Return to Transcripts main page
Early Start with Rahel Solomon
Chinese Tariffs On U.S. Agricultural Goods Now In Effect; Plane Crashes At Pennsylvania Retirement Community; NY Launches Investigation Into Long Island Brush Fires. Aired 5:30-6a ET
Aired March 10, 2025 - 05:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[05:30:00]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, (R) PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Um, I hate to predict things like that. There is a period of transition because what we're doing is very big. We're bringing wealth back to America and that's a big thing. And there are always periods of -- it takes a little time. It takes a little time. But I don't -- I think it should be great for us.
KRISTEN WELKER, HOST, NBC NEWS "MEET THE PRESS": Should Americans brace for a recession?
HOWARD LUTNICK, COMMERCE SECRETARY: Absolutely not. There's going to be no recession in America. Donald Trump is bringing growth to America. I would never bet on a recession -- no chance.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
RAHEL SOLOMON, CNN ANCHOR: All right, let's bring in James Royal who is a principal writer and investing analyst with Bankrate. He joins me now from Geneva, Switzerland. Great to have you this morning, James.
It's been a bumpy ride for the markets the last few weeks. And I think we all know the age-old advice don't act emotionally when it comes to your investments. That said, for people watching this rollercoaster in the markets wondering what they can do what do you say?
JAMES ROYAL, INVESTING ANALYST, BANKRATE: Well, I think it's important to remember we've got the S&P 500 down about six percent from its all-time high and the Nasdaq down about nine percent from its all-time high. And those are just weeks ago so that's a lot of volatility here just in a few weeks.
But it's important to remember the context of that. We had 2023-2024 stocks up better than 20 percent each year. And if you don't need to access that money in the short term, if you're investing for retirement years ago, then it's valuable to stay the course. You will not get those -- the market's attractive long-term returns unless you endure that short-term volatility.
So that's really the key takeaway for investors here. SOLOMON: So just sit tight essentially?
ROYAL: Yeah. Well -- and a lot of investors, particularly individual investors, see that volatility and they think that they can time it. That they can sell it when it's high and get back in when it's low. But the thing is a lot of the -- a lot of the time the market's best days follow its worst days as we saw --
SOLOMON: Yeah.
ROYAL: -- for example, with the COVID pandemic in early 2020. And that's Wall Street's game. You don't want to play that.
For individual investors the way to win in the market is to stick to that long-term knitting. Go with what works best for you.
SOLOMON: And what about a time -- I mean, we just heard from the commerce secretary there, Howard Lutnick, on "MEET THE PRESS" yesterday saying absolutely no chance of a recession. You know, don't bet against this administration.
That said, you are hearing some banks and seeing some banks raise their forecast for the likelihood of a recession this year.
Your tips for people concerned maybe not about moving their money in this moment but may be worried about job security or maybe worried is my cash pile OK. I mean, what's the advice there in terms of how to brace for a recession if, in fact, you believe one could be coming despite what the commerce secretary said?
ROYAL: Sure, and it's always a great opportunity when you hear that type of warning to go back and reassess your own finances. Do you have that emergency fund stocked? Is that typical -- the typical advice is six months. Is that enough? Maybe you want to store some -- store some up now while you've got the opportunity, and you've got that cash flow and put in that safety net.
But the thing is if you're an investor too that emergency fund is great because that allows you to continue investing if you've got that safety net on the one hand. So that if stocks are lower you don't have to sell out if they go -- you don't have to sell out at a low point. You can continue to ride for that better, higher, longer term return.
SOLOMON: Yeah.
ROYAL: So you really need to balance those things.
SOLOMON: No. It's a fair point. And I mean, just speaking of the cash pile and speaking of savings and checking accounts, Bankrate is out with a new survey today which I thought was a little interesting. I was a little offended James because it talks about how many Americans have been with the same bank for more than a decade -- almost two decades.
Is there any harm in staying put with your bank? ROYAL: Well, I think as long as it's serving the needs that you have -- and broadly that's the type of result that this Bankrate survey showed. Americans sticking with their checking accounts for 19 years on average, savings accounts 17 years on average. And a lot of those facts -- a lot of the reasons that they did that were convenience. In fact, overall, 43 percent of the factors that presented had to do with convenience, for example, that they've always had it.
But another key factor here -- the number one individual factor was that those bank accounts offered no fees or low fees, so it fit into a budget as well. So those were a lot of the factors showed why Americans stuck with the accounts. And, in fact, 68 percent of Americans don't pay any monthly fees on those checking accounts.
[05:35:05]
So sure, it -- there could be some drawbacks by staying and it's always a good time to sort of reassess if the bank is serving your needs and what you're really looking for. But that long tenure suggests that Americans are getting what they need.
