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Asian Stocks Continues on a Losing Streak; Israeli P.M. Set to Meet Trump; French Far-Right Leader Resists Her Embezzlement Conviction; Alex Ovechkin Breaks NHL All-Time Scoring Record. Aired 3- 4a ET

Aired April 07, 2025 - 03:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


[03:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT AND ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to all of our viewers watching from around the world. I'm Polo Sandoval, in New York City. Ahead here on "CNN Newsroom."

Markets in Asia, they are starting the new trading week with steep losses. It's the latest investor reaction to Donald Trump's sweeping new tariffs. Details in a live report out of Hong Kong in just moments.

And Israel's Prime Minister is set to meet with Mr. Trump in the coming hours. We're going to be looking at exactly what he hopes to achieve during that visit.

And France's far-right leader vows to fight her embezzlement conviction. You want to hear what Marine Le Pen told her supporters.

U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff-induced market mayhem, it is not over yet. All you have to do is look at these numbers.

Asian markets, they are plunging. Major losses across the board right now. Hong Kong's Hang Seng hitting really the hardest of all.

U.S. stock futures, they are also not very much better. The Dow, NASDAQ, and also S&P 500 futures, they are all down ahead of the new trading week, which hasn't even started yet.

Now despite the turmoil, Mr. Donald Trump defending his tariffs to reporters aboard Air Force One on Sunday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: Because of the tariffs, we have $7 trillion already committed to be invested in the United States. Building auto plants, building chip companies, and all sorts of companies are coming into our country at levels that we've never seen before.

You know, I was elected on this. This was one of the biggest reasons I got elected, was exactly because of this.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: While the Trump administration is essentially downplaying this market volatility, there may be more uncertainty ahead. Larger U.S. tariffs, they are scheduled to go into effect on Wednesday. And that's when the U.S. will place a 54 percent tariff on all goods imported from China.

In the meantime, the president does admit that he is willing to deal with Beijing.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: We have a trillion dollar trade deficit with China. Hundreds of billions of dollars a year we lose with China. And unless we solve that problem, I'm not going to make a deal.

Now, I'm willing to deal with China, but they have to solve their surplus.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: All right, let's get our coverage started with CNN's Kristie Lu Stout joining us live from Hong Kong. The tariff fallout continues in Asia. I'm wondering, Kristie Lu, what's the latest on this market reaction?

KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Polo, this Monday, Asian markets completely in the red, being slammed this Monday as investors across the region, joining investors around the world, simply rejecting U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff policy.

If you look at the fresh data as we near the end of the trading day here in Asia, you see deep and significant losses across the board. Here in Hong Kong, the Hang Seng down about 12.5 percent, the Shanghai Composite losing 8 percent, the Nikkei in Japan closing the day down 7.8 percent, the Seoul KOSPI losing a touch over 5.5 percent. And in Australia, the S&P ASX 200 losing 4.25 percent.

From Asia this afternoon, we've also been keeping a close eye on U.S. futures. The Dow, the S&P, the Nasdaq, we bring up the data for you, it all suggests a lower open when these markets open in New York in just a couple hours from now.

It was just last week when the U.S. President Donald Trump upended global trade norms by announcing those tariffs, at least 10 percent tariffs on all U.S. imports. That unleashed global trade turmoil that persists to this day.

And experts who've been talking to have been pointing out, given the uncertainty in this policy, more market turmoil is expected. Watch this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) ROBERT BROOKS, ECONOMICS PROF., MONASH UNIVERSITY: And I don't think that policy certainty is going to come for at least a little while. So I think we are in for an uncertain period.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LU STOUT: And in this time of uncertainty, Asian governments here have been scrambling to formulate a response. Earlier today, we heard from the Japanese prime minister, who said that Japan and his government will continue to talk with the Trump administration to lower tariffs against Japan. South Korea's acting president is advocating for more talks on the issue.

And we have been hearing a very much more forceful response from China. China, a couple of days ago, announcing reciprocal 34 percent tariffs striking back against the United States and also striking a defiant tone over the weekend through state-run media.

