Summary
Here’s a quick overview of everything that’s happened today:
Stock markets around the world continued to climb after Donald Trump delayed the harshest of his tariffs. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite index closed over 11% up for the week after a rollercoaster week.
But there are many new indicators that the US economy remains on shaky ground: the US dollar index slipped to a three-year low, US treasury yield climbed up and consumer expectations on inflation rose to its highest level in four decades.
China announced that it is placing a 125% tariff on American imports, in retaliation for the 145% tariff Trump placed on Chinese imports.
The White House said that there is “great optimism in this economy”, despite the volatility seen in the stock market and said that Trump’s tariffs are a “proven economic formula” that will bring countries to the negotiation table.
US stock markets close in a rally
After a tumultuous week, US stock markets just closed for the week on a high note. The Dow went up 600 points today, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite were up 1.8% and 2%, respectively.
Over this week, all three indexes rose substantially, largely after Donald Trump paused many of his tariffs. This week:
The Dow went up 6%, or over 2,300 points.
The S&P 500 jumped 8.2%.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq topped 11.6%.
It’s a huge rally after volatile drops in the market, but it’s unclear how long the upswings will last, particularly because the markets have proven so sensitive to the uncertainty around Trump’s policies.
Some small businesses are expressing their frustrations over Donald Trump’s tariffs by adding a tariff surcharge onto their products, to make clear that the price increases they’re seeing are due to Donald Trump’s tariffs.
“We think transparency is the way to go here and I am giving Trump full credit his decision to add this tariff to all US consumers,” wrote Ryan Babenzian, the CEO of Jolie Skin Co, which sells shower heads that filters water, on Linkedin. The company will add a “Trump Liberation Tariff” charge onto their products next week.
It’s reminiscent of when restaurants, in the middle of the Covid-19 pandemic, added surcharges to bills to offset costs used to manage the virus.
“Given all the uncertainty around tariffs and worries about when and by how much prices will go up, shoppers could welcome the transparency of line item tariff surcharges, and they’ll become normalized as more brands adopt them,” Sky Canaves, an analyst at EMarketer, Inc, told Bloomberg.
US Customs and Border Control (CBP) is the federal agency responsible for collecting tariffs when imported goods arrive at the US border.
But importers say that a glitch in the system has meant that they have not started paying tariffs yet, despite Donald Trump saying that the tariffs, particularly the 145% tariffs on China, are already in place.
According to CNBC, the glitch comes from CBP currently not being able to tell which ships are exempted from the tariffs, because they were “on the water” before the tariffs went into effect, and those that were shipped out after the tariffs.
“Social media posts are not law,” Jarred Varaelli, a vice president at Savino Del Bene, a logistics firm. “With the constant changes to the regulations, all customs brokers in our industry have a difficult task ahead of them.”
CBP told CNBC that they will issue an update once the issue is resolved, which means the agency is likely still working out exactly how to carry out the tariffs that are still in place.
Boston Federal Reserve CEO Susan Collins, and a member of the Fed’s Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) which sets interest rates, told the Financial Times that the Fed “would absolutely be prepared” to stabilize the economy amid volatility.
“We have had to deploy, quite quickly, various tools,” she said. “We would absolutely be prepared to do that as needed.”
But while the Fed would typically cut interest rates, making borrowing money cheaper and encouraging economic activity, to deal with large fluctuations in the market, Collins said that emergency rate cuts are likely not in the Fed’s future because of the risk of higher inflation.
Collins said that it’s likely that inflation could push above 3% this year. Yesterday, inflation in March was revealed to be 2.4%, a 0.4% drop from February.
Let’s dive in for a second into the University of Michigan consumer sentiment survey that was released today.
Typically, the survey is released at the end of each month, but a special report was released to capture sentiment around Donald Trump’s trade war escalations.
And things aren’t looking so good. Consumer sentiment has been falling for the last four months, dropping 30% since December 2024. The number of consumers who expect unemployment to rise over the next year is the highest it’s been since the 2008 recession. And inflation expectations for the year ahead soared in a matter of weeks: from 5% in March to 6.7% by early April.
“Consumers report multiple warning signs that raise the risk of recession: expectations for business conditions, personal finances, incomes, inflation and labor markets all continued to deteriorate this month,” said survey director Joanne Hsu in a statement.
For context, inflation expectations in April last year was 3.2%, and consumer sentiment was measured at 77.2, compared to 50.8 at the beginning of this month.
It will be interesting to see how this drop in consumer sentiment will relate to voter sentiment in the future. Trump’s approval ratings have dropped across the board since his “liberation day” tariff announcement April 2, but only time can tell whether consumer and voter sentiments will rise after Trump’s pause on the reciprocal tariffs.
What’s happening with the US treasury bond market is a pretty big deal.
Treasury bond yields rose on Friday, a sign of further instability in what’s supposed to be a very safe financial asset to hold.
The benchmark is the 10-year treasury bond, the yield of which rose to 4.6% today, over half a percentage point since last week.
This is a big deal because the yield on treasury bonds are closely tied with the cost of other loans, like mortgages or car loans. So if the yield rises, loans like mortgages are likely to go up as well.
That overall leads to a contractionary economic environment – less people are buying homes and investing money in general.
Yield rates also point to inflation expectations. Bloomberg says this is the largest surge in the yield rate since the 1980s, when inflation peaked to 14%.
Minneapolis Federal Reserve president Neel Kashkari explained it to CNBC on Friday: “If the trade deficit is going down, it could be that investors are saying, ‘Okay, America no longer is the most attractive place in the world to invest’, and then you would expect to see bond yields go up.”
So the fact that bond yields are going up – and the dollar is depreciating, and the stock market is making historical fluctuations – points to some serious instability in the economy.
White House press secretary: 'Great optimism in this economy'
The White House held its daily press briefing this afternoon, fielding questions about tariffs and the economy. The overall sentiment: “There is great optimism in this economy”.
“This is a proven economic formula,” press secretary Karoline Leavitt said.
It’s a line the White House continues to repeat even as volatility in the stock market appears to have rattled investors.
Answering a question about US bonds, which is supposed to be one of the world’s most stable assets, and how they’re decreasing in value, Leavitt said that treasury secretary Scott Bessent is “keeping a very close eye on the bond market”.
Leavitt maintained that Trump’s tariff negotiations have so far been a success, saying that “15 offers are on the table” and the White House has heard from over 75 countries over deals.
Even when it comes to China, which slapped a 125% tariff on American exports, Leavitt said that Trump is “optimistic”, though could not give any details on how a deal with China could be made.
