UK stocks have risen as trading got underway on Wall Street for the first time since Donald Trump’s inauguration.
The FTSE 100 climbed 0.3%, and the FTSE 250 advanced 0.4%, buoyed by figures showing a slowdown in Britain’s jobs market—a development that supports the possibility of interest rate cuts.
Traders have largely brushed aside the impact of Trump’s extensive executive orders on immigration, energy policy, and other issues.
On Wall Street, the Dow Jones increased 0.6%, and the S&P 500 gained 0.4%, although the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite dipped 0.2%. Meanwhile, the returning president threatened to impose 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico as early as 1st of February.
The price of Brent crude oil fell 1.2% toward $79 a barrel as the prospect of tariffs bolstered the dollar. Jan Von Gerich of Nordea commented, “We shouldn’t get too carried away by this; the fact that he didn’t start with tariffs doesn’t mean that they won’t come later.
For the global equity market, I think it’s all about Trump now.”