[03:05:00]

Of note, a commentary that was published on Sunday in the "People's Daily" that said, look, the tariffs are going to have an impact, but the sky is not going to completely fall, while also adding, as Trump persists with this policy, this could be a strategic opportunity for China. Quote, "As a responsible global power, we should turn pressure into motivation and see the U.S. impact as a strategic opportunity."

Now, in the same commentary, the "People's Daily" also noted that China has not closed the door on potential talks with U.S. President Donald Trump. Polo.

SANDOVAL: And Kristie Lu, you just brought us right now the China reaction right now, essentially pushing back very forcefully to Trump's tariffs. What about other major economies in Asia? What are they saying?

LU STOUT: Yes. So, for example, Indonesia, the largest economy in Southeast Asia, has said that it will not retaliate.

We heard from its finance minister saying that instead that they would pursue talks with the U.S. administration and also that they will find other ways to be able to export their products to other markets. For example, the European Union.

Other economies across Southeast Asia have been slammed by these tariffs, like Vietnam, which has said it's going to talk to the United States, asking for a delay in the tariffs and being imposed upon them. Malaysia also affected, saying it wants to lead a regional coordinated response to these tariffs. Polo.

SANDOVAL: Yes. You took us through China, Japan, Indonesia. So important to take into account what other massive Asian markets are saying right now. We'll let you go so you can keep watching those numbers.

Kristie Lu Stout, thank you. LU STOUT: Thank you.

SANDOVAL: All right. Meanwhile, the White House is conducting a media blitz to essentially downplay the market chaos. You see, on Sunday, administration officials claimed that Donald Trump's tariffs are, quote, "a reset of the U.S. economy and global trade." They're also denying any risk of recession.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BROOKE ROLLINS, U.S. AGRICULTURE SECRETARY: I think we'll see, in short order, a really positive outcome from this.

KEVIN HASSETT, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL ECONOMIC COUNCIL OF THE UNITED STATES: It is not a strategy for the markets. It's a strategy to create a gold mage in America for the American worker. That's a strategy.

PETER NAVARRO, COUNSELOR TO PRESIDENT TRUMP: We are going to have the biggest boom in the stock market we've ever seen under the Trump policy.

SCOTT BESSENT, U.S, TREASURY SECRETARY: I reject that, the assumption. There doesn't have to be a recession. Who knows how the market is going to react in a day, in a week.

HOWARD LUTNICK, U.S. COMMERCE SECRETARY: You need to reset the power of the United States of America and reset it against all our allies and our enemies alike.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: Despite those numbers, they are trying to stay positive. Meanwhile, some lawmakers, they are fighting to rein in the tariffs. One Democratic senator says a bill requiring congressional approval for new tariffs is gaining some bipartisan support.

And also, a Republican House representative plans to introduce a companion bill on Monday. Some lawmakers push back, one Democrat says that Trump, who spent the weekend, you see him here, golfing, he's trying to secure his legacy. And the image that you see here is unflattering.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. ADAM SCHIFF (D-CA): He's wrecking our economy. I think people have seen their retirement savings on fire. And there he is out on the golf course. That may end up being the most enduring image of the Trump presidency, that is the president out on a golf cart while people's retirement is in flames.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: A billionaire fund manager who endorsed Donald Trump's presidential campaign is now calling on the president to pause his trade war. Bill Ackman says that launching, quote, economic nuclear war on every country of the world will seriously damage the U.S. economy and reputation for decades to come.

Let's get some expert analysis now from Leah Fahy. She is a capital economics -- at least she's with Capital Economics China team.

Leah, thank you so much for joining us. She's joining us live from London. Good to see you.

LEAH FAHY, CHINA ECONOMIST, CAPITAL ECONOMICS: Hi. Thanks.

SANDOVAL: So I'm wondering if you could give us, some of our viewers, some perspective on just how aggressive China's trade retaliation is and what's the overall impact on other countries?

FAHY: Yes, I guess in response to a lot of, in comparison to a lot of other countries that kind of waited to see and try and negotiate with the Trump administration, China has clapped back quite aggressively. So they've come back in with the same scale of tariff that the U.S. has hit China with.

And then on top of that, they've added a bunch of U.S. companies to their entity list and also put export controls on the exports of a lot of critical rare earths that are essential for key industries in the U.S., the defense industry, a lot of electronics and so on.