Updated
US stocks pick up during midday trading
US stocks are picking up as we enter midday trading:
The Dow is up 400 points.
The S&P 500 is up 1.2%
Nasdaq is up 1.3%
It’s unclear if this upswing will last into this afternoon. It’s a slight turnaround from this morning, as stocks went down on news that consumer sentiment and inflation expectations cratered in April.
The University of Michigan just released the results of a new consumer sentiment survey that shows consumers in April expect the inflation rate to climb to 6.7% – the highest expected level in over four decades.
Falling consumer sentiment is a bad sign for the economy, as it typically means that people will be spending less, especially if they anticipate prices climbing, which could slow down the overall economy.
Updated
Donald Trump’s tariff war has spooked stock markets and heightened fears of a recession in the US and Europe. But neither factor appears to have been what motivated the president’s sudden volte face this week, when he paused most of his “liberation day” border taxes for 90 days.
The fact Trump could not ignore was a mass sell-off by investors of US government bonds. But what exactly are bonds, how are they traded – and why are they so central to the current crisis?
Ministers should focus on rebuilding bridges with the EU, UK Labour politicians have said after a senior adviser to Donald Trump downplayed the prospect of a breakthrough with the US.
MPs said the government should “prioritise our trading relationship with the EU” and “get a sugar-rush of growth” instead of banking on the prospect of preferential treatment from Washington.
Trump imposed 10% tariffs on all UK exports this month, with several other markets, including the EU, facing steeper rates. After financial markets plummeted, the US president announced a temporary reprieve on Wednesday, slashing tariffs on almost all other countries to his baseline of 10%. Car, steel and aluminium imports continue to face a higher tariff of 25%.
The government is in advanced negotiations with the US over a trade deal to secure more favourable arrangements for the UK. However Kevin Hassett, an economic adviser to Trump, told CNBC on Thursday that any deal that would persuade the president to go below 10% would need to be “extraordinary”.
Asked if she was losing confidence in the prospect of a US trade deal, Rachel Reeves told reporters on Friday that “we continue to engage with our counterparts in the United States”.
Updated
Several senior Senate Democrats have written a letter asking the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to investigate whether Donald Trump violated securities laws and engaged in insider trading and market manipulation while switching course on his global tariffs.
“We urge the SEC to investigate whether the tariff announcements, which caused the market crash and subsequent partial recovery, enriched administration insiders and friends at the expense of the American public and whether any insiders, including the president’s family, had prior knowledge of the tariff pause that they abused to make stock trades ahead of the president’s announcement,” said the letter, led by Massachusetts senator and former presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren.
Early Wednesday, Trump announced on social media: “THIS IS A GREAT TIME TO BUY!!!” The post was written at a time of severely volatile market trends and US indices down.
Hours after his post, the US president abruptly announced a 90-day pause on many tariffs. The move sent the US’s S&P 500 back up several percentage points in just minutes. Wednesday ended up marking the best day for the S&P 500 since the recovery from the 2008 financial crisis.
The letter was also signed by Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer, finance committee ranking member Ron Wyden, the Arizona senators Mark Kelly and Ruben Gallego, and California’s Adam Schiff.
In the global fallout from Donald Trump’s “liberation day” tariff announcement, it appears nowhere is safe. Crashing share prices, a sell-off in bonds and currency chaos erasing trillions of dollars of wealth in a matter of days.
On Friday the dollar fell by more than 1% relative to a basket of other currencies to reach its lowest level in three years, compounding an almost 10% slide since the start of the year. In the space of a week, it has lost about 3 cents against the pound and 4 cents against the euro.
Even after the president’s partial U-turn – freezing tariffs at 10% on all US imports except those from China for 90 days – markets swung from relief rally to fresh rout, as investors questioned the once unthinkable: could the US dollar be losing its unassailable safe haven status?
“The damage has been done,” said George Saravelos, the head of foreign exchange research at Deutsche Bank. “The market is re-assessing the structural attractiveness of the dollar as the world’s global reserve currency and is undergoing a process of rapid de-dollarisation.”
Updated
The UK parliament is being recalled on Saturday to vote on emergency legislation that will bring British Steel under government control, No 10 has said.
The bill will give the prime minister the power to “direct steel companies in England”, which No 10 will use to stop Jingye, the Chinese owners of the Scunthorpe site, from closing it.
The government has been considering nationalising British Steel as the company has said it wants to shut the plant.
The GMB union said the move looked like “the first step in the process” of nationalisation, saying it was the only way to save the UK steel industry.
“The business secretary must be given huge praise for acting decisively to safeguard this vital industry and the thousands of jobs that rely on it,” the union said.
The AI-generated video of tired-looking Americans making mobile phones, which circulated widely on social media this week, was a pointed vision of a post-tariff world. But Donald Trump wants it to become reality for Apple.
The iPhone maker is one of the biggest victims of the US president’s realignment of the global trading order because its flagship product is assembled in the epicentre of Trump’s protectionist ire – China.
“The iPhone is a quintessential representative of a global supply chain,” says Fraser Johnson, a professor at Ivey Business School in Canada and an Apple supply chain expert.
More than 1,000 components from all over the world go into an iPhone but they are largely put together in China. Apple is secretive about its production details but analysts estimate that about 90% of its iPhones are assembled in the country.
This is deeply problematic for the California-based firm because Trump has imposed “reciprocal” tariffs – a tax on imports – of 125% on goods imported into the US from China.
On Thursday it became clear a separate 20% fentanyl-linked border tax would be levied on top of this, taking the total burden to 145%. Apple faces paying a hefty sum on any iPhone brought into the US, which is likely to be passed on to consumers in the form of higher prices.
