Trump Pushes for Putin-Zelenskiy Summit; Potential US-Intel Stake

0:00Bloomberg Daybreak U.S. edition is brought to you by OTC Markets Group. OTC Markets' overnight platform for exchange-listed securities, Moon ATS, provides access to global securities in U.S. dollars from 8 p.m. to 4 a.m. Eastern, Sunday through Thursday. Learn more at otcmarkets.com slash moon. Moon ATS is operated by OTC Link LLC, a FINRA-registered broker-dealer, and is available only through participating broker-dealers. Everyone's talking about how AI is transforming work, especially in sales. While the landscape shifts, one thing remains the same, the thrill of closing a deal. Whether it's a gong or a confetti machine, every team has its celebration rituals.

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1:16All to keep you in control however buying happens next. We're built for payments, built for growth, built for agentic. PayPal Open, built for all business. Get started at paypalopen.com. Bloomberg Audio Studios. Podcasts. Radio. News. Good morning. I'm Lisa Mateo. And I'm Karen Moscow. Here are the stories we're following today. Karen, we begin with the latest efforts for a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine. President Trump called Vladimir Putin and urged the Russian leader to begin making plans for a summit with Vladimir Zelensky. The proposal, which President Trump pitched as a one-on-one summit between Ukraine and Russia's leaders, would be followed by a trilateral gathering involving all three.

2:05Here's Zelensky, President Trump, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, and French President Macron at the White House is heard right here on Bloomberg Radio yesterday. We need to stop this war to stop Russia, and we need support, American and European partners. We will do our best for this. If everything works out well today, we'll have a trilat. And I think there will be a reasonable chance of ending the war when we do that. The coalition of willing countries, that's 30 countries already working together on security guarantees, will now work with the U.S. on those guarantees. My hope is that the United States do the most possible, because that's what will allow us to alleviate the burden on Europe.

2:44And that the United States also confirm its commitments, because that was a big question mark. Well, that was French President Macron, U.K. Prime Minister Starmer, Presidents Trump, and Zelensky speaking at the White House yesterday. Well, Lisa, Secretary of State Marco Rubio is hopeful negotiations will begin between Russia and Ukraine. He spoke to Fox News after the White House gathering. You know, the president suggested that Zelensky and Putin meet. So we're working on that now to try to set that up for them to meet somewhere, which again would be unprecedented. And then if that goes well, hopefully the next meeting will be a meeting between Presidents Putin, Trump and Zelensky where we hope to finalize the deal.

3:21We're not there yet, but that's what we're aiming towards. And that's one of the things that was discussed today is how to get to that point. Marco Rubio speaking to Fox News. European officials say they expect another virtual meeting with President Trump as soon as today to discuss what security guarantees they could collectively offer to Kiev. Well, Karen, it still remains to be seen if when Zelensky and Putin will meet. Stephanie Baker is a senior writer at Bloomberg News and also author of Punishing Putin Inside the Global Economic War to Bring Down Russia. What Marco Rubio, the Secretary of State, has been saying is that talks to set that meeting up are actively in the works.

3:59Putin has tried to avoid this by saying certain conditions need to be met before they sit down together. And those conditions are really a buzzword for that Ukraine needs to give up territory or agree to give up territory, which Zelensky is not going to do. So I think that there are hurdles to setting up that meeting. And it does look to me that Putin may be playing for time again. But maybe under the pressure from Trump, you know, Putin will indeed agree to sit down, but I think he's going to demand an awful lot in the talks ahead of time. Well, Bloomberg's Stephanie Baker, now German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, he said that a possible Putin-Zelensky summit, well, that could take place within two weeks.

4:49Lisa, the Trump administration is weighing, taking a 10 % stake in Intel, which would make the U.S. government the chipmaker's largest shareholder. Sources say the plan could involve converting Intel's$10.9 billion in Ships Act grants into equity. We get more from Bloomberg's Ryan Gould. I think this is as much about ensuring Intel's longevity in terms of what the United States government thinks of as national security. I think this is an evolving situation and we should caution that these plans are still very much in flux. They're very fluid. Bloomberg's Ryan Gould at Intel's current market value, A 10 % stake in the chipmaker would be worth about$10.5 billion.