And I mean, the impacts for other countries will be pretty wide ranging. So in terms of the massive tariffs that have been put on Chinese exports to the U.S., we don't see those coming down anytime soon with the scale of China's response. That means that other countries are likely to see a flood of cheap Chinese goods coming into their countries soon.

[03:10:02]

Policy support for Chinese exporters domestically will make Chinese goods even cheaper than they are now already. And we also expect a pretty decent depreciation of the Chinese currency to kind of fuel that as well.

And then on the other side, so China's tariffs back on the U.S., they target a smaller value of goods overall because China exports to the U.S. a lot more than it imports from the U.S. But the difference with China is that the state can essentially get state run firms to just completely stop their imports of U.S. goods altogether. So we saw that during the last trade war in 2018 and 2019.

Chinese firms just completely stopped buying U.S. soybeans altogether and diverted their demand to other countries that are likely to see a similar thing this time around as well. So other countries seeing kind of a surge in Chinese demand for agricultural inputs.

And then more broadly, this is just a really big geopolitical shift in general. I mean, this time around, China's kind of in this place to place itself as the defender of free trade, which is quite different to what we've seen in the past, obviously, and I think you're going to see both sides courting countries to remain on their end of the geopolitical scale. SANDOVAL: Yes, as you list some of those sectors, we're reminded of

how some of the political stakes are certainly high, like technology, as you mentioned right now. Leah, I want you to listen to some of President Trump's remarks to reporters aboard Air Force One on Sunday. Listen as he seems to accept the unpredictability of the markets, but then he also renews a promise that Americans are yet to see fulfilled.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: What's going to happen with the market, I can't tell you, but I can tell you our country has gotten a lot stronger and eventually it'll be a country like no other. It'll be the most dominant country economically in the world.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: That was a very loud airplane. We hope you could hear it. But essentially he says the U.S. is stronger, at least that's what the president said aboard Air Force One.

What do you think he's referring to?

FAHY: Yes, I mean, I guess essentially what the U.S. has gone and done is show kind of the immense economic power it has over the rest of the world, you know, levying these tariffs have completely plunged the global economy into chaos. That said, I'm not sure that it's actually going to make the U.S. economy any stronger.

As you're mentioning earlier, we've seen markets in the U.S. completely crash on this news. So if anything, I think if we don't see a significant rolling back of the U.S. tariff soon, that could be trouble for the U.S. economy.

SANDOVAL: And finally, in the last few seconds that we have you here, what is the outlook for a potential resolution in this global trade war?

FAHY: Yes, I don't, especially with the U.S. and China, I don't see any resolution anytime soon. I think China is actually not that dependent on U.S. demand. It's about 3 percent of its total GDP.

And so I think the Chinese government is likely to kind of wait around until the U.S. is in a much weaker position and the Trump administration is willing to come to the table with a better deal than they might be able to get now. And it looks like China hasn't kind of bowed to U.S. pressure either.

SANDOVAL: Leah Fahy with the Capital Economics China team, thanks for letting us tap into your expertise. I really appreciate it.

FAHY: Thanks.

SANDOVAL: Well, tariffs will certainly be on the agenda when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sits down with U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House in just a matter of hours. Netanyahu's visit coming as the Trump administration slaps a 17 percent tariff on Israel.

The two are also expected to discuss other topics like Israel-Turkey relations, Gaza, and also the efforts to return those hostages. They will also later hold a joint news conference, the second between the two world leaders this year.

A Palestinian-American teen has been shot and killed in the West Bank. Palestinian officials say Israeli soldiers fatally shot the 14-year- old and wounded two others, their ages 14 and 15.

The Israeli military says its soldiers opened fire during counterterrorism operations when they claimed to have seen, quote, "three terrorists," that's how they described them, that they were hurling rocks towards the highway, endangering civilians.

And at least one rocket hit the southern Israeli city of Ashkelon on Sunday after Hamas launched its largest barrage of rockets since Israel renewed its offensive in Gaza last month. The Israeli military says that five of ten rockets were intercepted there in that area, damage could be seen on the streets, and at least one man there was being treated for minor injuries. The armed ring of Hamas says that the attack was in response to what they described as massacres committed against civilians.

