U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a rally at Capital One Arena ahead of the 60th presidential inauguration in Washington, DC, U.S., Sunday, Jan. 19, 2025.
Al Drago | Bloomberg | Getty Images
This report is from today’s CNBC Daily Open, our international markets newsletter. CNBC Daily Open informs investors about everything they need to know, no matter where they are. Like what you see? You can subscribe here.
What you need to know today
Trump says he will declare a national emergency
US President Donald Trump said on Monday that he would declare a national energy emergency — part of an overarching agenda aimed at increasing fossil fuel production — ending what he called the “Green New Deal” and withdrawing the U.S. from international commitments to combat climate change.
Optimistic about Trump’s mandate
Trump’s return to the White House has caused consternation in some countries because of his threat of tariffs and unpredictable foreign policy. But people in many other countries are optimistic about Trump 2.0was published by the think tank of the European Council on Foreign Relations global survey on Wednesday.
$MELANIA and $TRUMP
First Lady Melania Trump launched its own meme coincalled “Melania,” on Sunday night. The token is currently trading at $4.20, down from a high of $13. And Trump on Friday announced meme coin called “the official Trump”. At the peak of token prices, the Trump family net worth increased by billions of dollarsbased on holdings of its just-launched digital assets.
Biden’s pardons
Former US President Joe Biden on Monday issued preventive pardons for several family members, citing concerns that they will be the target of “baseless and politically motivated investigations”. Biden also issued pardons for Anthony Fauci, General Mark Milley, members of Congress who were investigating Riot on the Capitol on January 6 and others that he said were under the threat of being “unfoundedly” targeted for political purposes.
The euro and the pound are strengthening against the dollar
US markets were closed on Monday for Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Pan-European Stoxx 600 index up 0.05%. The euro and British pound strengthened against the US dollar, as reported that Trump will not impose tariffs on US trading partners on his first day in office.
[PRO] The second time echoes the first?
Trump’s second term might have the same effects on certain asset classes as it was in the first round, according to some on Wall Street. To find out, CNBC Pro looked at the performance of several funds during the first 100 days of Trump’s final term as president and asked analysts how the funds would fare.
Conclusion
Donald Trump is officially the 47th president of the USA — and plans to launch. Trump promised sign more than 50 executive orders just after his inauguration, according to a person in his transition operation. These are the two main issues that investors will be watching.
Tariffs
“To me, the most beautiful word in the dictionary is ‘tariff,'” Trump told the Economic Club of Chicago in October. During the campaign, Trump promised to introduce a universal tariff of 20%. on all imports into the US, 25% on goods from Canada and Mexico and more than 60% on Chinese products.
Tariffs are imposed by governments to supposedly protect domestic industries. Companies that import goods pay what they are essentially a taxcost increase. This encourages them to look for local suppliers instead.
Because supply chains are so globally integrated and much of the manufacturing takes place outside the US, it may be difficult for companies to shift production to local shores. Higher costs are therefore likely to be passed on to the consumer in the form of price increases.
In other words, tariffs could lead to higher inflation.
Deportations
At a pre-inauguration event called the “Make America Great Again Victory Rally,” Trump pledged to his supporters that “the invasion of our country will be stopped”. Like tariffs, stricter immigration policies—or outright deportations—are usually enacted to protect the domestic economy (among other reasons).
The theory is that with fewer people competing for each job opening, it will be easier to get a job.
But many parts of the US economy, such as construction and agriculture, are where undocumented immigrants workwho take on jobs undesirable to residents. Even documented immigrants are crucial to high-skilled sectors such as technology – as evidenced by Elon Musk’s clash with Trump supporters over H-1B visas.
If reliable sources of labor disappear overnight, companies will have to raise wages to attract talent, which could reopen the prospect of a terrifying wage-price spiral.
Other policies
Trump has promised many other economic measures, such as cutting corporate taxes, legitimizing cryptocurrency and withdrawing subsidies for green energy.
Tariffs, however, could have the biggest impact on the economy and financial institutions globally.
— CNBC’s Sam Meredith, Ryan Ermey, Annie Nova, Rebecca Picciotto, Evelyn Cheng and Lim Hui Jie contributed to this report.
