Stocks waver as ECB cuts rate, Trump slams Fed chief (2025)

A trader work on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

NEW YORK,United States — Stock markets wavered Thursday despite another interest rate cut by the European Central Bank as investors remain on edge over the fallout from President Donald Trump’s tariffs blitz.

In New York, the Dow and the tech-heavy Nasdaq extended losses while the broad-based S&P 500 edged up.

Wall Street had slumped on Wednesday as Federal Reserve chief Jerome Powell warned that Trump’s sweeping tariffs were “highly likely to generate at least a temporary rise in inflation.”

Powell said it could put the US central bank in the unenviable position of having to choose between tackling inflation and unemployment.

Trump hit back Thursday, slamming Powell for not lowering interest rates as the ECB has done. He said Powell’s “termination cannot come fast enough.”

READ: Trump suggests he can remove Federal Reserve Chair Powell

“All-in-all, the trade news and Powell’s comments provided a tough backdrop for markets,” said a Deutsche Bank analyst note.

The Paris and Frankfurt stock exchanges closed in the red ahead of the Easter holiday. Meanwhile, the ECB warned that rising trade tensions could weigh on eurozone growth.

Trump’s tariffs have increased the risk that growth could slow in the eurozone. At the same time, ECB President Christine Lagarde said their impact on inflation was “less than clear.”

The ECB decided to lower interest rates by a quarter point to 2.25 percent. This was the sixth consecutive time it has moved to ease borrowing costs.

Trump imposed 10-percent tariffs on all imports this month. However, he suspended higher duties on dozens of nations for 90 days.

The American president has also placed 25-percent levies on imported steel, aluminum and cars.

Shares in French luxury giant Hermes fell more than 3 percent. This, after the Birkin handbag maker said it would raise prices at its US stores to offset the tariff impact.

Elsewhere, the London stock exchange finished flat.

‘Big Progress!’

Investors found solace in Trump declaring “Big Progress!” in tariff negotiations with Japan, with Tokyo leading Asian stocks higher.

Tokyo’s envoy Ryosei Akazawa said:“I understand that the US wants to make a deal within the 90 days. For our part, we want to do it as soon as possible.”

With Japanese companies the biggest investors into the United States, Tokyo’s negotiations are of particular interest to markets.

Japan’s Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba warned that the talks “won’t be easy.” But he said the president had “expressed his desire to give the negotiations… the highest priority.”

Elsewhere, safe-haven investment gold hit a fresh record above $3,357.78 an ounce before paring back gains. The US dollar and oil prices firmed.

Hopes that Trump’s blistering tariffs could be pared back have helped temper some of the disquiet on markets. This was after a rout at the start of the month fuelled by talk of a global recession and an upending of historic trading norms.

“But don’t get carried away — the market remains jittery,” said Fawad Razaqzada, market analyst at City Index and Forex.com.