[03:15:02]

Israel says that it has since struck the rocket launcher used by Hamas and plans to intensify its operations against the militant group in response.

More Israeli strikes were reported in Gaza over the weekend, as the military's renewed fight against Hamas brings even more death and destruction to civilians living in the devastated enclave.

CNN's Nada Bashir with more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NADA BASHIR, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): An unbearable cycle of grief after an all-too-brief ceasefire.

Mass funerals once again the daily norm.

Ten of them, Reham repeats. Ten family members killed in a direct strike, she says.

I can't speak. There is nothing left for me to say. They're all gone.

Grief in Gaza is coupled with fear over what lies ahead, as the Israeli military expands its ground offensive.

Civilians in Gaza have once again been forced to evacuate, children carrying whatever belongings they have left. The injured making the difficult journey through ruin and debris, in the hope that they will be spared the worst of this unrelenting war.

But wherever Israel's bombs fall, death seems inevitable.

The bombardment came as a shock. We came to see what happened, but all we saw was this home here completely destroyed and body parts scattered everywhere.

They were women and children. Only body parts were left, ripped to pieces.

Israel says it continues to target Hamas infrastructure, intensifying pressure on the group to agree to new ceasefire terms and the release of the remaining hostages.

But scenes like this persist. A school sheltering the displaced turned to rubble.

All that's left is body parts, bodies torn to pieces, some of them without their heads, this man says.

The building was filled with displaced people. They were all civilians. Why is this happening to us?

As Israel's bombardment continues, living conditions also deteriorate further. Displaced families are forced to take shelter amid growing piles of waste, and humanitarian supplies are dangerously scarce, with Israel still blocking access for vital aid trucks.

Over 1000 people have been killed since the ceasefire collapsed a little over two weeks ago, according to Gaza's health ministry, adding to a death toll still rising over 50,000, with hope for another ceasefire dwindling.

Nada Bashir, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SANDOVAL: French far-right leader Marine Le Pen, she is calling her guilty verdict a political decision, telling all of her supporters that she will fight her conviction. We'll tell you what else is next for her.

And also, it may soon be legal for some 14-year-olds to work night shifts in the state of Florida. Later this hour, the new rules that the U.S. state's lawmakers are going to be putting in place.

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[03:20:00]

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SANDOVAL: Marine Le Pen, leader of France's far-right National Rally Party, told supporters that she would fight her ban from running for office after being convicted of embezzlement. She characterized her position as a battle for democratic values and freedom.

Le Pen says that she is not above the law, but she's also not below it. And she also claims that the ruling against her is a political decision, not a legal one. Here's CNN's Melissa Bell with more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MELISSA BELL, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It was a very fired up Marine Le Pen who spoke to her supporters here on Paris' Les Invalides in protest at the five-year ban seen handed down in the wake of a trial in which she was found guilty of embezzling nearly $5 million over the course of several years. Several members of her party condemned with her.

The sentence, which includes two years of suspended sentence and two years under house arrest, also prevents her from standing, and that, of course, means that she is ineligible to stand in 2027, which was her great hope for finally winning the presidency.

Still, there will now be an appeal, and the possibility that a court finds in her favor this, some of the outrage being expressed by her supporters.

The crowds were not huge here at the Place Vauban in central Paris, but then again, Paris has never been a bastion of National Rally support. They're much more popular outside of the French capital.

We heard from Marine Le Pen. We also heard from the President of the National Rally, Jordan Bardella, who may be the future hope of the party should she not be able to stand. Both spoke of a political manhunt ran by the left.

There are also, this Sunday in Paris, two other demonstrations, one being held by the far-left, the other by the center, a reminder of how this judicial earthquake of the start of the week has really redrawn the political map and leads to a period of huge political and judicial uncertainty as we look ahead to the 2027 presidential election.

Melissa Bell, CNN, Paris.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[03:25:07]

SANDOVAL: Supporters of former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro gathering in Sao Paulo on Sunday, they're protesting a court decision to put him on trial for allegedly conspiring to overthrow the government after his 2022 election defeat. If found guilty in the court proceedings expected later this year, Bolsonaro could face a pretty lengthy prison sentence.

