs to the USA of 25% on 50 Billion Dollars of High Tech, and 10% on 200 Billion Dollars of other goods. These payments are partially responsible for our great economic results. The 10% will go up to 25% on Friday. 325 Billions Dollars […] of additional goods sent to us by China remain untaxed, but will be shortly, at a rate of 25%."

On Wednesday, Trump tweeted: "The reason for the China pullback & attempted renegotiation of the Trade Deal is the sincere HOPE that they will be able to 'negotiate' with Joe Biden or one of the very weak Democrats, and thereby continue to ripoff the United States (($500 Billion a year)) for years to come....Guess what, that's not going to happen! China has just informed us that they (Vice-Premier) are now coming to the U.S. to make a deal. We'll see, but I am very happy with over $100 Billion a year in Tariffs filling U.S. coffers...great for U.S., not good for China!"

Negotiators from China and the U.S. met into the evening on Thursday, but failed to reach an agreement to avert an increase in U.S. tariffs and the promised hike took effect at 12:01 a.m. Friday morning. President Trump subsequently tweeted that "talks with China continue in a very congenial manner - there is absolutely no need to rush." The President added that the process has begun to place additional tariffs, at a 25% rate, on the remaining $325B worth of Chinese imports that so far have not seen duties placed on them. After trade talks with China wrapped up for Friday, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin told reporters, "They were constructive discussions between both parties, that's all we are gonna say."

2. GENERAL MOTORS: In a series of tweets on Wednesday, President Trump said that, "GREAT NEWS FOR OHIO! Just spoke to Mary Barra, CEO of General Motors, who informed me that, subject to a UAW agreement etc., GM will be selling their beautiful Lordstown Plant to Workhorse, where they plan to build Electric Trucks. GM will also be spending $700,000,000 in Ohio [...] in 3 separate locations, creating another 450 jobs. I have been working nicely with GM to get this done. Thank you to Mary B, your GREAT Governor, and Senator Rob Portman. With all the car companies coming back, and much more, THE USA IS BOOMING!" In a statement, General Motors (GM) confirmed that it is creating more than 450 manufacturing jobs in three Ohio cities, and added that it is in discussions with Workhorse Group (WKHS) that could bring significant production and electric vehicle assembly jobs to the Lordstown Complex. Shares of small-cap Workhorse surged following the President's tweet and GM's confirmation of the joint venture talks.

3. DRUG PRICING: Pharmaceutical companies will soon be required to include their products’ prices in TV ads, under a new rule that the Trump administration hopes will drive down prescription-drug costs, The New York Post's Aaron Feis reported, citing officials. The Department of Health and Human Services regulation, slated to take effect in July, will require commercials to display a drug's Wholesale Acquisition Cost in legible print if it is greater than $35 for a month's supply or the course of treatment, the agency announced Wednesday. The regulation is part of the American Patients First package, devised last year by President Trump, who has lobbied for lower drug costs and greater transparency in the pharmaceutical industry throughout his time in office, the report noted. Publicly traded large-cap drugmakers include AstraZeneca (AZN), Bristol-Myers (BMY), Eli Lilly (LLY), GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), Johnson & Johnson (JNJ), Merck (MRK), Novartis (NVS), Pfizer (PFE), Roche (RHHBY) and Sanofi (SNY).