This is the daily morning update from NDTV Profit. Over the next few minutes, we’ll bring you up to speed with everything you need to know to start your day ahead of the curve.
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The top story this morning once again emanates from the White House, or actually, this time it was on Air Force One. US President Donald Trump said yesterday that he would announce today new 25% tariffs on all steel and aluminium imports into the US, which would come on top of existing metals duties.
He also said he would announce reciprocal tariffs on Tuesday or Wednesday, to take effect almost immediately. The US would match tariff rates levied by other countries and this would apply to all countries, he said.
The comments came just after German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said the European Union was ready to respond “within an hour” if the US levied tariffs on European goods, highlighting the risks of an escalating trade war. China’s retaliatory tariffs on some US exports are due to take effect on Monday, with no sign as yet of progress between Beijing and Washington.
The prevailing thesis is that countries targeted by Trump will let their currencies fall against the dollar to help compensate in part for the taxes, keeping their exports competitive. What the tariffs do, though, is to raise prices — an inflationary trend that is not good for the US economy. As of this morning, the dollar index was once again well above 108, reflecting more strength than it did at the end of last week.
Meanwhile, US job growth slowed more than expected in January, likely on account of wildfires in California and cold weather across much of the country, but a 4.0% unemployment rate probably gives the Federal Reserve enough cover to not cut interest rates at least until June.
Nonfarm payrolls increased by 143,000 jobs last month after rising by an upwardly revised 307,000 in December. That’s a Reuters report.
In other international news, China’s consumer inflation accelerated to its fastest in five months in January, while producer price deflation persisted, reflecting mixed consumer spending and weak factory activity.
As of this morning, the early risers in the Asia Pacific region were all trading lower. And US futures were also down.