Well, talks are set to kick off in Washington in just a matter of hours as Israel's prime minister meets with President Donald Trump at the White House. We'll take you live to Tel Aviv for a closer expert look at what's going to be on the table for discussion.

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[03:30:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANDOVAL: And welcome back to "CNN Newsroom." I'm Polo Sandoval, in New York. Let's check on today's top stories now.

U.S. President Donald Trump is defending his tariff agenda even as mayhem spreads across global financial markets. Asian markets and U.S. stock futures, they are plunging and things may get even worse with President Trump planning to enact even steeper U.S. tariffs on Wednesday.

Mr. Trump says that he's been taking calls from tech executives and world leaders to discuss the tariffs. He wouldn't say who, but he does claim that they are being very nice, to use his words. A Trump economic official says that more than 50 countries have reached out to the U.S. hoping to negotiate tariff deals.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is going to be waking up in Washington. This is ahead of his meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House in the coming hours. Tariffs, along with Israel-Turkey relations, Gaza, and efforts to return the hostages will be on the agenda when the two leaders sit down for their discussions.

Let's get some expert analysis now from Alon Pinkas. He is a former Israeli consul general in New York. He joins us live from Tel Aviv. Thanks again for coming back, I really appreciate it.

ALON PINKAS, FORMER ISRAELI CONSUL GENERAL IN NEW YORK: My pleasure, Polo. Anytime.

SANDOVAL: It's great to hear from a former diplomat. You've been part of similar meetings and diplomacy in the past here. So, from your perspective, why make this last-minute trip? Why is the prime minister making this trip? Is it more than just about being one of the first foreign leaders to travel to Washington to talk tariffs with Trump?

PINKAS: Oh, it's absolutely more. I think that tariffs are the least of Mr. Netanyahu's concerns. I mean, if tariffs were the reason, why didn't he call Mr. Trump the same way that the President of Mexico, Claudia Sheinbaum, did? And the tariffs imposed on Mexico are exponentially higher and bigger and broader than those on Israel.

I think the issue is a combination. First of all, he spent five days in Hungary, okay? And during that time, he got an exemption from his testifying in his own criminal trial.

Second, I think that the most important thing on the agenda is Iran. Mr. Netanyahu is under the impression, and he may be right, he may be wrong, that President Trump is on the precipice of beginning negotiations with Iran.

Now, that may not be true. That may not be the case. That may take a few more weeks or months.

But I think that Mr. Netanyahu will try to dissuade Mr. Trump from negotiating with the Iranians. Then there's Gaza that you correctly mentioned. Then there's relations, worsening relations, deteriorating relations

with Turkey. Lastly come the tariffs.

SANDOVAL: And let's get back to Iran in just a moment. I also want to ask you, though, about just the circumstances of this visit when you compare it to what we saw in February. Today's visit will come not only after Israel shattered a ceasefire but also vowed to escalate the war in Gaza.

So will that change the way that observers both in the U.S. and back home in Israel for the prime minister are going to be watching this meeting?

PINKAS: Look, they're watching the meeting in the sense that Netanyahu wants everyone to watch the meeting, because this is how he projects back to the Israeli electorate, the Israeli public, that look at me, here I am in Washington, the first one sitting at the Oval Office speaking to the media with the president of the United States right next to me. He thinks that's a political force multiplier, given that 70 percent of Israelis want the war to end and over 65 think Mr. Netanyahu should resign.

As for Gaza, that's an excellent question, Polo, because Israel, you know, 15, 16 days ago, 17 days ago, to be exact.

[03:34:58]

17 days ago Israel resumed the war without any provocation, saying that the military objectives is, again, total victory, annihilation, and eradication of Hamas. It's been 17 days on top of 17 months of a war that began on October 7, 2023. And I'm sure that Mr. Netanyahu wants to try and convince or sell Mr. Trump on the idea that this needs to go on, because, you know, Trump is distracted by his own volition toward tariffs and Ukraine and Greenland and what have you.

And so at some point someone is going to come over to him and say, Mr. President, you know, you gave a speech in February after your meeting with Netanyahu, this whole turning Gaza into a Riviera thing, I'm sorry, expelling the Palestinians from the Gaza Strip, etc.