The day so far
In case you’re just joining us, here’s a recap of the latest news and global market moves since the European market open. (You can see the earlier round-up here)
Europe’s main indexes started on a surprisingly positive note at the start of trading, as markets seemed to recover some ground from the tariff sell-off, even as it became clear that Trump had applied 145% tariffs on Chinese goods
Mining giants, supported in part by growing appetite for safe haven assets like gold, were leading the FTSE 100 – including Fresnillo, Glencore, and Anglo American
There was also some optimism emanating from the UK GDP figures, which showed the economy expanding by more than expected in February at 0.5%
But investors did a major u-turn and started to dump UK, German and French stocks an hour later after China announced retaliatory moves, raising tariffs on US goods to 125% from previous levels of 84%
It’s been a roller coaster on European markets ever since Beijing’s announcement. The UK’s FTSE 100 is now the only major index in positive territory, trading up 0.8%, while the pan-European Stoxx 600 is down 0.5%, the French Cac 40 is down 0.7%, the German Xetra Dax is down 1.4% and Italy’s FTSE MIB is down 0.4%
The US dollar index slipped to a three-year low, falling as much as 1.2% to 99.50, and US Treasuries continued a sell-off, with yields on the 10-year note jumping to 4.4% and is on course for its largest weekly rise since the early 2000s
And US stocks slipped at the start of trading. The S&P 500 was down 6 points or -0.1% at 5,262 points, the Dow was down 64 points or -0.16% at 39,529 points, while the Nasdaq was down 9 points or -0.06% at 16,377 points
In corporates, JP Morgan put aside $973m in Q1 to help protect the bank from potential defaults by its borrowers amid a worsening economic outlook. It’s a sharp shift from last year, when a brighter outlook meant it released $72m from its reserves. It comes amid concerns that customers could struggle to repay their loans if new sweeping tariffs end up harming economic growth
Updated
BlackRock CEO Larry Fink has told CNBC that the US is “very close, if not in a recession”, Reuters reports.
The boss of the American asset manager has also told the business broadcaster that the US needs a trading agreement with China, adding: ‘this is not a pandemic, this is not a financial crisis, this is something that we’ve created’
As for the bond market reaction, Fink says it’s a sign that investors don’t believe the US Federal Reserve will have the ability to do any real easing.
US stock markets slip at the open
Wall Street is open and US stock are down at the start of trading.
Across the main indexes, the S&P 500 is down 6 points or -0.1% at 5,262 points, the Dow is down 64 points or -0.16% at 39,529 points, while the Nasdaq is down 9 points or -0.06% at 16,377 points.
House of Commons to be recalled to discuss British Steel nationalisation
BREAKING: Parliament is being recalled on Saturday to discuss the nationalisation of British Steel, according to sources.
The move has been taken after the failure to reach a deal to keep two blast furnaces going at British Steel’s Scunthorpe plant, owned by the Chinese company Jingye.
The Commons is expected to sit at 11am, with MPs called back from Easter recess to discuss taking the assets into public ownership in order to preserve steelmaking in the UK.
British Steel makes the vast majority of UK rail track and the government has been seeking a deal on keeping the plant open.
The industry is due to be hit by a 25% tariff on steel exports to the US imposed by Donald Trump.
Our main story will be updated shortly here:
Keep an eye on the latest developments in our Politics Live blog:
The sell-off in US Treasuries has continued, with yields on short and long-term bonds still on the rise.
The yield on 10-year note has jumped to 4.4% and is on course for its largest weekly rise since the early 2000s. That compares with 4.1% at the start of the week on 7 April, and 3.99% last Friday.
Long-term yields are also up, with the 30-year at 4.9%.
Some are debating whether angered Beijing may be behind the moves.
Richard Hunter, head of markets at interactive investor, said:
The latest lurch down followed US confirmation that the cumulative tariff rate on China was now 145%, leading to more widespread selling of Treasuries with the concomitant rise in yields, such as the 10-year note which jumped to 4.4% and is on course for its largest weekly rise since the turn of the century.
There is also some speculation that the US moves have resulted in some unintended consequences, with the possibility that a proportion of the selling is actually coming from China, who are moving out of their Treasury exposure.
Speaking on Friday at the end of a visit to Vietnam and China designed to “boost Spain’s presence in Asia”, the Spanish prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, said the time had come to expand horizons and to keep trade open, the Guardian’s Madrid correspondent Sam Jones reports.
Sanchez said:
Asia is a continent that’s becoming a bigger and bigger player at a time of profound changes in the international order.
Spain is aware that we’re living through a complicated period in international relations, a period that requires us to expand our horizons, redouble our efforts to maintain the peace and to maintain openness, and to keep making progress when it comes to the big global challenges that don’t end at our borders.
Spain buys about €45bn of goods every year from China, its fourth-largest trading partner, but sells around €7.4bn worth.
Sanchez said:
Both Spain and Europe have a significant trade deficit with China that we must work to rectify.
But, he added:
We must not let trade tensions stand in the way of the potential growth of the relationship between China and Spain and between China and the EU.
The Socialist prime minister has visited China three times in just over two years.
He broke with the rest of the EU on his last trip to China in September 2024, urging the bloc to reconsider plans to impose high tariffs on Chinese electric cars and calling for a “fair trade order”.
Updated
JP Morgan sets aside $973m for potential defaults amid worsening economic forecasts
JP Morgan has put aside $973m in the first quarter to help protect the bank from potential defaults by its borrowers amid a worsening economic outlook.
It’s a sharp shift from last year, when a brighter outlook meant it released $72m from its reserves.
It comes amid concerns that its borrowers, which range from everyday consumers to large businesses, could struggle to repay their loans if new sweeping tariffs end up harming economic growth.
The additional build-up of its so-called net reserves include $549m for potential defaults on business loans, and $441m to cover the potential souring of consumer loans.
It took the overall sum put aside for credit losses in the quarter to $3.3bn, up from the $1.9bn that JP Morgan put aside for potential losses a year earlier.
JP Morgan still managed to report a 9% rise in first quarter profits, thanks to higher fees from deal making and a record performance in equity trading.
However, the figures reflect the January-March period, before Trump triggered the tariff war that has roiled financial markets and put business deals on ice.
Commenting on the results, JP Morgan’s CEO Jamie Dimon said:
The economy is facing considerable turbulence (including geopolitics), with the potential positives of tax reform and deregulation and the potential negatives of tariffs and “trade wars,” ongoing sticky inflation, high fiscal deficits and still rather high asset prices and volatility.
As always, we hope for the best but prepare the firm for a wide range of scenarios.
A number of companies are looking to expand or set up shop in the US to try avoid Trump’s sweeping tariffs.
Here’s a useful round-up put together by reporters at Reuters:
A large number of electronics and tech firms are looking to up their US operations, including Samsung, which said it was moving manufacturing of dryers from Mexico to its plant in South Carolina.
LG Electronics, too, is considering moving the manufacturing of refrigerators from Mexico to its factory in Tennessee, a South Korean newspaper reported in January. Taiwanese chipmaker TSMC has said it is expanding investment in the US, planning to build five chip facilities there in coming years, its CEO said in March.
A number of Italian companies are putting together contingency plans.
