There are no signs of tension easing, instead the global tariff war continues to maintain its heat in the market until the end of this week.
The statement issued by the White House yesterday shocked the market when it was said that President Donald Trump had signed a new executive order for tariffs on Chinese imported goods totaling 245%.
This has caused confusion for many, including Beijing.
However, the White House clarified the confusion by saying that the 245% figure represents all previous and new tariffs from the Joe Biden term and the Trump administration.
The United States (US) had previously imposed mega tariffs of up to 100% on goods imported from China to their country before Trump began announcing new tariffs this year.
Thus, the 145% tariff by the administration and added to the 100% tariff that already exists make up the 245%, according to the White House.
During the Biden administration, products such as electric vehicles and syringes were among the products facing 100% tariffs.
Heading into the weekend, trading for the US dollar remained weak with the pressure of the tariff war currently in focus.
In the New York session yesterday, US retail sales data was published with a good reading for March, but it was not enough to revive the US dollar.
Attention was also focused on a speech by Federal Reserve (Fed) President Jerome Powell early this morning at the Economic Club of Chicago event.
Powell reassured the market by stating that the US economy remains strong despite the uncertainty.
The labor market is still stable and expects instability that may continue to be influenced by the tension of the global tariff war.
The Bank of Canada (BOC) announced that the latest interest rate was maintained at 2.75% at the latest meeting held yesterday, as expected by the market.
Meanwhile, attention will also turn to the decision of the European Central Bank (ECB) policy meeting today (Thursday) with expectations that interest rates will be lowered by 25 basis points to 2.40%.
