By Mike Dolan
LONDON (Reuters) – What matters in U.S. and global markets today
By Mike Dolan, Editor-At-Large, Finance and Markets
European markets have given something of a gallic shrug to Donald Trump’s tariff threat against the region over the weekend, with investor concern instead appearing to build about the intensifying White House attack on Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell.
I’ll discuss this and the rest of today’s market news below. Be sure to check out my column, where I explain why U.S. investors may have a serious case of dollar-driven FOMO.
Today’s Market Minute
* The EU has already prepared a list of tariffs worth 21 billion euros ($24.52 billion) on U.S. goods if they fail to reach a trade deal, Italy’s Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said on Monday.
* Japan’s central bank may face political pressure to keep interest rates low for longer than it wants, as opposition parties favouring tax cuts and loose monetary policy are expected to gain influence after a July 20 election.
* Oil markets have remained remarkably resilient so far this year, despite concerns over U.S. trade policies and rising OPEC+ production quotas. But as ROI energy columnist Ron Bousso writes, that strength will now be tested, as Saudi output is starting to surge just as demand appears to be slowing.
* Investors may be fixated on Donald Trump’s attacks on the Federal Reserve, but Mike Peacock, a former head of communications at the Bank of England, claims the BoE also faces increasing political scrutiny, raising alarm bells about the future of central bank independence.
* The United States, the world’s top corn supplier, is set to export a record volume of corn in the waning 2024-25 marketing year, slightly edging out 2020-21’s high. But ROI agriculture columnist Karen Braun says there’s a catch.
Euro shrugs at tariffs, but bonds balk
Maybe it’s partly to do with the Bastille Day holiday in France and also a delayed start to the week’s heavy events calendar, but Trump’s weekend plan to hit European Union and Mexican imports with a 30% tariff from next month saw the euro and euro zone stocks tick only modestly lower on Monday.
As with the sweep of other August 1 tariff plans that Trump detailed in letters sent last week, investors suspect much may change between now and then and are reluctant to take the standing numbers at face value just yet.
What’s more, there’s still no real consensus on whether the U.S. trade war damages the American economy more or less than any of the countries it’s targetting. And in currency markets, the dollar has been the one unequivocal loser from the whole policy piece this year so far.
By Mike Dolan
LONDON (Reuters) – What matters in U.S. and global markets today
By Mike Dolan, Editor-At-Large, Finance and Markets
European markets have given something of a gallic shrug to Donald Trump’s tariff threat against the region over the weekend, with investor concern instead appearing to build about the intensifying White House attack on Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell.
I’ll discuss this and the rest of today’s market news below. Be sure to check out my column, where I explain why U.S. investors may have a serious case of dollar-driven FOMO.
Today’s Market Minute
* The EU has already prepared a list of tariffs worth 21 billion euros ($24.52 billion) on U.S. goods if they fail to reach a trade deal, Italy’s Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said on Monday.
* Japan’s central bank may face political pressure to keep interest rates low for longer than it wants, as opposition parties favouring tax cuts and loose monetary policy are expected to gain influence after a July 20 election.
* Oil markets have remained remarkably resilient so far this year, despite concerns over U.S. trade policies and rising OPEC+ production quotas. But as ROI energy columnist Ron Bousso writes, that strength will now be tested, as Saudi output is starting to surge just as demand appears to be slowing.
* Investors may be fixated on Donald Trump’s attacks on the Federal Reserve, but Mike Peacock, a former head of communications at the Bank of England, claims the BoE also faces increasing political scrutiny, raising alarm bells about the future of central bank independence.
* The United States, the world’s top corn supplier, is set to export a record volume of corn in the waning 2024-25 marketing year, slightly edging out 2020-21’s high. But ROI agriculture columnist Karen Braun says there’s a catch.
Euro shrugs at tariffs, but bonds balk
Maybe it’s partly to do with the Bastille Day holiday in France and also a delayed start to the week’s heavy events calendar, but Trump’s weekend plan to hit European Union and Mexican imports with a 30% tariff from next month saw the euro and euro zone stocks tick only modestly lower on Monday.
As with the sweep of other August 1 tariff plans that Trump detailed in letters sent last week, investors suspect much may change between now and then and are reluctant to take the standing numbers at face value just yet.
What’s more, there’s still no real consensus on whether the U.S. trade war damages the American economy more or less than any of the countries it’s targetting. And in currency markets, the dollar has been the one unequivocal loser from the whole policy piece this year so far.
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