Stock markets

US stocks rallied for a third straight session on Thursday, shrugging off signs that US trade deals with China and the European Union aren't imminent despite promising signs elsewhere.

Trump said on Wednesday that Washington would have a "fair deal with China" and that there was direct contact "every day". On Tuesday he had said tariffs would "come down substantially".

The rush for safety saw gold hit yet another record above $3,500, and while the dollar steadied after the previous day's selloff, it remained under pressure against its major peers.

With several markets still closed for the Easter holiday, business was limited ahead of a week that will see the release of key data that should give an insight into the impact of the US president's trade war.

Investors are also eyeing developments at the Federal Reserve as Trump hit out at boss Jerome Powell, who warned the sweeping tariffs were "highly likely to generate at least a temporary rise in inflation".

The US president's unorthodox approach to trade diplomacy continues to fuel uncertainty among investors, with speculation over new levies on high-end technology and pharmaceuticals dampening sentiment.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez suggested there was insider trading in Congress related to Trump's pause on tariffs for all countries but China

President Donald Trump's post claiming it is a "great time to buy" hours before announcing a tariff pause has sparked concerns of possible insider trading.

Equities across the world have been hammered since the US president unveiled sweeping levies against friend and foe, upending trading norms, sparking talk of a global recession and wiping trillions of company valuations.

Peter Navarro told investors not to "panic" over Donald Trump's tariffs while markets plunged, insisting he saw a "beautiful situation" on the horizon.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng plunged more than 13 percent, its biggest drop since the 1997 Asian financial crisis, while in Japan the Nikkei 225 index fell an eye-watering 7.8 percent.

Howard Lutnick stated his belief that Donald Trump will not change his tune on the implementation of tariffs against some of the U.S.'s biggest trade partners.

Markets plummeted in after-hours trading after Donald Trump announced reciprocal tariffs on U.S. trading partners

Equities have been battered leading up to the US president's announcement -- which he has dubbed "Liberation Day" -- with warnings that friend and foe are in the crosshairs after what he says is years of "ripping off" the United States.

Investors have been rushing to position themselves for the US president's "Liberation Day" on Wednesday, when he warned he will impose levies on "all countries" for what he has said is years of them ripping off Americans.

The president's pledge to impose 25 percent levies on all autos coming into the United States overshadowed earlier indications that planned reciprocal measures due on Trump's so-called "Liberation Day" on April 2.

With the White House's "Liberation Day" on April 2 approaching, investors have been bracing for a wave of sweeping levies on imports amid warnings of crippled global trade, recession and a fresh spike in inflation.

A surge in tech giants including Tesla and Nvidia helped New York markets higher, with sentiment buoyed by indications from the White House that next week's glut of levies would be less severe than feared.

Investor sentiment has been jolted in recent weeks by fears that the president's hardball policies could deal a painful blow to the global economy.

Traders took heart from Fed boss Jerome Powell's comments that the impact of hefty levies imposed on imports from key partners would likely be transitional, and from officials' forecasts that did not see a feared recession this year.

Markets have been seized by volatility recently as US President Donald Trump embarks on his hardball trade policy that has seen him impose painful duties on imports from major partners, stoking recession fears.

The tepid start to the day followed tech-led losses on Wall Street, while an agreement between US President Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin that Russia would stop targeting Ukrainian energy was met with a shrug.

London, Paris and Frankfurt rose at the open. The rally came after a second successive day of gains on Wall Street, which has been hammered this month by a sell-off sparked by Trump's tariffs campaign that many fear could ramp up US inflation and hammer the economy.

Eyes were on Beijing as officials were set to outline their plans to kickstart spending by the country's army of consumers after years of post-Covid weakness that has been a major drag on economic growth.

Fox News host Laura Ingraham urged viewers to dismiss media reports warning of a potential recession, insisting that Donald Trump is "good for business."

Bitcoin plunged as much as 5.7% after Trump signed an executive order to establish a "Strategic Bitcoin Reserve" without planning any public purchases of the cryptocurrency.

The White House announced Wednesday an exemption on any autos coming through the United States, Canada and Mexico free trade pact, after Trump held talks with the "Big Three" US automakers -- Stellantis, Ford and General Motors.

After a healthy performance on Friday, Asian investors struggled to maintain momentum after big losses in New York, where the Nasdaq lost more than two percent.

The yen pulled back a day after rallying past the 150-per-dollar mark following a warning on rising bond yields by Japan's finance minister saw a rethink over bets on how many interest rate hikes the central bank will announce this year.

The losses come despite a second-straight record close on Wall Street and follow a recent rally as traders have rolled with the president's latest tariff salvos, betting that they are being used as negotiating tactics.