From New York to London and Hong Kong, money managers around the world say they have become neutral, are stepping back or are reducing the risk of their portfolios for Trump's Commercial Bombs and concerned about the impact they will have on inflation e on the economy international. The only strategy is to focus on companies off the tariff radar, exploit volatility and above all throw yourself in on gold which is heading towards the best quarterly performance since 1986. Sul US bond market the yield curve is steepening.
After yesterday's auto tariffs announcement, investors are still waiting for what Trump has called “America's Liberation Day,” the 2 April, when the reciprocal duties will be triggered, while the car companies are warning of possible price increases and considering shifting their production base to accommodate the change. Today, the market's attention could shift to Price Consumer Expenditure, the Federal Reserve's benchmark for inflation in the United States. Chinese President Xi Jinping called a meeting of international industrial giants tonight.
Industrialists study counter moves
Trump’s latest auto tariff bombshell has drawn sharp criticism from politicians and industry executives around the world. Volkswagen based in Wolfsburg, Germany said that the entire automotive industry, as well as customers, will have to “bear the negative consequences”. For the car companies It's time to make a decision: they must decide whether to locate more production in the United States, take on the costs of the tariffs, or pass them on to consumers. Volvo, Audi, Mercedes-Benz and Hyundai cars from Volkswagen They have already declared that they will relocate parts of their production. Ferrari which produces all its cars in Italy, said it would increase the prices of some models by up to 10%. According to Goldman Sachs, the prices of cars could increase by $5.000 to $15.000 if a 25 percent tariff on imported cars is maintained.
Not all major automakers are on high alert: The shares of the electric vehicle maker Tesla have largely ignored the concerns, as its production for the U.S. market comes largely from domestic plants, with less reliance than other automakers on foreign-made components.
Wall Street closes down
On the day of the announcement of the tariffs on cars, Wall Street is also not in a good mood and closes with a decrease, albeit contained. Dow Jones which leaves 0,37% on the floor; on the same line, it is positioned below the parity line the S&P-500, which stops at 5.693 points. Just below parity the Nasdaq 100 (-0,59%); on the same line, below par, the S&P 100, which shows a decrease of 0,32%. On the macroeconomic front, the final reading of the GDP of the fourth quarter revealed growth greater than expected, while on the side of the job market Applications for unemployment benefits fell more than expected.
The yield curve is steepening in the US bond market. 30-year US Treasury yield has surpassed its equivalent in five years with the widest gap since early 2022, with shorter-dated bonds hit hardest by the prospect of potential Fed interest rate cuts if U.S. growth slows.
Long-dated Treasury yields hit their highest levels in a month on Thursday as investors sought compensation for the risk that tariffs would spur U.S. inflation. Fed Bank of Boston President Susan Collins said the tariffs would likely cause price pressure in the near term, but it was unclear how long that would last.
Asia, Japanese cars collapse. Xi Jinping summons the world's industrial giants
In Asia Pacific, key stock markets are poised for their worst decline in a month, with stock indexes rising weakly in Australia (after the announcement of national elections on May 3rd) and Singapore, on equality Mumbai, .
The index Nikkei Japanese stock market loses 2,4%, -2,2% the weekly balance, also because today is the dividend day for most companies at the end of the fiscal year. yen weakened slightly to 150,9 to the dollar, from 150,2 yesterday. Nearly 3 trillion yen ($20 billion) was wiped off the market value of the three major Japanese car manufacturers: Toyota, Honda and Nissan in three trading sessions this week. Consumer prices in Japan excluding fresh foods rose 2,4% this month on year, mostly driven by increases in processed foods, according to data from Today, above estimates of a 2,2% rise. Headline inflation also rose to 2,9% from 2,8% in February. But most economists expect the Japanese central bank to wait until June or July to tighten its monetary policy next.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index is down 0,9% and is on track to close the week down 1,4%. The CSI 300 of the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges is down 0,4% at 3900 points, almost unchanged from last Friday. The Taiex of Taipei, an index overweight in high tech and chips, fell 1,4% to 21.600, its lowest since September. China's president Xi Jinping met a group of people during the night economic leaders global, including Rajesh Subramaniam of FedEx Corp, Bill Winters of Standard Chartered PLC, Paul Hudson of Sanofi, Pascal Soriot of AstraZeneca and Miguel Angel López Borrego of ThyssenKrupp. In addition to the industry leaders, there were also high-ranking Chinese officials, confirming the importance of the event: Foreign Minister Wang Yi, Commerce Minister Wang Wentao and Finance Minister Lan Fo'an. After the meeting, Xi told reporters that the Chinese government will "take into consideration" what came from the seven companies.
