JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon Warns Recession Is Coming. He Blames Trump’s Trade War With China

JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon warned that a recession is on the horizon. He said its thanks to the Trump Administration’s continuing trade war with China.

Dimon said during a morning call with reporters after the bank announced its third-quarter earnings:

Of course, there’s a recession ahead. It does look like geopolitics, particularly around China and trade, are reducing business confidence and business capital expenditure.

However, bank spokesman Joe Evangelisti sought to downplay Dimon’s comments. Evangelisti noted that the JPMorgan Chase CEO didn’t mention the timing of his prediction:

He says there is always a recession coming, you just don’t know when. He is not predicting a recession any time soon.

The comments come just days after President Trump announced the first phase of a trade deal with China. The first phase of the trade deal guarantees another $40 billion in purchases of US goods. It will also keep tariffs on Chinese imports.

The trade deal hasn’t been written and still needs to be signed. The market reaction to the deal was muted on Monday by remaining flat.

Businesses have been slowing hiring in recent months due to the trade war. The trade war has dragged on into its 18th month. Economists worry that that will hit consumers.

Dimon added that consumers haven’t shown the same worries that businesses have. Especially since unemployment reached a 50-year low last month.

The JPMorgan Chase CEO told reporters:

The consumer is not under strain. The consumer is doing fine.

On Tuesday, JPMorgan announced that the bank’s profits rose 8 percent during the third quarter to $9.1 billion. Thus, beating analysts’ expectations.