Netanyahu needs to explain what he's doing in this war, which I think is a very hard point to sell. But, again, look, with the tariffs, 17 percent have been imposed, could have been done in a lengthy phone call. This is, I think, this is all about Iran.

SANDOVAL: Yes, I'm glad you mentioned that meeting or, rather, that press event from February when he mentioned, when he proposed, when Donald Trump proposed this idea of a Riviera, and we all remember the reaction from the Prime Minister then, certainly sent a message to the world.

Now, just going back to Iran briefly, how would the Prime Minister, do you think, will dissuade Donald Trump from negotiating with Iran and instead maybe even sort of plant the seed to try to help him consider military action against Iran? PINKAS: Well, planting that seed, Polo, is exactly what he's been

trying to do for years and what he's trying to do now, trying to manipulate or drag, rather, President Trump into a military action. And Trump, you know, provided the context and pretext when he warned Iran of the consequences and military ramifications of failing to reach a deal.

Now, look, if we look back at history, we don't have time for that, obviously. If we look back at history, Netanyahu, you know, was screaming from the top of his lungs, Iran, it's a threat to the whole West, it's a threat to Europe, it's a threat to the Arabs, and it's an existential threat to Israel. Fine.

So the world took him seriously, and the world signed with President Obama at the helm, signed a multilateral deal with Iran called the JCPOA, the so-called nuclear deal. Netanyahu was totally against that, said he had a better deal, never had one. That was in 2015.

Then in 2018 he convinced Trump, well, at least he helped encourage Trump to unilaterally withdraw, making false promises and unfounded assumptions that Iran will now cave and Iran will come on all fours begging for a new deal and, Mr. President, you will go down in history as the one who made a much better deal because you're a great dealmaker than Obama did. It didn't work.

Iran is as close as it ever was to enough feasible material to produce four to six nuclear weapons. They choose not to, but they can accomplish that within a matter of weeks, according to American intelligence. What I think he's going to try and do, Polo, is convince Trump to apply more economic pressure and get the Iranians to come back to the negotiating table on better terms.

Now, he's waiting for the Iranians to make a mistake, which they indirectly are doing via the Houthis. If you recall, two or three weeks ago Trump came up with a major statement that the Houthis are bad people, okay, we all know that, that they're shooting at Israel, we know that, that they're disrupting maritime traffic through the Red Sea -- via the Red Sea to the Suez Canal. And he said, this is my point, and he said the Houthis are an Iranian proxy, ergo if another missile fired by the Houthis, I, President Donald Trump, will consider that as an act of aggression from Iran and there will be consequences.

Nothing happened, they fired about eight or nine missiles since. So my point is, I think this is where Netanyahu is going to try and dissuade him from negotiations and, you know, smooth talk him into considering a military option.

SANDOVAL: You've given us a lot of things to look out for during these meetings. Alon Pinkas, former Israeli consul general--

PINKAS: Yes, because there's nothing else going on, because nothing else is going on in the world, so now you can think about what I said, right?

SANDOVAL: We wonder if they'll even get a chance to get to the global markets, right, with so much happening in the Middle East, but these are all very serious topics that they'll be tackling and we thank you so much for offering all that valuable insight.

[03:40:09]

Again, Alon Pinkas, former Israeli Consul General, and also frequent guest here on CNN. Thank you so much.

PINKAS: My pleasure, anytime. Thank you, Polo.

SANDOVAL: And stick around, we'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[03:45:00]

SANDOVAL: All right, let's take another look at the markets right now, which are still in turmoil from the U.S. President Donald Trump's trade war. Asian markets, all of them are down right now. You see the Hang Seng, Shanghai, and Nikkei experiencing some steep losses on Monday.

European markets are open now and they, well, look at them, they really tell you everything you need to know. They're not doing much better.

U.S. futures, those are also plunging. The Dow, S&P, and NASDAQ all down ahead of the market open.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: When I win the election, we will immediately begin a brand new Trump economic boom.

Vote Trump and your incomes will soar, your net worth will skyrocket.

Groceries, cars, everything, we're going to get the prices down.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: America's asking when will that happen. President Trump made a lot of promises on the campaign trail, but he didn't warn voters that their retirement investments would likely take a nosedive and tariffs would make almost everything more expensive.

