US stock markets wobbled and gold hit fresh highs Tuesday as traders kept a nervous eye on US President Donald Trump’s next tariff moves and worried about inflation and interest rates.European markets rose, with both Frankfurt and London again setting records, while Asian equity markets struggled for direction.All three major US indices had opened lower, but the Dow finished positive and the S&P 500 ended unchanged. The Nasdaq dropped 0.4 percent.LBBW’s Karl Haeling said the market’s ability to avoid a major selloff amid the tariff uncertainty reflected “underlying optimism” about economic conditions in spite of tariff and interest rate uncertainty.Trump has lived up to his campaign pledges to resume his hardball trade diplomacy.US trading partners expressed dismay and vowed retaliation to Trump’s latest move — a plan to enact 25 percent tariffs on imported aluminum and steel from March 12.Still, caution looms over trading floors as dealers brace for the next announcement out of the White House.For tariffs to be effective, “the administration needs to keep everyone guessing and this creates uncertainty for financial markets,” noted AJ Bell investment director Russ Mould.”The administration is clearly prepared to implement tariffs rather than just using them as a negotiating tactic,” he added.The uncertainty fueled by Trump’s moves has pushed safe-haven gold ever higher. It extended gains Tuesday to hit a new peak above $2,942 an ounce, before retreating.Fears that Trump’s tariffs, along with tax cuts and deregulation, will reignite inflation and force the Federal Reserve to keep interest rates elevated have sent the dollar up against most of its peers, although it traded mixed on Tuesday.Fed Chair Jerome Powell reiterated in congressional testimony that the US central bank was in no hurry to adjust monetary policy, leaving a cloudy outlook for additional interest rate cuts.Investors expect two cuts at most this year.Focus remained also on the latest company earnings season which was nearing its end.Shares in Britain’s BP slid after it pledged to “fundamentally reset” its strategy in the face of tumbling profits. The loss came despite rising oil prices.”Signs of tighter Russian supply in addition to increasing supply risks provoked a fourth straight day of gains,” said IG’s Rudolph.Coca-Cola jumped 4.7 percent after reporting an 11 percent increase in profits to $2.2 billion in results that topped estimates.- Key figures around 21430 GMT -New York – Dow: UP 0.3 percent at 44,593.65 (close)New York – S&P 500: FLAT at 6,068.50 (close)New York – Nasdaq Composite: DOWN 0.4 percent at 19,643.86 (close)London – FTSE 100: UP 0.1 at 8,777.39 (close) Paris – CAC 40: UP 0.3 percent at 8,028.90 (close)Frankfurt – DAX: UP 0.6 percent at 22,037.83 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 1.1 percent at 21,294.86 (close)Shanghai – Composite: DOWN 0.1 percent at 3,318.06 (close)Tokyo – Nikkei 225: Closed for a holidayEuro/dollar: UP at $1.0360 from $1.0307 on MondayPound/dollar: UP at $1.2446 from $1.2368Dollar/yen: UP at 152.45 yen from 152.00 yenEuro/pound: DOWN at 83.24 from 83.33 penceWest Texas Intermediate: UP 1.4 percent at $73.32 per barrelBrent North Sea Crude: UP 1.5 percent at $77.00 per barrelburs-jmb/st
Tue, 11 Feb 2025 21:55:47 GMT
