Irish shares fall amid Trump’s tariff threat

Euronext Dublin dropped 1.6%, largely in line with international peers

Wall Street swung between sharp and more modest losses on Monday.
Wall Street swung between sharp and more modest losses on Monday.

Irish stocks fell on Monday, as traders digested US president Donald Trump’s plans to impose tariffs on three countries, with the EU also firmly in his sights, even as he agreed to pause tariffs on Mexico.

Global stock markets meanwhile partially recovered from earlier on Monday as investors scrambled to react to Trump’s tariff plan.

Dublin

Euronext Dublin was down 1.6 per cent, which was largely in line with international peers, as investors remained spooked by the threat of tariffs from Mr Trump.

Many of the financial and construction names on the index finished the day in red. AIB and Bank of Ireland were down 2.6 per cent and 3.4 respectively, while insulation specialist Kingspan fell 3.3 per cent.

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Ryanair meanwhile which finished up 5 basis points.

Among the other main movers, Kerry Group and Glanbia were each down 1 per cent at close of business, although both were outperformers in the food sector.

London

Britain’s benchmark FTSE 100 dropped following its best monthly performance in over two years as investors fretted that US tariffs could fuel a global trade war.

The indexes, however, finished well off their lows after Mr Trump paused new tariffs on Mexico for one month, hours before they were set to take effect.

The FTSE 100 was down 1.1 per cent, after closing January with a 6.1 per cent gain. The domestically-focused mid-cap FTSE 250 lost 1.1 per cent on the day.

British stocks joined a global sell-off sparked by fears that Mr Trump’s tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China mark an opening salvo in a trade war that could curb economic growth internationally.

However, Mr Trump said that although Britain was “out of line” when it came to trade he thought it may be able to avoid tariffs and said they would “definitely happen” with the European Union.

Most FTSE 250 sub-sectors fell with tariff-sensitive sectors such as automobiles down 2.4 per cent and consumer-focused sectors, including beverages sliding 1.8 per cent.

Europe

European stocks suffered steep declines, after Mr Trump said tariffs on goods from the EU will “definitely” happen.

The Stoxx Europe 600 fell 1 per cent; Germany’s Dax index fell by 1.5 per cent; while France’s Cac 40 was down by 1.2 per cent. Spain’s Ibex dropped 1.2 per cent and Italy’s FTSE MIB lost 0.7 per cent.

Shares in some of the biggest European carmakers slumped. Volkswagen, BMW, Porsche, Volvo Cars, Stellantis and the commercial vehicle maker Daimler Truck fell between about 5 per cent and 6 per cent. The French car parts supplier Valeo slumped by 8 per cent.

New York

Wall Street swung between sharp and more modest losses on Monday as stock markets worldwide sank on fears of a punishing trade war.

The S&P 500 was down 0.6 per cent in midday trading. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.1 per cent at 11.45am Eastern time, while the Nasdaq composite was 1 per cent lower.

The US stock market had been on track for a much worse loss with the Dow down 665 points shortly after the start of trading, on worries about how much pain US companies would feel because of the tariffs.

Some of the heaviest losses hit Big Tech and other companies that could be hit most by the higher interest rates that could result from the US tariffs announced on imports from Canada, Mexico and China.

But US stocks pared their losses after Mexican President President Claudia Sheinbaum said tariffs on her country’s goods are on hold for a month after a conversation with Mr Trump.

Constellation Brands, the company that sells Modelo and Corona beers in the US, fell 2.9 per cent. Best Buy, which sells electronics made around the world, lost 2.8 per cent. Brown-Forman, which sells Jack Daniel’s and other alcohol in Canada, fell 3.2 per cent. – Additional reporting: Agencies

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Colin Gleeson

Colin Gleeson

Colin Gleeson is an Irish Times reporter