United States
US equity markets moved lower overnight as investor anxiety persisted around proposed car tariffs, retaliatory measures, and shifting messages from the White House. President Trump said “retaliatory tariffs” would be lenient, and hinted he might reduce tariffs in China in exchange for progress on a TikTok deal. However, the transactional and unpredictable approach to trade policy—varying on a country-by-country basis—has only added to investor bewilderment regarding its potential impact on specific companies.
All three major indices ended the session in the red. The Nasdaq Composite fell 0.53%, shedding 95 points to close at 17,804. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 0.37% to finish at 42,299, while the S&P 500 slipped 0.33%, or 19 points, to settle at 5,693.31. Eight of the eleven sectors closed lower, though declines were moderate, with no sector falling more than 1%. The standout performers were consumer staples, as investors sought safety in defensives like Procter & Gamble (+1.31%) and Colgate-Palmolive (+1.27%).
Unsurprisingly, automakers were hit hard. General Motors dropped 7.36% to US$47.20, and Ford fell 3.88% to US$9.90. Tesla, however, bucked the trend, rising 0.39% to US$273.13. Analysts noted that Tesla could be a relative winner from the 25% tariffs on imported cars due to its higher proportion of domestic manufacturing.
In tech, Apple rose 1.05% to US$223.85, while Nvidia slipped 2.05% to US$111.43. Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) dropped 3.21% after broker downgrades, citing underperformance relative to Nvidia’s chips and expectations that the performance gap may widen.
Among individual stock moves, GameStop plunged 22% after announcing plans to raise US$1.3 billion via convertible notes to fund Bitcoin purchases, following a 12% rally the day prior. Recreational vehicle maker Winnebago Industries jumped 8% after posting better-than-expected earnings.
Bond markets were steady, with the US 10-year Treasury yield ticking up 1 basis point to 4.36%. The US dollar slipped slightly, down 0.07% on the Bloomberg Dollar Index. The USD/JPY pair is trading at 151.04.
All eyes now turn to today’s release of the Fed’s preferred inflation measure—the PCE (Personal Consumption Expenditures) Index. Economists expect a monthly increase of 0.3%, suggesting an annual rate of 2.7%. Markets may respond sharply to any upside surprise in the data. Several Federal Reserve officials have recently called for a pause in interest rate moves, advocating caution until there is more clarity on trade policy.
Europe
Markets in Europe fell on Thursday as the news of impending tariffs on car manufacturers was largely priced in. The Euro Stoxx 600 declined by 0.44% to close at 546.31, despite recovering from earlier losses of more than 1%. The index was supported late in the session but still saw eight of its eleven sectors finish in negative territory. Technology and materials led the declines, while defensive sectors such as utilities outperformed.
In the UK, the FTSE 100 dropped 0.27% to finish at 8,666.
The automobile sector was particularly hard hit following the tariff announcement. The autos sub-index declined 1.39%, with Stellantis down 4.23% and BMW falling 2.02%. In the UK, luxury carmaker Aston Martin plunged 6.66% to a record low, weighed down by both the tariff news and investor concerns that the company may need to raise additional capital later this year.
Materials stocks also struggled as a pullback in base metal prices and concerns about global growth weighed on sentiment. Anglo American dropped 2.42%, copper miner Antofagasta lost 5.95%, and steelmaker ArcelorMittal declined by over 4%.
Conversely, falling short-dated bond yields on the continent prompted some investors to rotate into interest-rate-sensitive sectors such as real estate and utilities. The German 2-year bond yield fell by 5 basis points to 2.06%, while the benchmark 10-year yield declined 2 basis points to 2.77%. In contrast, UK bond yields moved higher, with the 10-year gilt rising 5 basis points to 4.78%.
In currency markets, the euro strengthened against the US dollar, with EUR/USD rising 0.40% to trade at 1.0798.
Australia
The ASX200 closed 30 points lower on Thursday, down 0.38% to finish at 7,969. Initial losses followed the announcement of further tariffs, with the index falling as much as 0.75% before staging a partial recovery. Seven of the eleven sectors ended the day in the red, with real estate and technology the worst performers. The energy sector, up 1%, was the day’s standout.
