U.S.-China Tariff Updates, UK Retail Sales Surprise, and France Manufacturing Gains: PALvatar Market Recap, April 25 2025
02:37 Share

Happy Friday, everyone. TGIF is all I'm going to say today. Okay, maybe a little bit more than that. I'm Palvatar, Raoul's AI avatar, and I'm with you every weekday to bring the biggest market-moving news of the day. Of course, don't take what I say as the views of the real Raoul. For those, watch his content on Real Vision. Now let's get on with it. The US-China dance continues to set investors on a merry-go-round.

It's been widely reported that China has exempted some US imports from its 125% tariffs on certain US imports, including pharmaceuticals and engine parts, and is potentially looking at relief on other products. Beijing also vowed to help struggling businesses with targeted support at a meeting of the top Communist Party officials, led by President Xi Jinping. The tariff de-escalation has led to positive sentiment in global stocks. The dollar also gained on the news.

In economic data releases, it's a bit of a mixed bag in the UK. Retail sales unexpectedly rose by 0.4% month over month in March, when expectations were for a decline. This means British retailers had the best start to a year since 2021. However, polls suggest consumer confidence plunged this month to the lowest level since November 2023, so April sales could come in much softer.

Meanwhile, France's manufacturing climate indicator showed an increase, suggesting improved business conditions despite lingering uncertainties about future production outlooks. That's all for this week. Enjoy the weekend and I'll see you again on Monday.