5:28Well, meanwhile, SoftBank has agreed to buy$2 billion in Intel. Now, it's a move that extends the Japanese company's U.S. investment effort and offers a vote of confidence in the struggling chipmaker. Shares of Intel there are up about 6 % in early trading. And Lisa, there is more major news this morning involving the chip sector. Reuters is reporting NVIDIA is developing an AI chip specifically for China, which will be more powerful than the H20 model. Reuters says NVIDIA hopes to deliver samples to Chinese clients for testing as early as next month. However, U.S. regulatory approval is not guaranteed.

6:02And President Trump's sweeping tariffs have roiled markets, unnerved trade partners, and provoked criticism from leading economists. But there is an upside. The levies will help the U.S. maintain its fiscal health. Now, that's according to S &P Global Ratings. The credit rating company has affirmed its AA plus long term rating for the U.S., in part because it thinks tariff revenues will reduce the fiscal hit of a recent tax and spending bill. Well, Lisa, let's turn to the markets now where futures are a little changed ahead of the day's session. Morgan Stanley, chief U.S. equity strategist Mike Wilson, says he remains bullish on the markets.

6:38On a six to 12 month basis, I actually feel better today than I have in quite a while on the fundamentals. Now, the stock market has already discounted a lot of this. This is, you know, stocks trade ahead of the data. So, you know, we are going to have some sort of consolidation. We've been running about that, too, probably in the third quarter at some point. But we'd be buyers of that. That's the main message, is that we think we're sort of beginning a new bull market in April. We're not going anywhere near those lows. Morgan Stanley, chief U.S. equity strategist Mike Wilson, has a year-end price target of$6 ,500 for the S &P 500.

7:14The index closed at 6449 yesterday. Well, earnings remain in focus this morning, Karen. We start to get the latest quarterly numbers from the country's biggest retailers. This morning, we'll hear from Home Depot. Bloomberg's Tom Busby has a preview. Home Depot expected to post a rise in comparable sales despite worries about lower spending on major home improvement projects and fears about tariff-driven price hikes. A big discussion on the call would be a potential rate cut in September and what the implications are for the retailer. Bloomberg Consensus calls for comp sales to rise 1.39 % with total revenue of$45.49 billion on adjusted earnings per share of$4.74.

7:55Tom Busby, Bloomberg Radio. All right, Tom, thank you. The big economic event this week takes place in Wyoming. The Kansas City Fed's annual economic policy symposium kicks off Thursday in Jackson Hole. Then Fed Chair Jay Powell gives remarks on Friday. Bloomberg's Michael McKee is in Jackson Hole covering Powell and the Fed. He can lay out the issues, I think, the fact that they don't know whether it's inflation or jobs that are going to be a bigger problem. And he'll probably do that. And he may talk about the framework review. But the idea that he would come out and give the markets a heads up that they're going to cut in September, as he did last year, is probably a bridge too far for them.

8:38Michael McKee is a key part of Bloomberg's Jackson Hole coverage. It all finishes up with a special edition of Bloomberg Surveillance on Friday at 9 a.m. Eastern with Mike, Tom Keene and Lisa Abramowitz. Plus, watch for special episodes of the Odd Loss podcast. Joe Weisenthal and Tracy Alloway will be taping several conversations from the event as well.

9:02Time now for a look at some of the other stories making news in New York and around the world. And for that, we're joined by Bloomberg's Michael Barr. Michael, good morning. Good morning, Karen. Hurricane Aaron is expected to impact the outer banks of North Carolina, sending massive waves crashing into the island. Bloomberg meteorologist Craig Allen has the latest. Hurricane Aaron, still a major hurricane. Winds running around 120 to 130 miles per hour now. Still very dangerous as it sits out over the open waters. It will not make landfall. It will pass to the north of the Turks and Caicos as well as the Bahamas.