The real estate sector struggled, led by sector heavyweight Goodman Group, which fell 3.95% ($1.25) to close at $30.36. Other property stocks also underperformed, with Scentre Group down 1.44% to $3.42 and GPT Group falling 2% to $4.40.
Energy stocks benefited from rising oil prices and strong global demand. Woodside Energy gained 1.51% or 35 cents to close at $23.60. The company is currently awaiting a federal decision on its application to extend the North West Shelf project, with Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek delaying the ruling until May 31. The project has already received state government approval to operate until 2070. The federal election is expected to take place by May. Ampol also rose, adding 1.68% to close at $24.16.
The health care sector saw mixed results. Pro Medicus dropped 7.79% to $210.00 due to profit-taking and as market participants wait to see synergies emerge from recent acquisitions , while Ramsay Health Care surged 6.20% to $35.09, gaining $2.05. Small-cap Healius Limited soared 10.69% to $1.45 after announcing a fully franked special dividend of 41.3 cents, contingent on the completion of its Lumus Imaging sale. The company also reported a 6.2% year-to-date increase in pathology revenue through to the end of February.
Technology shares mirrored weakness in U.S. tech stocks. WiseTech Global fell 2.04% to $83.66 after AustralianSuper revealed it had sold its entire 2.26% stake, citing corporate governance concerns. NextDC also dropped sharply, down 6.46% to $12.01.
In company-specific news, Domain Holdings fell 4.92% to $4.25 after CoStar raised its takeover bid to $4.43 per share. Domain’s board has agreed to facilitate due diligence, and CoStar has stated that the offer is on a “best and final” basis. Major shareholder Nine Entertainment would receive approximately $1.4 billion in cash if the deal proceeds. Nine’s shares slipped 1.58% to $1.56. Competitor REA Group fell 2.56% to $229.48, with investors interpreting CoStar’s implied valuation as suggesting REA is overvalued.
The Reject Shop’s share price more than doubled, surging 109.52% to close at $6.60, following a $6.68 per share takeover bid from Canadian retailer Dollarama, which has been approved by the board.
In fixed income markets, Australian bond yields edged higher, with the 10-year yield rising 3 basis points to 4.50%. The AUDUSD begins the day slightly higher at 0.6303.
In quiet overnight futures trading, the ASX200 futures contract has slipped 8 points a fall of 0.10%.
Commodities
Heightened global concerns triggered renewed interest in gold, pushing the precious metal to a record high. Gold finished the day up 1.27%, or US$38.24, to be at trading at US$3,057.50. Market sentiment suggests a breakthrough above US$3,100 is only a matter of time, with several investment banks already lifting their year-end price targets.
Silver also rallied, jumping 2.41% to US$34.44—its highest level in six months.
Bitcoin remained relatively unchanged, closing at US$87,312, just US$26 higher than Wednesday’s close.
Oil prices edged higher, with both major futures contracts posting modest gains. West Texas Intermediate rose 24 cents to US$69.89, while Brent crude added 0.3% to settle at US$74.00. The market remains weighed down by the ongoing tug-of-war between tariffs and sanctions on one side and supply-demand dynamics on the other. The impact of recent U.S. sanctions on Venezuelan oil is beginning to show, with India’s Reliance Industries—the operator of the world’s largest refinery complex—announcing it will halt imports of Venezuelan crude.
Copper extended its pullback, dropping US$80 to close at US$9,846 per tonne, a decline of 0.80%. The earlier rally driven by tariff news is losing steam, although analysts still cite tight global supply as a key factor underpinning long-term support. In the U.S., Comex copper fell over 2% as the spread narrowed from record highs reached earlier in the week.
Iron ore prices also dipped, falling 0.33% to close at US$102.95 in New York.
Economic Calendar
EU:
- Eurozone Consumer Inflation Expectations (Mar) – 9:00pm
US:
- Core PCE Price Index – Inflation (Feb) – 11:30pm
- Personal income and Spending (Feb) – 11:30pm
This article was written by Paul Darwell, Rivkin Securities Pty Ltd. Enquiries can be made via [email protected] or by phoning +612 8302 3632.
