Wall Street CEOs Pull The ‘Trump Tariff’ Card: Is Macro Fear The New Excuse For Weak Guidance?—Asks Leading Fund Manager – Spotify Technology (NYSE:SPOT), General Motors (NYSE:GM)

As “macro uncertainty” and President Donald Trump‘s tariffs become the go-to scapegoats for CEOs this earnings season, fund manager Gary Black isn’t buying it.

What Happened: On Tuesday, Black posted on X, citing former Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s famous quote, “Never let a good crisis go to waste,” as he accused CEOs of using tariffs and economic uncertainty as cover during earnings season to justify either pulling or scaling back their 2025 guidance.

Black finds it all the more absurd that companies that have nothing to do with imported goods are now blaming the “Trump tariffs” for their underperformance.

See More: Trump Can Either Have His Cake Or Eat It, Economist Justin Wolfers Calls Out President’s ‘Fundamental Incoherence’ On Trade Deals And Tariffs

He then highlights companies such as General Motors Co. GM, United Parcel Service Inc. UPS, and Spotify Technology SA SPOT, all companies that released their earnings on Tuesday, with all three of them citing tariff-related uncertainties to with their guidance for the full year.

While General Motors and United Parcel Service have at least some cover to lay the blame on macroeconomic headwinds, Spotify, a music streaming service, doesn’t.

Why It Matters: Gary Black, the founder of The Future Fund LLC, has been critical of the tariffs for quite some time, predicting a cut in spending by businesses and consumers several weeks ago.

He’s also been at the forefront of predicting a recession early last week, again laying the blame on the tariffs and the related uncertainty.

Dan Ives of Wedbush Securities, too, had predicted early this month that most companies will not offer a guidance for the full-year during their first quarter earnings call, once again citing the unpredictability of the macro environment.

Read More:

Image Via Shutterstock