9:36It definitely has slowed down. It's only moving at about 5 to 10 miles per hour now. But eventually we'll start on a northerly track as we get on into Wednesday. And by Thursday and Friday, it accelerates off to the north and east. Bloomberg meteorologist Craig Allen. Air in his forecast caused life-threatening rip currents along the east coast from Florida up to Maine. Hamas said it has agreed to a deal proposed by Qatar and Egypt to pause the militant group's war with Israel and Gaza. The proposal would see Hamas release half of the hostages it still holds in return for the freeing of Palestinian prisoners and a partial withdrawal of Israeli troops.

10:16After two weeks of fleeing and protests, Texas House Democrats returned to the state Monday. Their homecoming allows the Republican-led House to pass a redrawn congressional map that could give more seats to the GOP come the midterms next year. Texas House Speaker Republican Dustin Burroughs. A quorum is present and it's time to resume the work of the people of Texas sent us here to do. Meanwhile, California's Democratic governor, Gavin Newsom, has threatened to counter Texas's new maps with redrawn maps that would favor Democrats. Global News, 24 hours a day and whenever you want it, with Bloomberg News Now.

10:54I'm Michael Barr, and this is Bloomberg, Karen. All right, Michael Barr, thank you.

11:03Time now for the Bloomberg Sports Update. Here's John Stashauer. John, good morning. Good morning, Karen. The Yankees had a night off. But got some good news elsewhere. Toronto lost in Pittsburgh 5-2. The Yanks moved within five games of the first place. Blue Jays, the Red Sox, lost at Fenway to Baltimore 6-3. Yanks now tied for second with Boston. Wild card leading Seattle lost to the Phillies 12-7. Yanks played tonight at Tampa Bay. Aaron Boone's team comes off a weekend sweep in St. Louis. Got a long way to go in this. And, you know, it's always really good, obviously, getting a sweep and heading into an off day.

11:38but we've got to keep going. We're not a finished product yet. We know we're capable of a lot, but we've got a ways to go. Mets play tonight in Washington. Milwaukee's lead in the NL Central now up to nine games over the Cubs or the Brewers shut out. Nine-nothing at Wrigley. Milwaukee's won 15 of 16. Since the All-Star break, Colorado has a better record than the Dodgers. The Rockies scored bottom of the ninth, won 4-3. They had lost their last 10 versus L.A. Tennis fans were looking forward to the 15th career meeting between Yannick Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz. They just met in the finals of the French Open.

12:15Then Wimbledon were doing it again in Cincinnati, but it was clear Sinner was off his game. He trailed five love when he retired due to illness. Iga Shiantek won the women's title, and now everyone coming to New York for the U.S. Open, which begins Sunday, but there's also the new mixed doubles tourney today and tomorrow at Flushing Meadow with Alcaraz, Alcaraz, Sinner, and Shiantek all expected to take part. The Cleveland Browns named 40-year-old Joe Flacco. They're a week one starting quarterback. They also have Kenny Pickett and two rookies. They're expected to keep all four. The Rams QB, 37-year-old Matthew Stafford, practiced for the first time.

12:50He's been out with a back injury. Fairfield, Connecticut keeps winning at the Little League World Series, now 3-0. It was 13-1 over Sioux Falls, South Dakota. John Stash, Network Bloomberg Sports, Karen Risa. Stay with us. More from Bloomberg Daybreak coming up after this.

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15:00Coast to coast on Bloomberg Radio, nationwide on Sirius XM and around the world on Bloomberg.com and the Bloomberg Business app. This is Bloomberg Daybreak. It is 512 on Wall Street. Well, after meeting with Russia's President Vladimir Putin, Ukraine's Vladimir Zelensky, President Trump is now moving to set up talks between the two leaders. So here with the very latest on the developments is Tina Fordham. She's founder at Fordham Global Foresight. Tina, thanks for joining me this morning. You are the expert in the field of geopolitical risk. So I have to start right off the bat by asking you, you know, Putin has been reluctant to meet with Zelensky.

