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At the end of Monday, the Dow Jones Index (US30) added 1.42%. The S&P 500 Index (US500) was up 1.76%. The Nasdaq Technology Index (US100) closed positive 2.16%. The US stocks rose on Monday amid optimism that the Trump administration may take a more targeted approach to tariffs, easing fears of a full-blown trade war. Technology stocks led the gains, with Nvidia and AMD jumping 3.1% and 7%, respectively, and Tesla rising 11.9% after weeks of declines. Amazon rose 3.6% and Alphabet gained 2.1%. Meanwhile, preliminary PMIs showed unexpectedly strong growth in the services sector, while manufacturing declined, driven by higher input costs due to tariffs.

The Mexican peso (MXN) strengthened to 20.1 per US dollar, approaching a four-month high reached on March 18, amid growing optimism that US tariffs, scheduled to be imposed on April 2, will be more targeted and less harsh than originally anticipated. In addition, the easing of inflation to 3.67% in mid-March, which was below expectations, suggests that domestic price pressures are well managed, further supporting confidence in the peso.

Equity markets in Europe were mostly down on Monday. Germany’s DAX (DE40) fell by 0.17%, France’s CAC 40 (FR40) closed down 0.26%, Spain’s IBEX 35 (ES35) lost 0.20%, and the UK’s FTSE 100 (UK100) closed down 0.10%. Germany’s private sector posted the fastest increase in business activity in a decade in March, thanks to the first increase in manufacturing output in nearly two years.

WTI crude oil prices rose to $69 per barrel, the highest in more than three weeks after President Trump announced he would impose 25% tariffs on all countries buying Venezuelan oil, escalating tensions with the Maduro regime. China, a major buyer of Venezuelan oil, will be hit hard.

Asian markets traded without any momentum yesterday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 (JP225) was down 0.18%, China’s FTSE China A50 (CHA50) was down 1.07%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng (HK50) added 0.91%, and Australia’s ASX 200 (AU200) was positive 0.54%. Hong Kong stocks were down 2.0% on Tuesday morning, reversing the previous session’s gains, amid concerns over US recession risks and the threat of deflation in China. At the same time, S&P Global warned that Beijing’s stimulus measures may not fully offset the impact of new US tariffs amid slowing growth.

The Reserve Bank of Australia is due to make a monetary policy decision next week, with markets expecting no change. Traders currently believe there is a two-thirds chance of another rate cut in May, after the RBA cut rates for the first time in four years last month. However, the Central Bank has warned that further easing is not guaranteed.

• S&P 500 (US500) 5,767.57 +100.01 (+1.76%)
• Dow Jones (US30) 42,583.32 +597.97 (+1.42%)
• DAX (DE40) 22,852.66 −39.02 (−0.17%)
• FTSE 100 (UK100) 8,638.01 −8.78 (−0.10%)
• USD Index 104.31 +0.22 (+0.21%)
   

News feed for: 2025.03.25

• Japan Monetary Policy Meeting Minutes at 01:50 (GMT+2);
• Germany Ifo Business Climate (m/m) at 11:00 (GMT+2);
• US New Home Sales (m/m) at 16:00 (GMT+2);
• US CB Consumer Confidence (m/m) at 16:00 (GMT+2).

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