On this week’s Defense & Aerospace Report Business Roundtable, sponsored by Bell, Dr. “Rocket” Ron Epstein of Bank of America Securities, Sash Tusa of the independent equity research firm Agency Partners, and Richard Aboulafia of the AeroDynamic advisory consultancy join host Vago Muradian to discuss global market reaction to President Trump’s sweeping tariffs that are being compared by economists as the largest abrupt tax hikes since the Vietnam war if not World War 2; how aerospace and defense stocks fared as the Standard & Poor’s 500 lost 10 percent of its value in two days driving markets to their worst day since 2020; despite a warning by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent that nations not retaliate otherwise they would face higher tariffs, nations retaliated anyway including China that blocked rare earth exports to the United States; Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell dryly noted that tariffs risk higher inflation and lower economic growth; despite the loss of nearly $6 trillion in market value and damage to America’s reputation as a financial safe harbor, administration officials continued to make the case that the American economy was in tough shape and in dire need of shock therapy even though US stock values hit highs in February; JPMorgan estimated a 60 percent chance of recession this year with some economists worrying about a depression; as aerospace and defense suppliers scramble to cope with Washington’s new tax, Howmet was the first major aerospace firm to declare the tariffs a force majeure event and warn customers it might not be able to deliver as a consequence; and whether defense contracts would be spared from tariffs and how programs cots could be impacted.

On this week’s Defense & Aerospace Report Business Roundtable, sponsored by Bell, Dr. “Rocket” Ron Epstein of Bank of America Securities, Sash Tusa of the independent equity research firm Agency Partners, and Richard Aboulafia of the AeroDynamic advisory consultancy join host Vago Muradian to discuss Wall Street’s down week on investor concerns about inflation and declining consumer confidence putting the Standard and Poor’s 500 on track for its worst quarter since 2022; budget officials warn the US government will run out of money in August unless Congress raises the debt limit; a week after President Trump taps Boeing as the winner of the manned combat aircraft portion of the US Air Force’s Next Generation Air Dominance program, House appropriators propose cutting funding for the new program, the Collaborative Combat Aircraft, and the B-21 Raider bomber; the Washington Post reports the Trump administration is preparing to cut the federal agencies by between 8 and 50 percent as the General Services Administration targets top consulting and IT contractors; Trump imposed a 25 percent tariff on imported cars; European governments continue to step up efforts to bolster defense capabilities even as Italy emerges as a possible spoiler; an inflection point for BAE Systems; RocketLab’s Neutron launch vehicle wins a Space Force contract valued at up to $5.6 billion; air travel continues to decline; and the US Navy’s prepares to announce whether Boeing or Northrop Grumman will win its FA-XX next generation fighter contest.