SOLOMON: Yeah. What are you looking for James in this Wednesday's big report -- the inflation report? We know in the past it has the potential to really move the market significantly one way or another, but obviously it matters a lot to people at home who are still looking for some relief on the inflation front. What are you watching?
ROYAL: Yeah. I think the inflation is really the key point here. We're looking to see if some of those -- the initial weeks of the Trump administration is going to -- if we're going to see some inflation tick-up and how that's playing out -- specific sectors. Whether that specific sector is um -- and just the market seems really keyed on this number and ultimately where those Trump tariffs or other policies might be leading us on the inflation front. So that -- certainly investors are clearly keeping a close eye there.
SOLOMON: Yeah, as are federal officials. We get the next Fed meeting next week. I'm sure they will be closing a -- keeping a close eye as well.
James Royal, we appreciate you being with us this morning. Thank you.
All right. And along with defending tariffs, President Trump and his team continue to rally around Elon Musk. The presidential adviser unofficially leading DOGE has been surrounded by controversy -- even facing pushback from some within the president's cabinet as he attempts to help reduce the White House federal spending -- as he helps the White House reduce federal spending.
But on Sunday the president had nothing but praise for Musk.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: Well, I don't think the tensions are high. Look, Elon's a very special person and these cabinet people are special people. These are very successful people or they wouldn't have gotten -- you know, they have attained the highest heights of government and they -- I think they have a fantastic relationship to Elon, and DOGE has been incredible.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOLOMON: As for the American public a recent poll from NPR, PBS, and Marist found that half of those surveyed had an unfavorable view of Musk.
Still ahead, the latest on the condition of Pope Francis as the 88- year-old begins his fourth week in the hospital for double pneumonia.
Also ahead, the latest on a University of Pittsburgh student who vanished after a night out on a spring break holiday in the Caribbean.
We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL)
[05:42:15]
SOLOMON: Welcome back. I'm Rahel Solomon. And here are some of the stories we are watching for you today.
Canada's Liberal Party has picked Mark Carney as its new leader. Carney is vowing to continue the fight against U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff war and says that Canada will never be part of the U.S.
The Vatican says that Pope Francis had another "peaceful" night in the hospital and is now resting. The 88-year-old pontiff has now spent more than three weeks in a Rome hospital. There is still no indication as to when the pontiff will return to the Vatican.
Katherine Legge just became the first woman in seven years to race in the NASCAR Cup Series. The British driver competed on Sunday in Arizona but a crash on lap 216 cut her day short. Legge is the first woman to compete in NASCAR since Danica Patrick in 2018.
And as his tariff war escalates, U.S. President Donald Trump is now expressing uncertainty over the chance of a recession this year. He simply admits who knows? Global trade tensions are stoking fears of that possibility. But President Trump boasted earlier that the U.S. will make so much money off his tariffs.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: All I know is this. We're going to take in hundreds of billions of dollars in tariffs and we're going to become so rich you're not going to know where to spend all that money. I'm telling you -- you just watch. We're going to have jobs. We're going to have open factories. It's going to be great.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOLOMON: All right, let's go to Beijing and CNN's Marc Stewart. Marc, good morning to you. Lots of back and forth between the two nations. What's happening now?
MARC STEWART, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Rahel. Good to see you.
Look, we're really following two issues here. One is retaliation. The second is rhetoric.
Let's start with retaliation. It was just today here in China that new tariffs went into effect targeting American farmers. We're talking about products like soybeans, fruits and vegetables, chicken, and beef.
And then on this topic of rhetoric it was just last Friday her in Beijing that we heard from the Chinese foreign minister. He was speaking to a group of reporters from all around the world really showing concern and questioning the effectiveness of this move by the United States, wondering if tariffs help improve people's lives? If it helps with inflation.
He did open the room though for some kind of negotiation between the U.S. and China. Let me read you one phrase that really caught our attention. The foreign minister Wang Yi saying, "If you choose to cooperate, you will achieve mutual benefit and win-win results; if you blindly exert pressure, China will resolutely counterattack."
So that is the view from the central government here in Beijing.
[05:45:00]
We're also getting response from everyday Chinese citizens. Many of them tell us that the impact of these tariffs still not being felt yet at the store but there is concern about the impact on prices not only here in China but also in the United States.
Take a listen to some of the reaction we heard just a few days ago.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): It may not have much impact on my life because I am at the grassroots level -- ordinary people. So the impact on us may not be particularly large but it will definitely have a great impact on the country.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): Whatever the other side does to us we might do the same to them. In the end there could be a mutually damaging outcome.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
STEWART: So then there is this bigger question still on the table. What happens next? What will cause perhaps more discussions between the U.S. and China to take place? There is -- there has been this long awaited phone call between President Xi Jinping and President Trump but at this point no indication as to when it will take place. It was now several weeks ago that we heard some interest by President Trump to have this conversation but Rahel, no timetable. No indication if and when this will still take place. SOLOMON: Yeah. Clearly, the stakes are high.