Gold heads for best quarterly performance since 1986
Gold continues to rise on safe-haven demand. The bullion gained as much as 0,7%, reaching an all-time high of over $3.077,60 an ounce. Gold has remained comfortably above $3.000 an ounce since it broke that threshold in mid-March. The yellow metal rose more than 17% in the January-March period, on track to record its best quarterly performance since 1986. Also buying, according to Intermonte's chief global strategist Antonio Cesarano, are the central banks, especially those of emerging countries, which are shorter in terms of gold reserves than those of developed countries. Several major banks have increased their price targets for the precious metal; this week Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its forecast to $3.300 an ounce by the end of the year.
European stock markets, eyes on Banco Bpm, Ferrari, Unipol at Piazza Affari
Futures suggest European markets are looking ahead to a gloomy Friday, with the region's automakers in the spotlight. The European Automobile and Parts Index (.SXAP) hit its lowest level since early December and is set to record its sixth consecutive week in negative territory. European stocks are expected to start the session lower, with the Euro Stoxx0,34 futures down 50%.
The euro falls 0,15% to $1,078. In Germany The consumer confidence index improved only slightly in April to -24,5 points from the previous reading of -24,7 points).
Pirelli. The board of directors, meeting yesterday, decided to postpone the resolutions of today's meeting until April 28. The board - called to approve the 2024 budget - accepted the proposal from CEO Andrea Casaluci. The meeting is therefore also postponed, which will be held on June 12 instead of May 27, 2025 as previously scheduled.
Unipol Insurance. The board of directors approved the new 2025-2027 “Stronger/Faster/Better” plan – the first of the new era after the shortening of the chain – which sees cumulative consolidated profits of 3,8 billion (+28% compared to the three-year period 2022-2024) and cumulative profits of the insurance group “in strong acceleration”, equal to 3,4 billion (+47%), with a compound annual growth in earnings per share of 13%. dividends cumulative will be 2,2 billion (+ 72% compared to the amount distributed in the three-year period 2022-2024), with a compound annual growth of the coupon per share equal to approximately 10%. This is in the face of an organic capital generation 2025-2027 equal to 1 billion, in excess of the expected dividends, and an overall insurance collection in 2027 equal to 18 billion (+2,4 billion euros compared to 2024).
Bpm bank has renounced the ECB's condition that subordinates the effectiveness of the takeover bid on Anima to obtaining a positive opinion from Frankfurt on the application of the Danish Compromise and therefore is moving forward with the offer.
Mfe is expected to file a prospectus for a takeover bid for ProsiebenSat.1 at the end of April, as part of a plan to tighten its grip on the German broadcaster, Reuters reported.
Buzzi meets the board of directors on the 2024 budget (preliminary reports published on 7 February).
Getting very. Morgan Stanley cut its target price from 22 to 20 euros.
Ferrari. No problem for tariffs. Barclays and Kepler Cheuvreux raise their rating.
Prysmian has signed a $118 million (over €106 million) contract to build the Star Gate data center in Abilene, Texas. The project involves Open Ai, SoftBank, Oracle and Mgx, among others. For Encore, this is the largest data center contract ever signed, as explained by Andrea Pirondi, CEO of Prysmian America
Stellantis. The president, John Elkann, says he is concerned about the implications of the US tariffs on cars and on demand in the US.
STMicroelectronics. The government intends to appoint Marcello Sala as a member of the company's supervisory board, they said. Reuters three sources. The manager is also among the candidates for the presidency of Nexi, of which Cdp is one of the main shareholders, adds one of the sources
Terna The Arera authority has changed the accounting rules on the deflator, analysts estimate a positive impact for regulated utilities.
Team. Second The Sun 24-Ore, Poste Italiane is in talks with Vivendi with the aim of acquiring a stake that would bring its shareholding above 20% of Tim's capital and in any case below the threshold, equal to 25%, that would trigger a mandatory takeover bid. The operation, according to the newspaper, could be concluded before the summer. For Il Giornale, the negotiations have entered the heart of the matter and could soon reach the final step, perhaps as early as the next few days.
