PayPal kicks off fintech earnings as investors fear impact of Trump tariffs on consumer spending
FILE PHOTO: A smartphone with the PayPal logo is placed on a laptop in this illustration taken on July 14, 2021.
Dado Ruvic | Reuters
PayPal, Block and Affirm are all closely tied to the health of the consumer, which has investors on edge headed into their earnings reports.
Markets broadly have been jittery to start the year due largely to concerns about President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs and the prospect of higher import costs leading to rising unemployment and reduced consumer spending.
Specific to e-commerce, there’s the end of de minimis trade exemptions for Chinese imports, effective May 2. That change, aimed at discount shopping apps like Temu and Shein, threatens tens of billions of dollars in low-cost cross-border e-commerce volume.
“Tariff implications and macro have added another wrinkle to ’25,” Wells Fargo analysts wrote in a note on April 16. The bank said PayPal is particularly exposed to tariff-related volatility and macro uncertainty, given that 90% of its revenue comes from consumer-driven transactions.
PayPal is the first in the group to report earnings on Tuesday. Block, the parent of Square, follows on Thursday. Affirm is scheduled to report results next Thursday. Their stock prices have been hit harder this year than the broader market. PayPal is down 23%, Block has fallen 32% and Affirm has dropped 19%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq is down 10%.
The stocks rebounded last week as Wall Street showed some level of optimism that the Trump administration will make progress on trade agreements and that tariffs won’t be as extreme as earlier proposals suggested.
Trump signed an executive order in early April imposing tariffs on more than 180 countries and territories. After markets immediately plunged, the president soon announced a 90-day pause on most tariffs, though levies on imports from China remain, and are as high as 145%. The universal tariff rate on goods imported into the U.S. from most countries is 10%.
The fintech reports land during earnings season for megcap tech, with Meta, Microsoft, Amazon and Apple all announcing results this week. Tesla and Alphabet both reported last week and talked about the potential impact of policy changes on their earnings calls.
On Alphabet’s earnings call on Thursday, Google Chief Business Officer Philipp Schindler said the end of the de minimis trade loophole will “cause a slight headwind to our ads business in 2025,” primarily from retailers in the Asia-Pacific region.
While Google is “not immune to the macro environment,” Schindler said, it has “a lot of experience managing through uncertain times.”
E-commerce challenges
With mixed messages coming from the administration, companies are reckoning with uncertainty and have little ability to provide accurate forecasts for the current quarter and remainder of the year. The volatility reached such heights in early April that Klarna, which competes with Affirm in the buy now, pay later market, and ticket marketplace StubHub delayed their long-awaited initial public offerings shortly after filing their prospectuses with the SEC.
Barclays analysts noted in a report on April 17, that significantly higher tariffs will weigh heavily on e-commerce sales, particularly for goods previously entering the U.S. duty-free. The firm estimates that Temu and Shein represent more than 30% of affected flows, much of it tied to digital wallets, buy now, pay later providers, and card processing infrastructure.
PayPal derives the vast majority of sales from consumer transactions and 40% of revenue and gross payment volume comes from international markets, according to Wells Fargo analysts. The bank trimmed its price target on April 16, to $74 from $80, citing margin pressure as e-commerce trends soften and competition rises.
PayPal has been getting a boost from Venmo, but that segment is also threatened if consumer spending declines. Growth expectations for the quarter — specifically a 5.5% increase in branded checkout volume — may be too high, Wells Fargo said, based on available nonstore retail sales data.
Analysts surveyed by LSEG estimate that PayPal will post revenue growth of just under 2% from a year earlier to $7.85 billion, and earnings of $1.16 per share.
Jack Dorsey’s Block faces pressure in multiple areas. Cash App user growth was sluggish in March, up just 1.3% from the same time last year, and Afterpay — the company’s buy now, pay later offering — is tightening its underwriting to limit credit losses. Barclays flagged Block as one of the more exposed names to small business churn and low-income volatility, noting that Afterpay volumes remain tied to highly discretionary consumer spend.
Block is expected to report revenue growth of about 4% to $6.2 billion, and earnings of 87 cents per share, according to LSEG,
Affirm reported a 30% increase in monthly active users in March, but tighter credit conditions and a broader economic cooldown may crimp near-term loan volume growth. Its business counts on purchases of electronics, apparel, furniture and other consumer goods.
Affirm is projected to report revenue growth of 36% to $783 million, and a loss of 3 cents per share, according to consensus estimates from LSEG.