Marc Stewart in Beijing. We appreciate you being with us this morning, Mark. Thank you.
And as for tariffs, Canada's oldest brewery is taking action. Moosehead Breweries is now offering what it calls the "Presidential Pack." It's a crate of nearly 1,500 cans of Canadian lager. Basically, that's enough to have one beer every day for four years. The company says it's "just enough to get through the full presidential term."
And still to come for us King Charles shares what's on his playlist. Yes, you heard that right. We'll share some of his royal music recommendations after the break.
(COMMERCIAL)
[05:51:20]
SOLOMON: Welcome back.
Authorities in the Dominican Republic are sharing new details from surveillance footage of a University of Pittsburgh student who is now missing. They say that Indian national Sudiksha Konanki went to the beach around 4:00 a.m. local time Thursday at the Riu Republica hotel in Punta Cana. Video showed her with seven other people. Most of them left almost two hours later but she stayed behind with a man.
Now, police say that they've interviewed him and are trying to determine what happened when they were alone. They say that he was seen on a surveillance video leaving the beach around 10:00 a.m. that morning.
The pre-med student was in the Dominican Republic on spring break when she went missing. Authorities have now launched a land and sea search for the young woman on the Caribbean nation's east coast.
A fiery scene in Pennsylvania after a small plane crashed into a retirement village parking lot. This happened on Sunday. Authorities say that the five people aboard the single-engine aircraft were injured and moved to local hospitals. Now, fortunately, no one on the ground was hurt and there appears to be no structural damage except for about a dozen vehicles.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHIEF DUANE FISHER, MANHEIM TOWNSHIP POLICE DEPARTMENT: The fact that we have a plane crash where everybody survives and nobody on the ground is hurt is a -- is a wonderful thing. And any time you have transportation you always have risks when people are moving. But to have this type of ending, right, so far, is a great day for us.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOLOMON: One witness comparing the scene's intense heat to an oven set to 500 degrees. Officials say that there will be an investigation. And investigators in New York are working to determine what caused those massive brush fires on Long Island. Now, authorities did not rule out the possibility of arson as they began surveying burn zones on Sunday.
CNN's Jenn Sullivan has more on the fire's impact over the weekend.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JENN SULLIVAN, CNN JOURNALIST (voiceover): Massive flames and heavy smoke are what many people saw on New York's Long Island Saturday as multiple brush fires exploded. Expected wind gusts up to 35 miles per hour further fueling the flames.
ED ROMAINE, SUFFOLK COUNTY EXECUTIVE: It's the wind that drove this fire.
SULLIVAN (voiceover): A major highway was shut down. New York Governor Kathy Hochul declaring a state of emergency for Suffolk County.
GOVERNOR KATHY HOCHUL, (D) NEW YORK: While there are no structures in harm's way at this moment, -- again, this could shift in a moment. But the air quality is definitely compromised.
SULLIVAN (voiceover): The National Guard was called in to help the firefighters from multiple agencies fight the flames. Officials say at least two firefighters were hurt.
ROMAINE: We had over 90 fire -- volunteer fire departments and EMS agencies respond and was able to contain the fire.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SOLOMON: And an elevated fire risk is also threatening states in the Midwest. Portions of the North Plains have been marked critical by the National Weather Service as dry, windy conditions are expected to sweep through the region.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BOB MARLEY, JAMAICAN SINGER-SONGWRITER: Singing "Could You Be Loved."
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOLOMON: Something about Bob Marley just instantly puts you in a good mood. Some Bob Marley for you as we start the week. His song "Could You Be Loved" is featured on the playlist of Apple Music's newest deejay, King Charles. The British monarch has teamed up with Apple for the King's Music Room, and here's a sneak peek.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KING CHARLES: You just heard the King's Guard playing "Could You Be Loved" by the late Bob Marley. I always recall his words "The people have a voice inside of them." He gave the world that voice in a way that no one who heard it could ever forget.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[05:55:00]
SOLOMON: And his favorite tracks include some artists that maybe you wouldn't expect, like Australian popstar Kylie Minogue, and one of the U.K.'s hottest rising stars, Raye.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RAYE, BRITISH SINGER-SONGWRITER: Singing "Oscar Winning Tears."
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOLOMON: The king offering a glowing review of the singer who just came off a performance at the Academy Awards last week.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KING CHARLES: Anyone who saw Raye perform at the Grammy Awards will know that she is a great ambassador for British music.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOLOMON: And you can watch or listen to the King's Music Room through Tuesday on Apple Music.
All right, thanks for joining us here on EARLY START starting your week off with us. I'm Rahel Solomon live in New York. "CNN THIS MORNING" is up after a quick break. I'll see you tomorrow.
(COMMERCIAL)
