NEW YORK, April 9 (Reuters) – JPMorgan Chase CEO (JPM.N)
, opens new tab Jamie Dimon said on Wednesday that sweeping tariffs imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump will probably lead to a recession and defaults by borrowers, he told Fox Business’ Mornings with Maria.
“So long as you have rates going up… inflation is sticky and credit spreads are gapping out, which they’re going to, I think you’ll see more credit problems,” Dimon said.
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Dimon urged fast progress on trade negotiations with U.S. trading partners in order to calm markets, which have been roiled by tariff announcements.
“I hope what they really do is… get those things done quickly,” he said, referring to trade negotiations between U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and other nations. “If they want to calm down markets, show progress on those things.”
Dimon, 69, is one of the most prominent voices in corporate America and has regularly been consulted by administrations during times of crisis. His name was floated for senior economic roles in government during the 2024 presidential campaign, including Treasury secretary, but he stayed put at the bank.
“I’m taking a calm view, but I think it could get worse if we don’t make some progress here,” Dimon said.
JPMorgan’s economists raised the risk of a U.S. and global recession this year to 60% from 40% after Trump unveiled the trade barriers.
U.S. stock index futures fell sharply on Wednesday after China announced more levies on U.S. goods, retaliating to President Donald Trump’s reciprocal tariffs that took effect earlier in the day. U.S. stocks were also expected to open sharply lower today.
The world’s second largest economy would impose additional tariffs of 84% on all U.S. goods from April 10, up from the 34% previously announced, China’s finance ministry said.
Dimon also said that the economy is facing considerable turbulence and tariffs will have lasting negative consequences in his annual letter published on Monday.
Reporting by Nupur Anand in New York and Suzanne McGee in Providence, editing by Lananh Nguyen
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
Nupur Anand is a U.S. banking correspondent at Reuters in New York. She focuses on JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo and regional banks. Anand covered banking and finance in India for more than a decade, chronicling the collapse of major lenders and turmoil at digital banks and cryptocurrencies. She has a degree in English literature from Delhi University and a postgraduate diploma in journalism from the Indian Institute of Journalism & New Media in Bangalore. Anand is also an award-winning fiction writer.
