When Donald Trump won the race to the White House back in November, there were high expectations that the equity markets would spike, the value of the dollar would rise and it would be high times for the Merger and Acquisition Gang.
Category: TRENDS ON THE GLOBAL ECONOMIC FRONT – Apr 29 2025
SPOTLIGHT: LUXURY INDUSTRY’S PROSPECTS GO FROM BAD TO WORSE
Just when Donald Trump’s new tariffs are undercutting luxury industry revenues, a weak dollar and record gold prices are making things even worse.
SPECIAL REPORT: TRUMP’S TARIFFS, THE UPS AND DOWNS, FOR BETTER AND FOR WORSE
Last week, Donald Trump raised the prospect that his slate of custom-tailored tariffs on more than 100 countries could be reimposed sooner than the early July deadline he set when he suspended the tariffs a day after announcing them.
SOFTBANK GROUP LAUNCHES CRYPTO FUND POWERHOUSE
Softbank Group, the Japanese venture juggernaut, is leading a consortium that has formed Twenty One Capital, a new fund that will pool the cryptocurrency holdings of the partners with the goal of amassing more Bitcoin.
TESLA SALES SLUMP IN EUROPE
March marked the third consecutive month of falling sales for Tesla in the European Union (EU) even as demand for electric vehicles (EVs) grew across the region.
SOUTH KOREA’S ECONOMY CONTRACTS AS CONSUMERS CUT SPENDING
South Korea’s export-dependent economy puckered by 0.2 percent in this year’s first quarter, compared to the final quarter of 2024, and shrank by 0.1 percent against last year’s first three months.
BYD DOUBLES FIRST-QUARTER PROFITS
BYD, China’s leading electric vehicle (EV) maker, posted first-quarter profits equivalent to $1.26 billion in this year’s first quarter, compared to $63 million for the same quarter in 2024.
GERMANY TO FLAT-LINE THIS YEAR
Germany’s government has scrapped its prediction of 0.3-percent economic growth this year and now says its economy will not grow at all due to U.S. tariffs.
EUROZONE BUSINESS CONFIDENCE SINKS TO 30-MONTH LOW
Confidence among Europe’s business owners and executives has sunk to its lowest since November 2022, according to the Hamburg Commercial Bank’s new purchasing managers index (PMI).
GOING OUT OF BUSINESS TRENDS
The economic landscape has presented an array of challenges that will profoundly affect the business community this year.