StanChart cautious on tariff impact after strong first qtr

UNDER THE RADAR

- BRODY FORD

RECESSIONARY FEARS. GLOBAL economic and geopolitical conditions. Tariff and trade policies. They were all among the factors that Amazon cited when it issued a forecast late Thursday for profit to fall billions of dollars below Wall Street's expectations. "None of us knows exactly where tariffs will settle or when," CEO Andy Jassy said on a call with analysts.

For now, Amazon said, its future results are "inherently unpredictable." Quarterly earnings from both Amazon and Apple, two of the world's most valuable firms, put on full display how US President Donald Trump's trade wars threaten the bottom line of even big tech companies — at least those in the business of selling physical things.