April 8, 2025
United States:
US Small-Business Optimism Declines by Most Since Mid-2022
US small-business optimism fell last month by the most since June 2022 as concerns intensified about the prospects for business conditions and sales in the wake of the Trump administration’s sweeping tariff policies.
The National Federation of Independent Business optimism index declined 3.3 points to 97.4 in March as seven of the gauge’s 10 components weakened.
Europe:
ECB’s Simkus Calls for April Rate Cut After US Tariff Blow
The European Central Bank should lower interest rates next week because of US President Donald Trump’s tariff offensive, according to Governing Council member Gediminas Simkus.
“I still think that we should cut rates in April, and then, with a lot more information in June — hopefully including more clarity on tariffs and other things — we can think about whether we should wait and see or cut again,” he told Econostream Media in an interview published Tuesday.
Asia:
China Traders Boost Monetary Easing Bets as Tariffs Roil Markets
Traders are rapidly pricing in faster easing in China as trade tensions with the US escalated, pushing down a key gauge for such bets to drop the most in five years and inch closer to the lowest since 2008.
Five-year interest rate swaps in China, a popular hedging tool sensitive to rate expectations, fell by the most since 2020 this week. That’s around six basis points away from touching the lowest level since 2008, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
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