US President Donald Trump announced tariff cuts on fentanyl-related products from China, reducing them from 20% to 10%. This decision is part of an agreement reached at a summit in South Korea last October. This move aims to ease trade tensions between the world's two largest economies. Trump also announced a freeze on reciprocal tariffs imposed on Chinese goods. This freeze will remain in effect, providing some relief to companies engaged in international trade with China. This policy is expected to help ease trade tensions that have persisted for the past few years. This tariff cut will...
The rollout of U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs regime is dampening sentiment toward the dollar and prompting investors to look elsewhere for their foreign exchange (FX) trades, strategists told CNBC. The dollar index, which measures the value of the greenback against a basket of major rivals, was little changed on Wednesday morning. The U.S. currency began a steady rise in late 2024 that peaked in mid-January — however, the dollar index has steadily pared some of those gains in recent weeks. The dollar has historically been widely seen as a safe haven asset for investors, given its...
Japan's 10-year government bond yield dropped below 1.5% on Wednesday, hitting a four-week low as concerns over upcoming US tariffs fueled demand for safe-haven assets. President Donald Trump is set to impose reciprocal tariffs on countries that levy duties on US goods, along with additional levies on car imports—posing risks to Japan's key export sector. Meanwhile, Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda warned that the new US tariffs could significantly impact global trade and economic growth. Earlier data showed that Japanese business sentiment weakened in the first quarter amid mounting...
The German economy will recover from its prolonged period of weakness very slowly, growing by only 0.2% this year, according to the new forecasts of Germany's banks' association, seen by Reuters on Wednesday.The association had previously forecast growth of 0.7% for this year in its forecasts published in September.The economy is not expected to recover noticeably until 2026, with growth of 1.4%, the Association of German Banks said.The German economy has contracted for two consecutive years and its prospects for this year have worsened after U.S. President Donald Trump announced a 25%...
US job openings fell in February while layoffs remained subdued, adding to evidence of a labor market that's only gradually cooling. The number of available positions decreased to 7.57 million from a revised 7.76 million reading in January, the Bureau of Labor Statistics Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, known as JOLTS, showed Tuesday. The median estimate in a Bloomberg survey of economists called for 7.66 million openings. The pullback in openings was driven by declines in retail trade, financial activities and accommodation and food services. After steadily declining...
US factory activity contracted in March for the first time this year and prices accelerated sharply for a second month as the drumbeat of higher tariffs reverberated through the economy. The Institute for Supply Management's manufacturing index declined 1.3 points last month to 49, according to data released Tuesday. Readings below 50 indicate contraction and the figure was slightly weaker than the median production in a Bloomberg survey of economists. The group's price measure increased another 7 points to 69.4, still the highest since June 2022. Over the past two months, the...
Asia-Pacific markets traded higher, tracking Wall Street gains overnight.
Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 rose 0.41% after hitting a fresh record high on Thursday, while the Topix added 0.61%. South...
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...
US President Donald Trump announced tariff cuts on fentanyl-related products from China, reducing them from 20% to 10%. This decision is part of an agreement reached at a summit in South Korea last...