US equities were boosted by strong earnings and Trump’s AI push. Technology stocks led the rally, while Tesla fell on Elon Musk’s frustration over the closer relationship between Trump and OpenAI’s Sam Altman.
Elsewhere, P&G’s latest quarterly report showed that the company’s Q4 sales growth came from higher volumes and not from price hikes, giving hope regarding the US inflation dynamics. Unfortunately, that doesn’t erase the risk of rising inflationary pressures on Donald Trump’s pro-growth policies, his tax cut and mass deportation plans and the tariffs – which are all potential inflation-boosters.
In Europe, the Stoxx 600 advanced to a fresh record high yesterday, on hope that the tariffs that the US would impose on Europe would be softer than the threats. In China, market sentiment is mixed. The relief over Donald Trump not announcing new tariffs on China during his inauguration didn’t last long. Chinese equities are under pressure...