That includes spirits group Campari, which is said last month that it was assessing opportunities to expand US production. Italian premium coffee maker Illy Caffe, said at the start of April that it will look at building a plant in the US if it gets caught up in tariffs.
Rival coffee maker Lavazza, said last week that it would press ahead with US expansion. The company, which produces locally around half of what it sells in the U.S., plans to increase this output to 100%.
Elsewhere, luxury conglomerate LVMH – which owns brands like Dior, Louis Vuitton, and Givenchy – is “seriously considering” bulking up its US production capacities, its CEO said in January.
The Swiss drugmaker plans Novartis is to spend $23bn (£17.5bn) to build and expand 10 facilities in the US, it said on April 10. Another Swiss firm, hygiene product maker Essity, could also move more of its production to the US from Mexico and Canada, its CEO said.
This is all on top of the raft of motor manufacturers, which are among the hardest hit by the growing trade war.
BMW is considering adding shifts to its Spartanburg plant in South Carolina to boost output by up to 80,000 units, company executives said on April 10. Honda will produce its next-generation Civic hybrid in Indiana, instead of Mexico, people familiar with the matter told Reuters in March.
Japan’s Nissan said it was considering shifting some domestic production of US-bound vehicles there, while Hyundai plans to further localise production in the US and make hybrid vehicles at its new factory in Georgia.
Chrysler’s parent company Stellantis said it was also moving forward with plans to build a new midsize pickup truck in Belvidere, Illinois.
Updated
The EU’s trade commissioner Maros Sefcovic is heading to Washington this weekend “to try and sign deals” with the Trump administration.
European Commission trade spokesperson Olof Gill told Ireland’s RTE radio:
The trade commissioner is gong to Washington to try and sign deals. That is what we are focused on.
However, he suggested the EU are not ruling out further retaliation if talks turn sour:
All options are on the table should that not lead to a good outcome.
JD.com, one of China’s biggest online retailers, is ramping up subsidies to help businesses pivot towards the domestic Chinese market.
The e-commerce giant has announced that it will launch a 200 billion yuan fund (£20.8bn) to help exporters sell their products domestically, in reaction to the intensifying US-China trade war, Reuters reports.
JD.com shares have taken a hit as a result of Trumps tariff announcements, with its stock down 10.6% for the month.
US stock futures fall into negative territory
US futures are pointing to a negative start for all the major indexes on Wall Street this afternoon, amid the escalating trade war.
S&P futures are down 0.75%, Dow futures are down 0.77% and Nasdaq futures are down 0.8%.
China has raised its tariffs on US products to 125% in the latest salvo of the trade dispute with Washington, just hours after Xi Jinping said there were “no winners in a tariff war”.
Xi made the comments during a meeting with the Spanish prime minister in which he invited the EU to work with China to resist “bullying”, part of an apparent campaign to shore up other trading partners.
The Chinese commerce ministry announced on Friday that it was raising the 84% tariffs on all US imports to 125%, again saying that China was ready to “fight to the end”.
The statement also suggested it may be Beijing’s last move in the tit-for-tat tariff raises as “at the current tariff level, there is no market acceptance for US goods exported to China”.
“If the US continues to impose tariffs on Chinese goods exported to the US, China will ignore it,” it said, flagging that there were other countermeasures to come.
Chinese officials have been canvassing other trading partners about how to deal with the US tariffs, after the country was excluded from Trump’s 90-day pause of the steepest global tariffs.
Instead the US president made consecutive increases to duties on Chinese imports, which are now 145%.
Read the full story here:
US dollar falls to three-year low
The US dollar has suffered a further blow as a result of Beijing’s 125% tariff announcement.
The US dollar index is now down 1.2% at 99.50, marking its lowest level since April 2022.
Updated
The relief rally this morning was certainly short-lived.
Here’s how the major European stock indexes are trading following latest escalation in the US-China trade war:
Updated
European markets are now predominantly in the red, as investors digest Beijing’s latest tariff announcement.
Chinese ministers are admonishing the US, calling for reversals from the Trump administration and declaring the Beijing will not back down, according to comments reported by Reuters:
China’s commerce minister has said that that the country firmly opposes and condemns the US’ wanton unilateral tariff measures, and has taken resolute countermeasures to safeguard its own rights and interest.
They’ve also said that the US’ repeated imposition of abnormally high tariffs has become a “numbers game” and has no practical economic significance. The ministry has urged the US to take a big step in cancelling the so-called ‘reciprocal tariffs’ and completely correct its wrongful practices.
China raises tariffs on US goods to 125%
BREAKING: China has announced additional tariffs on US goods to 125%, according to Reuters.
That is up from the previous level of 84%.
China’s finance ministry is reported as saying that if the US insists on continuing to infringe upon China’s interest in a substantive way, China will resolutely take countermeasures and fight to the end.
Updated
Optimism across European markets wanes
The pan-European Stoxx 600 has reversed earlier gains, and is now trading lower by 0.06% so far this session.
And despite its earlier spike, Italy’s MIB is now also in the red, down about 0.3%.
Those that are still in positive territory are also paring their gains, including the FTSE 100, which is now up just 0.15%.
Germany’s Xetra Dax is up 0.3%, and while France’s Cac is still holding the strongest gains at 0.8% – that is down from its 1% rise at the open.
Updated
UK toymaker Character Group – which is behind popular toys from brands like Peppa Pig, Teletubbies and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles – is pulling its annual forecasts amid uncertainty over the impact of the Trump administration’s now-145% tariff on imports from China.
US sales accounted for around 20% of the company’s turnover last year. In a market announcement this morning, Character Group said:
The recent unilateral imposition by the USA of trade tariffs on imports, particularly from China, and the escalating retaliatory measures being adopted have greatly impacted global economic stability in a very short space of time.
Character Group said its ability to forecast “financial implications” for the group had been “considerably obscured by these events.”
Consequently, the effect of the imposition of the trade tariffs will be felt in the second half by the group and, as a result, the company is withdrawing the market guidance for the year ending 31 August 2025.
Despite this, the board remains confident that the group will be profitable for the current financial year as a whole.
French and German stock markets rise more than 1% at the open
It’s chalking up to be a sea of green across European markets.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 is up 0.7%, and there are strong moves in France and Germany with the Cac 40 up 1.04% and the Xetra Dax rising 1.1%.
Mining companies are dominating the top of the FTSE 100 this morning.
Fresnillo is up 4.9%, Endeavor Mining is up 3.7% and Rio Tinto is up 1.9%. Glencore is also among the biggest risers, up 1.6%, while Antofagasta is up 1.5%.
