President Trump’s remark that he had “no intention” of firing the Federal Reserve chair, Jerome H. Powell, lifted markets on Wednesday, offering some relief from trade war tensions that have gripped investors.
Mr. Trump’s statement late Tuesday, along with earlier reports that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told investors that he expected the tariff standoff with China to ease “over the very near future,” combined to calm the latest jitters. S&P 500 futures signaled a gain of more than 2 percent when trading begins in New York on Wednesday, following a rise of 2.5 percent on Tuesday.
The positive wave moved across Asia and Europe. Japan’s Nikkei 225 gained 1.9 percent; Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was up 2.5 percent; and in Germany, the DAX jumped 2.8 percent.
The rally came after a steep slide in global markets on Monday, echoing the whiplash earlier this month when Mr. Trump paused many of his “reciprocal” tariffs hours after they were imposed, turning a steep decline into a forceful gain.
But for many investors, this week’s rebound is still only a partial recovery. The S&P 500, the main benchmark for U.S. stocks, sits nearly 12 percent below its level on Jan. 20, when Mr. Trump took office, with Wall Street remaining captive to the latest statements from the White House.
“The erratic threaten-retreat-threaten-retreat cycle has economic consequences,” Paul Donovan, the chief economist of UBS Global Wealth Management, wrote in a note. “The uncertainty this causes may impact consumer and business decision-making.”
Elsewhere in the markets:
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The dollar regained some of its recent losses. An index of the dollar against a basket of major currencies rose 0.3 percent.
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The price of 10-year Treasury bonds rose, a sign that investors were more willing to buy U.S. debt. The yield, which moves inversely to price, dropped to 4.3 percent.
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Oil futures rose. Brent crude, the international benchmark, traded at around $68 per barrel, the highest in nearly three weeks.
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Gold, which hit a record $3,500 an ounce on Tuesday, eased back. It fell to around $3,350 on Wednesday, down 2 percent for the day.
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