Trump Raises South Korean Auto Tariffs to 25%
Catch up on the top industries and stocks that were impacted, or were predicted to be impacted, by the comments, actions and policies of President Donald Trump with this daily recap compiled by The Fly.TARIFFS:U.S. President Donald Trump said in aon Truth Social, "Our Trade Deals are very important to America. In each of these Deals, we have acted swiftly to reduce our TARIFFS in line with the Transaction agreed to. We, of course, expect our Trading Partners to do the same. South Korea's Legislature is not living up to its Deal with the United States. President Lee and I reached a Great Deal for both Countries on July 30, 2025, and we reaffirmed these terms while I was in Korea on October 29, 2025. Why hasn't the Korean Legislature approved it? Because the Korean Legislature hasn't enacted our Historic Trade Agreement, which is their prerogative, I am hereby increasing South Korean TARIFFS on Autos, Lumber, Pharma, and all other Reciprocal TARIFFS, from 15% to 25%."FLAT INSURANCE RATES:The Trump administration is calling for 2027 rates received by Medicare insurers to be "roughly flat", which would be well short of expectations, The Wall Street Journal's Anna Wilde Mathews and Christopher Weaver, citing the proposal by Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Payments to the plans would increase by an estimated 0.09% on average in 2027, the report states. Publicly traded companies in the space are trading sharply lower afterhours on the report and include CVS Health, Centene, Cigna, Elevance Health, Humana, Molina Healthcareand UnitedHealth.RATE CUTS:Federal Reserve officials are expected to pause interest rate cuts this week after three consecutive reductions since September, The Wall Street Journal's Nick Timiraos. The Fed's benchmark rate will likely remain between 3.5% and 3.75%, with officials divided on future cuts due to inflation and job market data.
Get Free Real-Time Notifications for Any Stock
Analyst Views on CVS
About CVS
About the author
UnitedHealth Group 2025 Earnings Report Analysis
- Earnings Beat Expectations: UnitedHealth Group's Q4 2025 earnings report exceeded expectations; however, the stock plummeted 20%, indicating market disappointment with future revenue guidance, resulting in a more than 50% decline from its late 2024 peak.
- Impact of Insurance Policy: The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) proposed a mere 0.09% increase in 2027 Medicare Advantage rates, significantly below the anticipated 4% to 6%, placing substantial financial pressure on UnitedHealth Group, which leads the Medicare market.
- CEO's Outlook: CEO Timothy Noel emphasized during the earnings call that the CMS proposal does not reflect the realities of medical utilization and cost trends, potentially leading to significant benefit reductions and necessitating a reevaluation of the company's geographic and product footprint.
- Long-Term Growth Potential: Despite short-term challenges, UnitedHealth Group anticipates modest growth in 2026 and a return to low double-digit earnings growth in 2027, with CEO Stephen Hemsley asserting that the company can achieve long-term growth rates of 13% to 16%, presenting potential long-term investment opportunities for shareholders.
Trump Administration's Medicare Proposal Shocks Healthcare Stocks
- Payment Increase Proposal: The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services proposed a mere 0.09% net increase in Medicare Advantage payments for 2027, significantly below the anticipated 4% to 6%, resulting in a $90 billion market value loss for the healthcare sector, highlighting the substantial impact of policy uncertainty on market dynamics.
- Earnings Risk Heightened: Analysts warn that if the proposed rates are finalized without adjustments, insurers could see a 15% to 20% decrease in earnings due to the disconnect between rising medical costs and flat funding, exacerbating profitability pressures within the industry.
- Bleak Industry Outlook: Although final rates are expected in April and historical trends suggest potential improvements, analysts predict the healthcare sector may enter a stagnation period of one to two years where earnings fail to expand as previously hoped, negatively affecting investor sentiment.
- Operational Improvements Overlooked: Despite UnitedHealth reporting quarterly improvements in profitability, the headline risk from the payment proposal continues to overshadow operational gains, with analysts noting that while progress is being made, significant recovery challenges remain.