UK's FTSE 100 index rises at the start of trading
European markets are open and are – so far – in positive territory.
The UK’s blue-chip FTSE 100 index rose more than 0.7%, while the mid-cap FTSE 250 was up 0.4%.
Italy’s FTSE MIB rose 0.9%.
We’re still waiting for opening prints for Germany’s Xetra Dax and France’s Cac 40….stay tuned.
Key event
UK chancellor Rachel Reeves welcomed the February growth figures but recognised that the “world had changed”:
These growth figures are an encouraging sign, but we are not complacent. We must keep going further and faster on our plan for change.
The world has changed, and we have witnessed that change in recent weeks. I know this is an anxious time for families who are worried about the cost of living and British businesses who are worried about what this change means for them.This government will remain pragmatic and cool-headed as we seek to secure the best deal with the United States that is in our national interest.
At the same time we will be relentless in our work to kickstart economic growth, provide security for working people and renewal for Britain.
On that surprise UK GDP figure, the Office for National Statistics recorded growth across all main sectors in February, marking an improvement on January when there was no growth.
Services output increased by 0.3%, and was the largest contributor to the monthly growth in GDP, while production output rose by 1.5%, and construction output increased by 0.4%.
Marcus Brookes, chief investment officer at Quilter Investors said that while the figures are a “welcome relief” for the Labour government, US tariffs have left the UK in a precarious position:
President Trump may have ‘paused’ the reciprocal tariffs on other countries, but the new regime remains unchanged for the UK.
If anything, the UK has lost a competitive edge, having previously got off lightly in Trump’s announcement last week.
This global economic uncertainty is going to do very little for consumer or business confidence in the UK and as such growth will continue to be lacklustre.
The UK is in somewhat of a precarious position right now, caught in the crossfire of the constantly changing economic policy of the US. The government will need to think creatively and find some quick wins in order to sustain this positive reading and negate the economic impact tariffs will bring.
UK economy grows by 0.5%...but tariff impact yet to come
Breaking news: data this morning shows the UK economy unexpectedly expanded by 0.5% in February, in a boost for Rachel Reeves before an expected downturn triggered by Donald Trump’s tariff war.
Reversing a modest fall in January, the increase in gross domestic product in February could mark the last period of expansion before the threat of a global trade war dampens business investment and consumer spending.
A poll of City economists had expected the economy to grow by 0.1% in February.
This month, consumers face inflation-busting utility bill and council tax increases while employers must cope with £25bn of tax rises.
More details soon …
Summary
In case you’re just joining us, here’s a recap of the latest top lines amid the continuing turmoil in global markets from Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Global stocks fell and the US dollar sank further on Friday while an intense bond selloff took hold in a turbulent end to the week of the global tariffs that have fed fears of a deep recession and shaken investor confidence in US assets. The dollar sank to its lowest in 10 years against the Swiss franc and a six-month low against the yen, while the euro surged 1.7% to $1.13855, a level last seen in February 2022.
The S&P 500 index ended 3.5% lower on Thursday after getting a brief reprieve when the US president paused duties on dozens of countries for 90 days. Asian markets followed Wall Street on Friday, with Japan’s Nikkei down 4.3%, South Korea falling nearly 1% and Hong Kong stocks heading towards the biggest weekly decline since 2008. Some rose, however, with Taiwan’s main index reversing earlier losses to trade nearly 2% higher and major sectors across India’s Nifty 50 rising in early trading.
Gold prices reached a record high amid safe-haven flows. It was last up 1.1% at $3,210 an ounce.
Trump’s tariff pause excluded China, with the president dialling up US tariffs on Chinese imports effectively to 145% over Beijing’s move to match his earlier duties. Trump’s escalation of the trade war with China has fuelled fears of recession and further retaliation. Chinese officials have been canvassing other trading partners over the levies, most recently talking to counterparts in Spain, Saudi Arabia and South Africa. Trump expressed hope of a deal with Beijing.
China rejected what it called threats and blackmail from Washington and pledged to follow through to the end if the US persists, the commerce ministry said. China’s door was open to dialogue but this must be based on mutual respect, it said. Beijing also restricted imports of Hollywood films, targeting one of the most high-profile American exports.
US Treasury secretary Scott Bessent shrugged off the renewed market sell-off and tried to calm nerves by telling a cabinet meeting that more than 75 countries wanted to start trade negotiations.
The European Union suspended its retaliatory 25% tariffs on US goods for 90 days after Trump’s turnaround. “We want to give negotiations a chance,” European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen said on X, while also warning that counter-tariffs could be reinstated if negotiations “are not satisfactory”. The EU is still assessing how to respond to US car tariffs and the broader 10% levies that remain in place.
The manic US Treasury selloff this week, evoking the Covid-era “dash for cash”, reignited fears of fragility in the world’s biggest bond market. Thirty-year bond yields rose to 4.90%, on course for their biggest weekly jump since at least 1982, LSEG data showed.
The US and Vietnam agreed to begin formal trade talks, the White House said, while Japan’s prime minister has set up a task force for the negotiations which hopes to visit Washington next week, according to local media.
– With news agencies
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Macron says Trump tariff suspension just a ‘fragile pause’
French president Emmanuel Macron has said Donald Trump’s decision this week to suspend tariffs he had imposed on countries gave room for only a “fragile pause”.
“The partial suspension of American tariffs for 90 days sends out a signal and leaves the door open for talks. But this pause is a fragile one,” Macron wrote on X on Friday.
“Fragile, because the 25% tariffs on steel, aluminum and automobiles and the 10% tariffs on all other products are still in place,” he added.
They represent 52 billion euros ($58.8 billion) for the European Union! Fragile, because this 90-day pause means 90 days of uncertainty for all our businesses, on both sides of the Atlantic and beyond.
Reuters also reports that Macron reaffirmed that France and the European Union would present a united front in terms of negotiations aimed at reaching a deal and getting the US tariffs removed.
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More on the Indian stock market’s lift today: all 13 major sectors rose in early trading on the day, with financials and commodity stocks leading the rally.
Heavyweight financials rose 1.8%, aided by an over 2% gains in HDFC Bank and Kotak Mahindra Bank, Reuters reports.
Metal stocks rose 3.6% on weaker dollar and recovered some of its earlier losses following a pause on reciprocal tariffs beyond 10%. The index is still down 2.7% for the week.
Tata Steel, JSW Steel and Hindalco Industries jumped 3.9% to 4.2%, and were among the top four Nifty 50 gainers.
