dollar weakens

US President Donald Trump announced on Sunday that he had agreed to delay the implementation of a 50% tariff on EU imports to 9 July, following a phone call with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.The announcement sparked a sharp rebound in US stock futures and boosted European equities on Monday.

“I agreed to the extension — July 9, 2025 — It was my privilege to do so,” Trump posted on Truth Social, quoting von der Leyen’s statement on X, in which she wrote:

“The EU and US share the world’s most consequential and close trade relationship. Europe is ready to advance talks swiftly and decisively. To reach a good deal, we would need the time until J

Trump had originally announced 20% “reciprocal tariffs” on the EU on 2 April before reducing them to 10% for 90 days.

However, he threatened to impose a 50% tariff from 1 June, citing a lack of progress in negotiations due to disagreements among EU member states. According to the bloc’s trade chief, Maroš Šefčovič, the EU submitted a revised trade proposal to the US last week.

In a social media post on Friday, Trump criticised the EU’s non-tariff barriers, including VAT regimes, “ridiculous corporate penalties,” non-monetary trade restrictions, and “unjustified lawsuits against American companies,” which he claimed contributed to an annual trade deficit of over $250 billion (€219 billion). “Our discussions with them are going nowhere!” he wrote, justifying his move to raise import levies.

Trump’s tariff threats triggered broad market sell-offs in both the US and Europe on Friday, representing a renewed escalation in global trade tensions, just two weeks after the latest round of US-China trade talks.

European stock markets open higher

Major stock benchmarks in Europe opened higher on Monday following Trump’s reversal. The Euro Stoxx 600 jumped 1.00%, and the DAX surged 1.67% as of 9:25 am CEST.

“It’s obviously a derivation of the Trump put. But it’s prompting traders to place their bets that any new tariff threat is bluster and any existing tariff will eventually be lowered,” said Kyle Rodda, a senior market analyst at Capital.com Australia.

The US stock futures also rebounded significantly, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average rising 0.85%, the S&P 500 up 1%, and the Nasdaq 100 climbing 1.19%.

Asian markets were mixed in the early trading on Thursday, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 and South Korea’s Kospi rising, while Australia’s ASX 200 and China’s Hang Seng Index fell.

The euro hits a one-month high as dollar weakens

The euro extended gains against the US dollar during Monday’s Asian session. As of 3:35 am CEST, the EUR/USD pair rose above 1.40, its highest level since 29 April.

The dollar remained under pressure after Trump’s tariff threats on Friday, with the US dollar index falling below 99 for the first time in May.

“While part of the dynamic is the market pricing in policy convergence between the US and the rest of the world, I think the major driver of dollar depreciation is the marginal loss of confidence in US assets,” Rodda said.

Recently, Moody’s downgraded the US credit rating, citing concerns over rising government debt and the widening budget deficit. Trump’s proposed tax cuts and spending plans are also facing stiff opposition in Congress.

These compounding factors have renewed sell-offs in US assets, including equities, the dollar, and government bonds, in the past week.