Barclays analysts wrote in a note on April 15, that in March and the early part of April, much of the retail market may have experienced a “pull forward” of discretionary spending as consumers rushed to make purchases ahead of the May tariff implementation, a dynamic that could distort some backward-looking results.
“This scenario would essentially kick the sentiment can down the road,” the Barclays analysts wrote.
Representatives from PayPal, Block and Affirm declined to comment.
Toyota’s electric vehicle sales plunged as it prepares for a new wave of models. The new EVs are bringing much-needed upgrades, including more range, faster charging, revamped designs, and more.
Toyota’s EV sales crashed in Q3 as new models roll out
Despite most automakers reporting record EV sales as buyers rushed to claim the $7,500 federal tax credit, Toyota was an outlier, selling just 61 BZ models in September.
Including the Lexus RZ, which managed 86 sales, Toyota sold just 147 all-electric vehicles in the US last month, over 90% less than the 1,847 it sold in September 2024.
Toyota’s total sales were up 14% with over 185,700 vehicles sold, meaning EVs accounted for less than 0.1%. Through the first nine months of the year, sales of the BZ and Lexus RZ are down 9% and 36% compared to the year prior.
So, why is Toyota struggling to sell EVs when the market is booming? For one, it’s basically sold out of its current EV models, the bZ4X and Lexus RZ.
The 2026 Toyota BZ (formerly the bZ4X) is arriving at US dealerships, promising to fix some of the biggest complaints with the outgoing electric SUV.
Powered by a larger 74.7 kWh battery, the 2026 Toyota BZ offers up to 314 miles of driving range, a 25% improvement from the 2025 bZ4X.
The electric SUV features Toyota’s new “hammerhead front end” design, similar to that of the new Crown and Camry, with a slim LED light bar and revamped front fascia.
Toyota’s new electric SUV also features a built-in NACS charge port, allowing for recharging at Tesla Superchargers. It also features a new thermal management system and battery preconditioning, which improves charge times from 10% to 80% in about 30 minutes.
The base 2026 BZ XLE FWD starts at just $34,900, but uses a smaller 57.7 kWh battery, good for 236 miles range.
The 2026 Lexus RZ received similar updates. Next year, Toyota is launching two more fully electric SUVs, the 2026 C-HR and BZ Woodland.
| 2026 Toyota bZ trim | Battery | Range | Starting Price* |
| XLE FWD | 57.7 kWh | 236 miles | $34,900 |
| XLE FWD Plus | 74.7 kWh | 314 miles | $37,900 |
| XLE AWD | 74.7 kWh | 288 miles | $39,900 |
| Limited FWD | 74.7 kWh | 299 miles | $43,300 |
| Limited AWD | 74.7 kWh | 278 miles | $45,300 |
It’s not just the US that Toyota’s EV sales crashed last month, either. In its home market of Japan, Toyota (including Lexus) sold just 18 EVs in September.
The Japanese auto giant is betting on new models to drive growth. However, it remains committed to offering all powertrain options, including battery electric vehicles (BEVs), hybrids, plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), and fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs).
Can Toyota’s new generation of electric vehicles spark a comeback? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
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Tesla has confirmed that the new Model Y Performance supports bidirectional charging for both vehicle-to-home (V2H) and vehicle-to-load (V2L) applications.
For now, it only works with Tesla’s outlet adapter dongle.
We have known that Tesla’s onboard charger has had some bidirectional charging capacity for a while now.
I even successfully discharged a 2023 Model Y using my friend’s new Sigenergy battery system with a bidirectional charger earlier this summer.
However, Tesla doesn’t officially support the capacity in any vehicle other than the Cybertruck… until now.
With the release of the new Model Y Performance in the US yesterday, Tesla has started reaching out to customers who ordered and confirmed that the vehicle supports bidirectional charging:
- Vehicle-to-Load (V2L):
- Powers external devices (e.g., tools, camping gear, appliances) via the charge port using a compatible V2L adapter (e.g., Tesla’s discharger or third-party like Tlyard, ~$200–$400).
- Provides up to 11.5 kW of export power (120V/240V outlets, ~3–5 kW continuous) from the 82 kWh battery.
- Enabled via OTA software update (version 2025.20 or later, expected Q4 2025).
- Vehicle-to-Home (V2H):
- Supplies power to a home for backup or grid offset, requiring a Tesla Powerwall 3 or compatible bidirectional inverter and V2H adapter (~$1,000–$2,500 for hardware/installation).