Among individual stocks, Tata Consultancy Services was flat and underperforming both the benchmark and information technology indexes due to its weaker-than-expected fourth quarter earnings.
“With Nifty trading at its more reasonable valuations in nearly three years, there is a compelling case for medium-term upside,” said Manish Goel, founder and managing director of Equentis.
However, volatility will remain elevated at Trump’s tariffs reshape global trade dynamics.
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The Indian rupee jumped higher on Friday, tracking gains in Asian peers as the US dollar slumped to a nearly two-year low, with traders expecting volatility to persist.
The rupee rose 0.8% to 86 against the dollar as of 10.15am IST, up from its close at 86.6875 on Wednesday. (Indian financial markets were shut on Thursday for a local holiday.)
The rupee is currently in “the middle of its recent trading range and it could consolidate between 85.70 and 86.70 in the near term”, Reuters quoted a trader at a state-run bank as saying.
Meanwhile, dollar-rupee forward premiums fell, with the 1-year implied yield down 6 basis points at 2.27%, pressured by a decline in the dollar-rupee spot rate and higher US bond yields.
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On Thursday morning in Shanghai, as shoppers filled the luxury malls and delivery drivers whizzed around the winding streets at breakneck speed, financiers breathed a cautious sigh of relief.
Overnight, US president Donald Trump had reversed course, announcing a 90-day pause on his so-called “reciprocal tariffs” of up to 50% for dozens of countries. Although China got no such reprieve – instead, the levy on Chinese goods was increased to 145% – the temporary return of normal trade channels showed Chinese businesspeople that all was not lost.
Trump’s announcement of punitive tariffs on countries across south-east Asia had risked closing off the routes that Chinese companies have been using since his first term in office to circumvent his levies.
Since 2017, thanks to tariffs on Chinese goods, the share of China’s exports bound for the US has dropped from about 20% to less than 15%. But much of that trade has simply been re-routed through third countries, as Chinese firms set up shop in places with cheaper labour costs and easier access to the US market.
To read more on how Chinese companies are relieved Trump’s wider tariffs have been paused but on social media the posts are full of defiance, see here:
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The European Union will not rip up its tech rules in an attempt to reach a trade deal with Donald Trump, the bloc’s most senior official on digital policy has said.
Henna Virkkunen, the European Commission vice-president responsible for tech sovereignty, indicated the EU was not going to compromise on its digital rulebook to reach an agreement on trade with the US – a key demand of Trump administration officials.
“We are very committed to our rules when it comes to the digital world,” Virkkunen said in an interview with European newspapers including the Guardian.
We want to make sure that our digital environment in the European Union … that it is fair and it’s safe and it’s also democratic.
She gently pushed back at suggestions that EU digital regulations could be considered trade barriers, saying the same rules applied to all companies whether European, American or Chinese.
In recent days, Trump’s senior trade adviser, Peter Navarro, has claimed the EU was using “lawfare” against the US’s largest tech firms, in a Financial Times article featuring a litany of complaints against supposed “non-tariff weapons”.
You can read our full story here:
Why did Donald Trump backflip on his latest tariffs for most countries except China, despite his insistence for days that his policies wouldn’t change?
In this podcast, Jonathan Freedland speaks to James Bennet of the Economist about who might have forced the US president’s hand, and what could happen next.
India’s benchmark indexes opened higher on Friday, as a US tariff reprieve lifted sentiment, even as global trade uncertainty continues to linger.
The Nifty 50 rose 1.67% to 22,775.2 while the BSE Sensex gained 1.61% to 75,019.41, respectively, as of 09.23am IST, Reuters reports.
Indian markets were closed on Thursday for a local holiday.
China’s yuan slips to 19-month low against trading partners
The yuan rebounded from 2007 lows against a broadly weaker US dollar on Friday but slipped to a 19-month low against currencies of its major trading partners.
However, the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) will not allow sharp yuan declines and has instructed major state-owned lenders to reduce dollar purchases, Reuters reports, citing people with knowledge of the matter.
A weaker yuan would make Chinese exports cheaper and alleviate tariff impact on the economy. But a sharp decline could also increase unwanted capital outflows and risk financial stability, analysts and economists said.
To reflect the broad dollar weakness in global markets, the PBOC lifted its official yuan midpoint guidance fix for the first time in seven days on Friday.
Prior to the market open, the PBOC set the rate – around which the yuan is allowed to trade in a 2% band – at 7.2087 per dollar. That was 5 pips firmer than the previous fix and 1,017 pips firmer than a Reuters’ estimate of 7.3104.
The PBOC has slightly loosened its grip on the currency this week by allowing official guidance to weaken past the key threshold of 7.2 to the dollar. But it came in much stronger than market projections, in what traders and analysts interpreted as an official attempt to keep the yuan steady as the trade row between the world’s two largest economies showed few signs of abating.
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Back to Asian markets: across the region they are again deep in negative territory at the end of a highly volatile week.
Tokyo sank more than 4% – a day after surging more than 9% - while Sydney, Seoul, Singapore, Taipei, Wellington, Jakarta and Manila were also in the red, Agence France-Presse reports.
Ho Chi Minh City stocks rallied, however, after Vietnam said it would hold talks with Donald Trump.
Hong Kong also dropped but Shanghai fluctuated as traders focused on possible Chinese stimulus measures instead of the fact that the country was now facing US duties of up to 145%.
Beijing said on Friday it would implement a moderately loose monetary policy in a bid to reassure investors.
The losses followed a similar story on Wall Street, where the S&P 500 lost 3.5%, the Dow 2.5% and the Nasdaq 4.3%. That ate into the previous day’s gains of 9.5%, 7.9% and 12.2%.
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More now on the announcement of Xi Jinping’s first offical foreign trip this year, with the Chinese leader set to visit Vietnam, Malaysia and Cambodia from this Monday to Friday.
Xi’s visit to Vietnam comes on the invitation of President Luong Cuong, Beijing said. He last visited the country in December 2023.
Vietnam has long pursued a “bamboo diplomacy” approach, striving to stay on good terms with both China and the US, Agence France-Presse reports. Hanoi shares US concerns about Beijing’s increasing assertiveness in the contested South China Sea but it also has close economic ties with China.
Xi’s visit to Malaysia will take place from 15-17 April, the country’s government said this week. The communications minister, Fahmi Fadzil, said Xi’s visit was “part of the government’s efforts ... to see better trade relations with various countries including China”.
