A de-escalation on the horizon?

While the IMF slashed global growth prospects, e conomic surveys remained quite resilient in April, with the Euro Area and US composite PMIs remaining in the expansionary territory, despite steep US tariffs announced earlier this month. Remarks by the Trump administration increased hopes of a de-escalation in trade disputes, pushing stocks higher. While China has disagreed to hold talks with the US, it considers exempting some US good imports from its 125% tariffs. The markets also reacted positively to Trump’s “no intention” of firing Fed Chair Powell. Meanwhile, several Fed heads continued to hint at no urgency for a change in monetary policy.