Let's go now to CNN's chief data analyst, Harry Enten, as he really breaks down the numbers from the S&P 500 since Donald Trump took office.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

HARRY ENTEN, CNN CHIEF DATA ANALYST: It's dropped 15 percent under Donald Trump's presidency. The S&P 500 has been collecting data essentially since 1957. It's been an index.

I went back and I looked for drops of 15 percent with a president who was inheriting a bull market. There's only one dude on your screen. It's Donald John Trump. He is

the only one to see a drop of 15 percent this soon into his presidency in the S&P 500 after inheriting a bull market.

In fact, there's only one other president who has seen a drop of 15 percent this early on in his presidency, and that was George W. Bush back in 2001.

But of course, he was in fact inheriting the dot-com bubble bust. And so this is truly unique where you come in with a bull market and then, boom, right through the floor.

And what's the chance of a recession? I mean, J.P. Morgan, look at this, now up to 60 percent. It was 40 percent in early March.

How about Goldman Sachs? It was 20 percent in early March. We're now up to 35 percent.

Basically, at this point, you average all these different companies together who put forecasts out on the chance of a recession. It's about 50-50. You look at these numbers, you wouldn't be surprised to see Donald Trump's net approval rating.

Compare it now to where it was at this point in the first term. In the first term, he was above water at plus five points. Where is he now? He's way underwater.

He is swimming with the fishes. Look at this. He is the worst ever for a president at this point in a term on record at minus 12 points.

I just never thought I would see the day because, as we were hinting at the beginning, Trump promised an economic boom. Voters bought into it, but so far they ain't liking what they're seeing.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SANDOVAL: Our thanks to Harry Enten.

Meanwhile, Florida is looking to lift some of its child labor laws in order to fill low-wage jobs that were vacated by undocumented immigrants. If the bill passes, children as young as 14 years old would be able to work overnight shifts, even on school days.

Here's CNN's Ivan Rodriguez.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

IVAN RODRIGUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Describing Lofty Pursuits in Tallahassee, Florida in one word isn't so simple.

RODRIGUEZ: Definitely smoother, right?

GREGORY COHEN, OWNER, LOFTY PURSUITS: Somebody once described Lofty Pursuits as a performance art project that happened to turn a profit.

RODRIGUEZ (voice-over): From a classic America Soda fountain to handmade candy, Gregory Cohen has captivated his customers for more than three decades. As a business owner who has hired teenagers before, Cohen says certain parts of a proposed Florida bill aimed at deleting certain restrictions on minors could make sense in terms of flexibility and when teen workers take breaks.

COHEN: Getting that half-hour break exactly at four hours or exactly at the right time so we don't violate is really hard to schedule when you don't know when the customers are coming in.

RODRIGUEZ: Still, is this really changing much?

COHEN: I don't know.

RODRIGUEZ (voice-over): The bill would allow 16 and 17-year-olds to work more than eight hours in a day when school is scheduled the next day and work over 30 hours a week during the school year without mandated breaks. For 14 and 15-year-olds who are homeschooled, attend virtual school, or have graduated high school, the bill also removes restrictions on overnight work on school days.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis argues the change will help fill positions left by deported migrants.

GOV. RON DESANTIS (R-FL): What's wrong with expecting our young people to be working part-time now? That's how it used to be when I was growing up. Why do we say we need to import foreigners, even import them illegally, when teenagers used to work at these resorts?

RODRIGUEZ: Do you believe that this bill would have an impact on a child's development?

SADAF KNIGHT, CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, FLORIDA POLICY INSTITUTE: Absolutely, because we already are seeing high levels of absenteeism.

RODRIGUEZ (voice-over): Sadaf Knight with the Florida Policy Institute says right now children who want to work longer hours can already do so through a waiver process involving parents, guardians, or a school superintendent.

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KNIGHT: This bill would eliminate that process altogether. So parents are essentially being excluded from the process of the decision-making around how long and how much their kids work.

RODRIGUEZ (voice-over): Members of the Youth Action Fund, a non-profit made up of high school and university students, rallied at the state capitol.

CAMERON DRIGGERS, FOUNDER, YOUTH ACTION FUND: The lawmakers are trying to bring us back to the Gilded Age, and that cannot be more true. This is going to target low-income people, and obviously as a result, black and brown Floridians who are more likely to have to rely on income from a young age to support their families.

