A lot happened this week, but it doesn’t feel like much has changed.
At the (relative) start of a new month, we’re back to tariff talk. Canada has been threatened with 35%; Brazil is eyeing a 50% tariff because Trump doesn’t like the fact its ex-President is being persecuted (?); and Japan and South Korea have copped finger wags.
The man is intent on making sure the US faces inflation risks. But as I’ve been saying relentlessly for months, we’re seeing the impact of tariff fatigue start – despite all of this, Wall Street hit new record highs this week.
But that was just because NVIDIA continues to climb, and well, I’ve spent enough time typing about the Mag7.
At home, the RBA this week kept rates on pause. That shocked many, although, if you were reading my articles, you’d know I wasn’t too surprised.
I’ll write more next week, I can’t be bothered talking about Trump this week, and it will probably all change in four days anyway. That’s clearly what Wall Street’s thinking.
A list of what else caught my eye this week:
Australian Equities
Droneshield eyes $2.80/sh as new all time high clocked
CBA dipped below $300B market cap midweek (but pared losses on Friday)
Shorts on Guzman Gomez climb back to over 6% of shares; price below $28/sh
Australian Economy
RBA holds rates on pause – but was that really so surprising?
International Economies
Trump goes back to tariff chaos, promising to hit Canada with 35%; Brazil to get 50%
International Equities
NVIDIA hits US$4T value, a world-first
Tesla sinks as Musk launches political party, instead of focusing on Tesla
Commodities
Iron ore prices on the SGX close to US$100/tn again as price hits US$99.xx/tn
Rare Earth Molybdenum shoots up as US Pentagon buys stake in REE miner
Nickel (just) overtakes lithium as most valuable EV metal, underscoring nightmare scenario
Bitcoin hits all time high as crypto market shrugs off uncertainty
Geopolitics
Trump flip flops on whether the US will support Ukraine’s war against Russia or not