Crypto News: Bringing out the big guns

The threats, bluster, retreats and reversals that have become commonplace in America's expanding global trade war are being returned in kind as more nations pledge retaliatory measures against the US economy. Now France has floated a significant escalation, asking the European Union to consider deploying its most powerful retaliatory measure against the US for the first time ever. The news emerged amid Donald Trump's latest tariff threats, to be imposed beginning April 2.

The US president said he plans to impose sweeping tariffs on global partners to—as the American administration puts it—rectify non-tariff barriers it considers unfair. These include domestic regulations and how countries collect taxes, including the EU's value-added tax. The EU says its VAT is a fair, non-discriminatory tax that applies equally to domestic and imported goods. Now, with the battlefield set, France has joined a small group of EU countries that believes the so-called anti-coercion instrument—a tool designed to strike back against nations that use trade and economic measures coercively—should be on the table. —David E. Rovella

For more on the global trade war, see Bloomberg's Tariff Tracker.

What You Need to Know Today

A rally among several tech giants spurred a late-day rebound in US stocks following an earlier selloff driven by disappointing outlooks from bellwethers across various industries. Just five minutes before Wall Street's close, the S&P 500 erased a slide that earlier topped 1%. That massive expiration of options we told you about yesterday added an extra dose of volatility, with more than 21 billion shares changing hands on US exchanges, the most in 2025. Tesla led gains in megacaps while Nvidia fell. Boeing jumped after Trump announced that the embattled planemaker was getting a contract for a new fighter jet. Forecasts from FedEx, Nike and Lennar underwhelmed traders. Here's your markets wrap.

Bloomberg Opinion

Heathrow Shutdown Exposes Dangers of a Single Point of Failure

The closure of Europe's busiest airport after a fire suggests not paying for adequate back-up systems is a false economy.

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Hundreds of thousands of Turks protested the detention of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's biggest political rival for a third straight evening, extending a standoff that's rattling investors. The opposition Republican People's Party said more than 200,000 took to the streets in Istanbul, defying a ban on protests imposed by security forces after Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu's detention Wednesday. Imamoglu runs a city that's home to over 15 million people and is one of Turkey's most popular politicians, particularly after defeating Erdogan's handpicked contenders twice in local elections. He's seen as someone able to challenge the president if he were to run. Imamoglu had been preparing to announce his candidacy for a presidential election due by 2028. The opposition has denounced his detention as politically motivated.

The former hedge fund manager now running the Treasury Department has an idea that has some of Wall Street's biggest heads spinning. At issue is the fate of home loan giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and how Scott Bessent mentioned the government's stakes in them could eventually become part of the proposed US sovereign wealth fund. Another hedge fund manager, billionaire Bill Ackman, has long sought to profit from the re-privatization of the so-called government-sponsored enterprises. He called the idea "superb" on social media—but noted it would have to be done in a way "respecting the shareholders' place in the hierarchy of claims." The Treasury Secretary's musings on the massive proposal were made on a podcast.

Bloomberg Opinion

A Dirty Secret in Trump's Minerals Order

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The Trump administration must continue to comply with a Maryland judge's order to temporarily reinstate almost 25,000 fired employees at 18 US agencies for at least another week, a federal appeals court held. The ruling by the US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit represents the latest setback for Trump and his push to remove federal workers with what's known as probationary status. As with an increasing number of court rulings against Trump's effort to slash the federal government, it's unclear if the administration is fully complying with judicial orders. In some cases, Justice Department lawyers have not followed court direction, raising the specter of a constitutional crisis. In a case that currently serves as the administration's most high-profile challenge to the checks and balances at the heart of the Constitution, a federal judge admonished government lawyers Friday for refusing to provide the court with requested information.

Chief US District Judge James E. Boasberg Photographer: Valerie Plesch/Bloomberg

The case in Washington is over Trump's use of an 18th century law called the Alien Enemies Act, which requires a declared war against another nation or threat of invasion by one as prerequisites to deporting non-citizens without due process. The administration's use of the law to deport scores of Venezuelan men and boys has been deemed by legal experts, as well as on Friday by Chief US District Judge James E. Boasberg of Washington, as likely illegal under a plain reading of the statute. But rather than reverse course, the New York Times reports that Trump—citing the 1798 law—is now considering allowing US law enforcement to enter the home of any American without a warrant in pursuit of non-citizens it seeks to deport.

Sudan's army retook the presidential palace in Khartoum from the rebel Rapid Support Forces paramilitary group it's been fighting in a brutal civil war for two years. Soon after soldiers celebrated the symbolic victory on Friday morning, however, a drone fired a missile at the iconic building, reportedly killing several soldiers and journalists working for Sudan's state broadcaster. Sudan's war has raged since 2023 and the RSF had taken most of the capital, after rampaging through streets, looting properties and causing tens of thousands of people to flee. While much of the world has focused on wars in Europe and the Middle East, various foreign powers have backed each side in this African war that's seen at least 150,000 people killed.