New signs of easing in the trade dispute between the US and China and in terms of Jerome Powell vs. Donald Trump could give the German benchmark index a boost in the second half of the week. The US President announced that tariffs on trade with the People's Republic will be significantly lower in future.
In addition to the publication of economic data on both sides of the Atlantic, market players are also focusing on the current reporting season.
DAX
Source: TradingView
Trump wants to be "very friendly" in negotiations with China
Trump had rowed back a little in the tariff dispute and thus provided signals of relaxation. The USA is currently imposing special tariffs of up to 145% on imports from China. Beijing, on the other hand, is imposing 125 percent on US imports. Trump wants to be "very friendly" in the negotiations with China. The tariffs would therefore fall significantly, but not to zero.
Trump also said that he had no plans to dismiss the Fed Chairman. At the beginning of the week, the US President once again criticized Jerome Powell, raising questions about the independence of the monetary watchdog. Trump would like to see interest rates cut.
Purchasing Managers (S&P Global) are up this afternoon (15:45) for the services and service sectors as well as "Total".
Ifo index in Germany in focus on Thursday - US economic data in view
On Thursday, investors are likely to focus in particular on the ifo Business Climate Index (10:00 a.m.).
The weekly initial claims for US unemployment benefits are usually published in the afternoon (14:30). At the same time, attention is also focused on new orders for durable goods in the US.
Finally, consumer confidence (University of Michigan) is likely to attract interest on Friday at 16:00.
IMF meeting could provide repeated impetus - growth expectations dampened
At the same time, investors should keep an eye on the IMF meeting in Washington, which runs until next Saturday. On Tuesday, the International Monetary Fund dampened its growth expectations worldwide due to the customs dispute. The global economy is at a critical point, it said.
Growth of 1.8% is expected for the USA in 2025, 0.9 percentage points lower than in January. Globally, the IMF is forecasting growth of 2.8% (previously: 3.3%).
In the reporting season, the focus in the USA on Thursday will be on the figures from Alphabet and Intel, which are also likely to attract attention in Frankfurt am Main.
