The White House update to its tariff schedule is a "welcome development" after challenges caused by a recent U.S. Customs ruling on gold bars, the London Bullion Market Association said on Wednesday. The executive order, issued on September 5 by President Donald Trump, updates the tariff schedule for certain goods, including key gold products. The White House referred to them as reciprocal tariffs. Under the update, gold bars imported from "aligned partner" countries under certain codes of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States - including 7108.11.00, 7108.12.50, 7108.13.10,...
German exports are expected to decline by 0.3% in 2025 due to weakening competitiveness as well as growing geopolitical and trade tensions, according to the government's annual economic report published on Wednesday. European governments and companies are on alert for possible new tariffs under the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump, while the question of how to revive Germany's flagging economy is central to a national election due on Feb. 23. The annual government report said economy - still Europe's largest - is expected to grow by 0.3% this year, down from a previously...
Australia's Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 0.2% QoQ in the fourth quarter (Q4) of 2024, compared with the 0.2% increase seen in the third quarter, according to the latest data published by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) on Wednesday. The market consensus was for a growth of 0.3% in the reported period. The Australian monthly Consumer Price Index is foreseen at 2.5% in December. Quarterly CPI inflation expected to ease further below 3%, with core figures nearing RBA's goal. The Reserve Bank of Australia will meet on February 18 to decide on monetary policy. The Australian...
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday that he plans to speak to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and that Netanyahu would be traveling to Washington to meet with him. Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, Trump did not give a date for the face-to-face meeting, but said it would take place "very soon." The meeting comes amid a fragile six-week ceasefire that has brought a temporary pause to 15 months of fighting between Israel and militant group Hamas in Gaza. Trump also said Monday he wants Egypt to take in Palestinians from Gaza, where much of the population has been...
European tech shares came under pressure on Monday, after Chinese tech startup DeepSeek's low-cost artificial intelligence model sparked worries about returns in the AI business and the need for costly chips.The pan-European STOXX 600 dropped as much as 0.8% earlier in the day, tracking a global market sell-off on concerns about AI investment and tech sector valuations, after DeepSeek rolled out a free assistant that it says uses lower-cost chips and less data. [MKTS/GLOB]European tech stocks slid 3.4% and were on track for their biggest daily drop since October, with chip equipment maker...
U.S. Federal Reserve policymakers meeting next week are expected to keep interest rates on hold but the larger story unfolding will be how the central bank confronts early moves by President Donald Trump that are likely to shape the economy this year, including demands the Fed continue lowering borrowing costs. Trump was already complicating the Fed's job with moves to restrict immigration and raise import taxes, and on Thursday told global business leaders he would call on the Fed to cut interest rates. "I'll demand that interest rates drop immediately, and likewise they should be...
China's official NBS Manufacturing PMI increased to 49.7 in June 2025 from May's 49.5, matching market expectations while marking the third consecutive month of contraction in factory activity.
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Both the STOXX 50 and STOXX 600 hovered around the flatline on Friday, as investors adopted a cautious stance ahead of further developments in trade talks between US President Trump and Chinese...
Poland shot down a drone in its airspace on Wednesday with the support of military aircraft from its NATO allies. This is the first time a member of the Western military alliance is known to have...