Tesla also said on X today:
New Model Y Performance offers Vehicle to Load (120V 20A AC) with Tesla Outlet Adapter
Based on the communications with customers and this message on X, it appears that the feature only works with adapters for now, such as the Tesla Powershare outlet adapter:
But more capacity will be enabled through software updates later this quarter.
Electrek’s Take
Tesla confirmed the feature for the Model Y Performance, but the vehicle clearly uses the same onboard charger as in other refreshed Model Y.
Furthermore, we know that the onboard chargers in previous Tesla vehicles for the last few years are capable of bidirectional charging. Tesla is simply not making it available.
Now, it is confirming it on the new Performance version to try to sell the more expensive variant, but I would assume that it will eventually be enabled on other vehicles.
There’s no reason not to, and Tesla would only achieve feature parity with most new EVs hitting the market for years now.
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Although the $7,500 EV tax credit has expired, Hyundai is keeping the savings going. Hyundai is reducing 2026 IONIQ 5 prices by nearly $10,000, while extending the tax credit for the current model year.
The 2026 Hyundai IONIQ 5 gets a nearly $10,000 price cut
The 2026 IONIQ 5 is slated for a significant price cut as Hyundai commits to offering more affordable vehicles in the US.
Hyundai said it will reduce prices by up to $9,800 on the 2026 IONIQ 5. The savings depend on the trim, but the base IONIQ 5 RWD Standard Range model now starts at just $35,000, making it one of the most affordable EVs on the market, alongside the Chevy Equinox EV.
In the meantime, Hyundai will continue to offer the $7,500 cash incentive for the current 2025 models through at least October.
The price changes “reflect Hyundai’s commitment to affordability and its long-term EV strategy,” the company said. Hyundai builds the IONIQ 5 alongside its larger IONIQ 9 electric SUV at the Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America (HMGMA) in Georgia.
Higher sales and local production have helped Hyundai cut costs, which it’s now passing on to buyers. By making one of the most awarded EVs even more affordable, Hyundai aims to keep the momentum going.
The IONIQ 5 is coming off its best third-quarter sales to date after surging 90% year-over-year (YOY), with nearly 22,000 units sold. Through September, Hyundai has sold 41,091 IONIQ 5 models in the US, a 35% increase compared to the same period in 2024.
After delivering the first IONIQ 9 models to customers at the end of May, sales have reached 4,177 units through September.
The 2025 Hyundai IONIQ 5 starts at $42,600 with a driving range of up to 245 miles. Upgrading to the long-range SE RWD model, with 318 miles of range, costs $46,550.
The 2026 model year starts at just $35,000, or $7,600 less than the 2025 IONIQ 5. You can even snag the extended range SE or SEL model for under $40,000 now. Or, if you really want to get crazy, the off-road XRT variant is tempting at just $46,275, which is $9,225 less than last year’s model.
| 2025 Hyundai IONIQ 5 Trim | Driving Range (miles) | 2025 Starting Price | 2026 Starting Price* | Price Reduction |
| IONIQ 5 SE RWD Standard Range | 245 | $42,600 | $35,000 | ($7,600) |
| IONIQ 5 SE RWD | 318 | $46,650 | $37,500 | ($9,150) |
| IONIQ 5 SEL RWD | 318 | $49,600 | $39,800 | ($9,800) |
| IONIQ 5 Limited RWD | 318 | $54,300 | $45,075 | ($9,225) |
| IONIQ 5 SE Dual Motor AWD | 290 | $50,150 | $41,000 | ($9,150) |
| IONIQ 5 SEL Dual Motor AWD | 290 | $53,100 | $43,300 | ($9,800) |
| IONIQ 5 XRT Dual Motor AWD | 259 | $55,500 | $46,275 | ($9,225) |
| IONIQ 5 Limited Dual Motor AWD | 269 | $58,200 | $48,975 | ($9,225) |
Despite the lower prices, the 2026 Hyundai IONIQ 5 is a carry-over model with no significant changes from the outgoing model. The only difference is a new L1/L2 charging cable and Sage Silver Matte color options.
Last month, the 2025 Hyundai IONIQ 5 was one of the most affordable EVs on the market, with leases starting at just $179 per month. Hyundai’s offer ended on September 30, the same day the $7,500 federal tax credit expired. However, it’s promising to keep the deals alive.
Check back soon for the latest Hyundai offers. We’ll keep you updated with the latest deals.
If you’re interested in checking out Hyundai’s electric SUV for yourself, you can use our link to find IONIQ 5 models available in your area (via a trusted affiliate link)
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