The US government wants to suspend the special tariffs on certain electronic products such as smartphones and laptops from numerous countries – including China – at least temporarily. However, uncertainty remains high as US President Donald Trump does not want these tariff exemptions to be understood as such. “There is still a lot of confusion,” said one trader, referring to the back and forth in US trade policy.
Investors could therefore be more cautious again after the initial euphoria. “Rising prices could also be used as an opportunity to reduce positions,” said one trader.
In addition, foreign investors could further reduce their holdings of US government bonds due to the general uncertainty, which would drive up their yields further.
But even without US tariffs, the markets are facing a special week, the report continues. On Thursday, the European Central Bank (ECB) will publish its interest rate decision and options contracts will expire on Eurex. In addition, some important economic figures will be published this week.
The leading SMI index was trading 1.21% higher at 11,376 points at 9:15am. The gains on other European stock exchanges are comparable.
Tech stocks at the top
Logitech shares (+5.0%) are leading the winners. The shares of the computer peripherals manufacturer benefited from the (temporary) suspension of US special tariffs, along with those of other industry representatives such as VAT (+1.9%) and AMS Osram (+4.3%). Tech companies are benefiting because a large proportion of their products are manufactured in China, says one expert.
UBS shares (+2.4%), Adecco (+2.2%), Sika (+2.0%), ABB (+1.6%) and Kühne + Nagel (+1.8%) are also in demand.
Holcim (+1.4%) is also trading higher. Each Holcim shareholder is to receive one Amrize share in the form of a dividend in kind as part of the spin-off of the US business. The spin-off is to take place in June following approval by the annual general meeting on May 14.
Translated from German by DeepL/ts
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