Xi will travel on Thursday to Cambodia, one of China’s staunchest allies in south-east Asia and where Beijing has extended its influence in recent years, before wrapping up the trip on Friday.
Under former leader Hun Sen – prime minister Hun Manet’s father – China poured billions of dollars into infrastructure investments, while Washington’s relationship with Phnom Penh deteriorated.
Cambodia described it as a “milestone visit which will further cement the traditional relations of friendship built by successive leaders of both countries”.
Xi’s visit to the region comes as Beijing squares off with the US in an escalating trade war triggered by President Donald Trump, with many Chinese exports now facing 145% tariffs on arrival in the US.
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The Australian and New Zealand dollars were looking to end a wild week with sizeable gains on a crumbling US dollar as the damage done to investor confidence by the chaos over tariffs sparked an exodus from US assets.
The gains for the Aussie were all the more startling as it is usually the market’s whipping boy during times of volatility and stress, Reuters reports. Yet this time it was the US dollar being dumped.
President Donald Trump eased back on tariffs for most countries except China on Wednesday in part to stem a sell-off in Treasuries, yet bond yields were rising again on Friday. Yields on US 30-year bonds were heading for their largest weekly increase since 1982.
Indeed, US 10-year yields started the week 19 basis points below those in Australia, but have now swung to paying 10 basis points more, and still the US dollar fell.
The Aussie was last at $0.6219, having rallied from a five-year trough of $0.5910 early in the week. That left it with a gain of 3.1% for the week, the largest since late 2022.
The kiwi dollar was up at $0.5775, which if held would give it a weekly rise of 3.2%. That was a marked turnaround from a five-year low of $0.5483 hit early in the week, and came despite a cut in local interest rates.
Neither currency fared as well against the major safe havens, however, losing ground to the yen, euro and Swiss franc, in part reflecting the darkening outlook for global growth and resource demand.
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Xi to make regional visits next week
Xi Jinping will visit Vietnam, Malaysia and Cambodia beginning on Monday, state-run media is reporting.
The Chinese president’s trip would run from 14-18 April, Xinhua news agency said on Friday.
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While American consumers and markets wonder and worry about Donald Trump’s on-again, off-again tariffs, there’s one group cheering him as they hope he’ll prop up their sinking business: Gulf coast shrimpers.
The Associated Press reports that American shrimpers have been hammered in recent years by cheap imports flooding the US market and restaurants, driving down prices to the point that profits are razor thin or shrimpers are losing money and struggling to stay afloat.
Tariffs, they hope, could level the playing field and help their businesses not just survive but thrive.
“It’s been tough the last several years that we’ve tried to fight through this,” said Reed Bowers, owner of Bowers Shrimp Farm in Palacios, Texas. Tough times meant difficult choices for many.
Cutting people off, laying people off, or reduce hours or reduce wages ... whatever we can do to survive.
Since 2021, the price of imported shrimp has dropped by more than $1.5bn, according to the Southern Shrimpers Alliance trade association, causing the US shrimp industry to lose nearly 50% of its market value. More than 90% of the shrimp consumed in the US is imported, it says.
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Dollar sinks amid US asset sell-off
The US dollar slumped on Friday as waning confidence in the US economy prompted investors to ditch US assets to the benefit of safe havens like the Swiss franc, yen and euro, as well as gold.
The yellow metal recorded a new all-time peak in early Asia trade, and the franc notched a fresh decade high, Reuters reports.
Investors dumped Wall Street stocks overnight, as the powerful rally on Wednesday – when Donald Trump abruptly paused higher tariff rates on dozens of trading partners – reversed course in a 24-hour frenetic period for markets.
Longer-dated US Treasuries are also selling off, putting 10-year yields on course for their biggest weekly jump since 2001.
The Chinese yuan had tumbled to an all-time low in offshore trading on Tuesday, but erased all those losses a day later, surging again on Thursday, and was strengthening in early trading.
Chris Weston, head of research at Pepperstone, said:
There has been a pronounced ‘sell US’ vibe flowing through broad markets and into the classic safe-haven assets, with the USD losing the safe-haven bid.
Trump’s 90-day tariff respite – which came despite his insistence for days that his policies would never change – didn’t include China. Instead, he ratcheted up duties on Chinese imports to an effective rate of 145%, further escalating the high-stakes confrontation between the world’s two largest economies.
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Nikkei plummets over 5% after rebound
Japan’s Nikkei has now tumbled more than 5% while gold hit another record high as continuing tariff jitters hit Asian stocks in early trade on Friday.
The Nikkei 225 benchmark index was off 5.4%, having jumped 9.1% on Thursday after Donald Trump’s 90-day tariff reprieve. Other markets also reversed many of the previous day’s gains, with South Korea’s Kospi in Seoul off 1.64% and, as just posted, Australia down more than 2%.
Oil and the dollar also slid on fears of a global slowdown in economic activity, while gold hit a new record. The yen – another safe-haven asset – also gained 0.9% against the US dollar on Friday.
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Australian stock losses top 2% after Thursday rally
In Australia today’s share market decline has continued, with stocks now tanking more than 2% as investors who drove a relief rally in the previous session worried about the US tariffs fallout.
The S&P/ASX 200 index dropped as much as 2.4% to 7,524.50 points by 0016 GMT, after the benchmark surged 4.5% on Thursday following Donald Trump’s tariff reprieve.
The benchmark was looking to lose nearly 2% for the week, if losses hold, Reuters reports.
Trump temporarily paused many of his new tariffs but further ramped up pressure on China, a major trading partner for Australia, with levies for a total of 145%. Investors worry that China may again respond in kind with higher tariffs.
Any potential slowdown in the world’s second largest economy from tariffs would be detrimental to local resources-focused stocks, which have high exposure to China, a major consumer of commodities.
Australian mining stocks declined 1.8%. Heavyweights BHP and Rio Tinto retreated 2.8% and 2.3% respectively. Fortescue’s shares fell 2.7%. Energy stocks retreated 3.5% after oil prices declined more than 3% overnight. The subindex was on track to decline more than 5% for the week.
Top energy companies Woodside Energy and Santos fell 3.5% and 3.6% respectively.
Gold stocks rose 2.2% to hit a fresh all-time high, mirroring the record high in gold prices.
Banking stocks declined 2.9%. Financials were on track to lose 2.7% for the week. The “big four” banks fell between 2.8% and 3.2%.
New Zealand’s benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index fell 1.5% to 12,023.84 points. New Zealand stocks were heading for a 1.6% fall for the week, in what could be their worst week since early March.