RODRIGUEZ (voice-over): For Cliff and Shannon Sherry, owners of Doggy Dayz daycare, it's unnecessary to change the law since they've never had any issue hiring minors before. Most importantly, they believe kids should be kids.

CLIFF SHERRY, OWNER, DOGGIE DAYZ DAYCARE: We just hope it's not going to lead to kids having to make a tough decision as to whether they need to work or they can do those things that everybody wants to do when they're kids.

RODRIGUEZ: The number of child violations in Florida has nearly tripled in recent years according to the U.S. Department of Labor Statistics. Now legislative analysis of the bill says it will increase opportunities to generate income for certain individuals and employers and could also have a positive economic impact on the private sector. If passed, the law will take effect July 1st.

Ivan Rodriguez, CNN, Atlanta.

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SANDOVAL: When we come back here in the U.S., the National Hockey League has a new all-time leading scorer, and his name is Alex Ovechkin. And still to come, how the hockey legend Wayne Gretzky reacted to his own record being broken.

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SANDOVAL: Fans of the U.S.'s National Hockey League witnessed history in the making on Sunday as Alex Ovechkin scored his 895th career goal. And that broke the decades-old previous record that was held by Hall of Famer Wayne Gretzky.

Here's CNN's Patrick Snell with more.

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PATRICK SNELL, CNN WORLD SPORT: Well, what a historic Sunday it was in the National Hockey League. Russian ice hockey superstar Alex Ovechkin and his quest to become the all-time leading scorer in the league.

Now on Friday night, Ovechkin tying Canadian legend Wayne Gretzky on 894 regular season goals, meaning he needed just one more for the outright stand-alone record with the iconic Hall of Famer himself, Gretzky, again in attendance. Ovechkin's team, the Washington Capitals, taking to the ice Sunday against the New York Islanders.

The date with destiny on the line. Everyone packed in, wanting to see it. And here comes the moment, right in front of his family, his two sons.

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It comes now. Number 895 as this 39-year-old strikes sensationally in the second period, Ovechkin rocketing Arista past goalie and fellow Russian Ilya Sorokin right in front of the left winger's family, including those two sons I mentioned. Of course, Gretzky himself, there's no saving that one. Just look how the Capitals' captain celebrates the only goal in his team's 4-1 defeat, a power play goal too, which was fitting as no one in league history has ever scored more power play goals than the man from Moscow. There's the moment there with his children.

And here's a great stat as well. Ove had scored against 182 different goalies, but never before against his compatriot until now.

Savor the moment, soak it all in. A momentous moment indeed for the sport and beyond.

So entirely appropriate then that the game was paused after Ovechkin's goal for a ceremony to recognize his achievement. And here's another great stat. Like Gretzky, 20 seasons and the Russian breaking the record having played the same amount of games, 1487, that Gretzky managed during his 20-year career.

Let's hear now from history-making Alex Ovechkin.

ALEX OVECHKIN, WINGER, WASHINGTON CAPITALS: It's a team sport without my boys. The whole organization, the fans, the trainers, coaches.

I would never stand there and obviously I would never pass a great one. So, fellas, thank you very much. I love you so much.

WAYNE GRETZKY, HOCKEY HALL OF FAMER: I know how hard it is to get to 894. 895 is pretty special. My congratulations to not only Alex, his mom and dad, his family, his wife and kids.

When I broke the record, my two kids were about the age of his boys. So it's kind of reminiscent for me. They say records are made to be broken, but I'm not sure who's going to get more goals than that.

SNELL: And that is the moment back in Washington, D.C., where Alex Ovechkin scores his record-breaking number 895. The best part of 300 miles away on Long Island, New York. Fans cheering and chanting his name.

Historic scenes. What a moment for Capitals fans, who will bask in the glory of this achievement for some time to come.

For now, though, it's right back to you.

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SANDOVAL: And we want to thank you for joining us. I'm Polo Sandoval, in New York. "The Amanpour Hour" is next, and I will be right back here for "Early Start" starting at 5 a.m. in New York, 9 a.m. in London. Wherever you are in the world, we hope your week is off to a great start.

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