15:38Is this meeting, is it going to take place? Thanks, Lisa. So Putin does not want to be caught dead in a trilateral construct between himself, President Trump and Ukrainian President Zelensky, and will likely stonewall to prevent this from happening. But he's going to find it challenging because President Trump is very keen to make this happen. And of course, it is the logical next step in these negotiations. So what would be discussed during this? Is it mainly territorial issues? Well, we don't really have a lot of insight into how President Trump conducts these meetings. I mean, there is an argument that says his unconventional approach to diplomacy, which is much less constrained by diplomatic protocol, for example, could result in some kind of breakthroughs in just knocking heads and getting things done.

16:37But as President Trump himself said during the televised bit of his conversation with European leaders, he thought that the Russia-Ukraine conflict would be the easiest to solve of the many that he's turned his attention to. And it's in fact really complex. And that gets to the heart of the disconnect really between his transactional approach And how the fact is that the seeds of any potential next crisis or alternatively to create a durable and lasting peace are going to result from the terms of this deal. And if we continue to think in terms of, you know, this sliver of territory in eastern Ukraine, the Donbass, as being inconsequential, we're going to fail to miss the point, which is how do you create a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine that isn't simply postponing a Russian attack to go back and get what they failed in this latest incursion?

17:42Tina, I wanna talk about the meeting yesterday. The tone between President Trump and Zelensky yesterday notably improved from the Ukrainian president's last visit to Washington. Can you talk more about what was different this time around? Well, Zelensky clearly learned lessons from that disastrous February meeting, which resulted in a shouting match between Vice President Vance, President Trump, and President Zelensky. You could see Ukrainian reporters in the press conference in tears. It was a spectacle for the ages, and Zelensky couldn't risk that happening again. Of course, he's had subsequent meetings with President Trump since the February Oval Office showdown, most notably on the sidelines of the Pope's funeral in the Vatican.

18:38And what was evident is a much improved, almost shockingly better rapport between Zelensky and Trump. Some minor details that underscore the preparation and the thought that went into this on Zelensky's part, not just wearing the black jacket he wore to the Pope's funeral rather than the military fatigues, which Zelensky wears as a sign that his country is at war. But he joked with the same reporter who had dressed him down, no pun intended, for his attire on the last press conference. And he joked with him and said, yeah, you're wearing the same suit. I changed and you didn't. And then, which was really added some much needed levity to the discussions.

19:33I was also touched by the gesture where the First Lady of Ukraine returned Melania Trump's letter to President Trump. The First Lady of Ukraine responded with her own letter to Melania. And those kinds of things really work with President Trump. He appreciates these kinds of gestures. This is Bloomberg Daybreak, your morning podcast on the stories making news from Wall Street to Washington and beyond. Look for us on your podcast feed by 6 a.m. Eastern each morning on Apple, Spotify or anywhere else you listen. You can also listen live each morning starting at 5 a.m. Wall Street time on Bloomberg 1130 in New York, Bloomberg 99.1 in Washington, Bloomberg 92.9 in Boston, and nationwide on Sirius XM Channel 121.

20:31Plus, listen coast-to-coast on the Bloomberg Business app, now with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto interfaces. And don't forget to subscribe to Bloomberg News Now. It's the latest news whenever you want it, in five minutes or less. Search Bloomberg News Now on your favorite podcast platform to stay informed all day long. I'm Karen Moscow. And I'm Lisa Mateo. Join us again tomorrow morning for all the news you need to start your day right here on Bloomberg Daybreak.

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22:14Start your free trial at adio.com slash iHeart. This episode is supported by FX's The Shards, a seductive drama from executive producer Ryan Murphy. Set in 1980s Los Angeles, the series follows a group of glamorous, deeply entangled high school seniors drawn into a life of wealth, beauty, parties, and excess. At its center is Brett, whose reality begins to unravel when the arrival of a new student coincides with a series of mysterious murders. FX's The Shards, now streaming on Hulu.