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US dollar falls
The US dollar index has dropped below 100 for the first time since July 2023, Reuters is reporting.
And the currency is down 0.8 against the Swiss franc, hitting a 10-year low of 0.8142
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Nikkei plunges as gold soars
Japan’s benchmark Nikkei index has fallen 3.6% amid continuing tariff worries.
Spot gold, however, has risen to a record high of $3,205.21 an ounce, Reuters reports, as investors seek safe havens.
And the euro has extended its gains, up as much as 1.7% at $1.13855.
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Donald Trump has threatened Mexico with sanctions and tariffs in a dispute over water sharing between the two countries, accusing Mexico of breaking an 81-year-old treaty and “stealing the water from Texas farmers”.
Under the 1944 treaty, Mexico must send 1.75 million acre-feet of water to the US from the Rio Grande through a network of interconnected dams and reservoirs every five years, Reuters reports. An acre-foot of water is enough to fill about half an Olympic-sized swimming pool.
The current five-year cycle is up in October, but Mexico has sent less than 30% of the required water, according to data from the International Boundary and Water Commission.
Trump posted on his Truth Social platform on Thursday:
Mexico OWES Texas 1.3 million acre-feet of water under the 1944 Water Treaty, but Mexico is unfortunately violating their Treaty obligation.
My Agriculture Secretary, Brooke Rollins, is standing up for Texas Farmers, and we will keep escalating consequences, including TARIFFS and, maybe even SANCTIONS, until Mexico honors the Treaty, and GIVES TEXAS THE WATER THEY ARE OWED!
The office of Mexican president Claudia Sheinbaum did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
In the UK, shoppers stayed away from the high street in March, a situation retailers said could worsen if the economic gloom caused by Donald Trump’s tariff war hits consumer confidence.
Footfall fell 5% in March to extend a downturn in February that retailers said could be attributed to a recent rise in inflation and pressure on pay packets since a brief revival during the January sales.
Out-of-town shopping centres were the worst hit, falling by 5.8%, though traditional high streets and retail parks also suffered a loss of sales after drops in footfall of 4% and 1.2% respectively.
The British Retail Consortium said that while the impact of US tariffs on imported goods was difficult to calculate, it could have a chilling effect on people’s willingness to spend, especially on expensive items.
Helen Dickinson, the organisation’s chief executive, said:
Global uncertainties resulting from tariffs and a potential economic slowdown could reduce the appetite for shopping trips in the coming months.
See the full story here:
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Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 has fallen on opening a short while ago, as expected, dropping 0.5% to 7,670.50 points in early trade after Wall Street’s sell-off overnight.
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ASX to open sharply lower amid worsening trade war
Australian shares are poised to open sharply lower this morning, as concerns about Donald Trump’s unsettling policy shifts and deteriorating trade relations between the world’s two biggest economies take hold.
Futures prices are pointing to a 1.6% fall in the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 to 7,590 points when it opens later this morning, after a sell-off on Wall Street overnight.
Investors have had to contend with wild swings this week triggered by changes to the US tariff regime, with share prices pushed around by extreme bouts of relief and fear.
While some nations have enjoyed a reprieve from their super-sized tariffs, Australia’s position, along with those of the UK and New Zealand, are unchanged given they remain subject to the US “baseline” 10% charge.
The White House clarified overnight that total tariffs on China had been raised by 145% since Trump took office.
The Reserve Bank of Australia governor, Michele Bullock, said last night that an uncertain and rocky path lay ahead, saying “financial market and economic volatility can be expected as this process unfolds”.
The Australian dollar has recovered significant ground in recent days, rising to US62.2c this morning, after threatening to plunge below the 59c barrier earlier this week.
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Opening summary
Hello and welcome to our live business coverage as the shockwaves from Donald Trump’s tariffs moves continue to buffet global markets.
The US president has blamed “a transition cost, transition problems” as US markets continued to sink in the wake of his seesawing global tariffs strategy and escalating trade war with China.
“We think we’re in very good shape,” Trump said on Thursday. “We think we’re doing very well. Again there will be a transition cost, transition problems, but in the end it’s going to be a beautiful thing.”
His remarks came as US stocks tumbled again after a historic rally following Trump’s surprise retreat on Wednesday on the hefty tariffs he had just imposed on dozens of countries. He has instead focused on China, where goods now attract tariffs totalling 145% effective immediately – 125% in “reciprocal” tariffs plus 20% already imposed for China’s alleged role in the fentanyl crisis.
Former US treasury secretary Janet Yellen said Trump’s tariffs were “the worst self-inflicted wound that I have ever seen an administration impose on a well-functioning economy”. She accused the US president of having “taken a wrecking ball” to the American economy.
China said Trump’s trade war with Beijing “will end in failure” for Washington. Beijing’s retaliatory 84% tariffs on US imports came into effect on Thursday. Its foreign ministry said it was not interested in a fight “but will not fear if the United States continues its tariff threats”.
In other developments:
The Dow was down 2.5% by Thursday’s end after soaring on Wednesday afternoon. The Nasdaq Composite was down more than 4%, after posting its biggest gain in more than two decades on Wednesday, and the S&P 500 down 3.4%.
Stocks seemed unresponsive to news on Thursday morning that the European Union announced it would suspend 25% retaliatory tariffs against US imports and new data showed inflation in the US cooled to 2.4% in March – both typically cause for optimism on Wall Street – reflecting the market’s apparent state of fatigue after a rollercoaster week, report Anna Betts and Lauren Aratani.
The US president said he would “love” to make a deal with China, and that he believed he and Chinese president Xi Jinping would “end up working out something that’s very good for both countries”.
China has said it will immediately restrict imports of Hollywood films in retaliation for the US president’s escalation of US tariffs on Chinese imports, targeting one of the most high-profile American exports. Beijing’s National Film Administration said Trump’s tariffs would further sour domestic demand for US cinema in China and it would “moderately reduce the number of American films imported”. The move comes after three decades during which China imported 10 Hollywood movies a year. Industry analysts said the financial impact was likely to be minimal, however, because Hollywood’s box office returns in China have declined significantly in recent years, Reuters reported.
Trump is facing accusations of market manipulation over a Truth Social post on Wednesday where he said it was a “great time to buy” just hours before he made a dramatic U-turn on his trade war that led to big rises in stock markets around the world.
The European Union and the United Arab Emirates have agreed to launch free trade talks. The EU is the UAE’s second-largest trading partner, accounting for 8.3% of the Emirati total non-oil trade.
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