CNBC Daily Open: London markets didn't seem to view the U.K.-U.S. trade deal positively

CNBC

09-05-2025

The U.K. is the first country to seal a trade deal with the U.S. Cue the jubilations. And investors certainly did, giving the three major U.S. indexes back-to-back winning sessions. Curiously, the mood across the Atlantic wasn't as upbeat: the U.K.'s FTSE 100 closed lower following the announcement of the agreement.
To be sure, the U.K. extracted some concessions, such as a lower tariff rate on its first 100,000 vehicles exported to the U.S. and securing new discussions for U.S. President Donald Trump's universal 25% levies on steel and aluminum imports.
That said, the deal does seem more advantageous to the U.S., at least based on the fact that a 10% tariff will remain on all U.K. imports, alongside other compromises allowed by Britain.
The U.S. already runs a trade surplus with the U.K., meaning that it exports more to the country than it imports. And a 10% tariff was what Trump slapped on the U.K. on April 2, so there was no reduction in those levies despite both countries reaching an agreement.
"What we heard today is just noise for most U.K. imports. It doesn't affect the majority of products," Andy Abbott, CEO of niche ocean liner company Atlantic Container Line, told CNBC's Lori Ann LaRocco.
Based on the available details, Washington seems to have got the better end of the deal.
UK makes preliminary trade deal with U.S.U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday laid out the outline of a trade agreement with the United Kingdom. Many specifics about the deal were not immediately clear, and nothing was signed during the Oval Office event. A White House fact sheet stated that the U.S. will keep a blanket 10% tariff on U.K. imports, which Trump said will be floor for tariffs. The impact of the deal could be limited, a freight CEO said.
Most markets rally on trade deal newsU.S. stocks climbed Thursday on news of the freshly minted U.S.-U.K. agreement. The S&P 500 added 0.58%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.62% and the Nasdaq Composite advanced 1.07%, boosted by a broad rise in tech shares. Asia-Pacific markets mostly rose Friday. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index was up 0.2% even as shares of Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation, China's largest contract chipmaker, fell nearly 7% after its first-quarter earnings missed estimates.
China's April exports surge despite U.S. tariffsChina's exports in April jumped 8.1% in U.S. dollar terms from a year earlier, according to data released by the country's customs authority on Friday, sharply beating Reuters' poll estimates of a 1.9% rise. The surge in exports defies a 21% year-on-year plunge in China's outbound shipments to the U.S., based on CNBC's calculation of official customs data. China's exports to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations climbed 20.8% in April from a year earlier, helping to offset the drop in exports to the U.S.
Coinbase misses estimates as bitcoin jumpsCoinbase shares fell nearly 3% in extended trading after it reported first-quarter revenue that failed to meet expectations. The company said consumer trading volume fell 17% from the fourth quarter. The same day, bitcoin prices rose almost 7% during U.S. trading hours to above $100,000 for the first time since February, and a Standard Chartered analyst wrote a tongue-in-cheek apology that his target of $120,000 for bitcoin "may be too low."
First American pope electedCardinal Robert Francis Prevost was elected as pope on Thursday, the first time an American has been selected as pontiff of the Roman Catholic Church. Prevost, 69, chose the papal name Leo XIV. Following the news, Trump congratulated the new pope, writing on Truth Social that Leo being the "first American Pope" is "a Great Honor for our Country."
[PRO] Trade deal only a temporary stimulus?Even though investors cheered the U.S.-U.K. trade deal and sent stocks higher Thursday, CNBC Pro contributor Josh Brown, CEO of Ritzholtz Wealth Management, is keeping his expectations of a prolonged market rebound in check — and points out two defensive tech stocks because they behave more like consumer staples.
U.S. tariff pressure has retailers evaluating their prices
Household brands including Pandora, Puma and Hugo Boss said this week that they are evaluating their pricing strategies in the U.S. and beyond, in the event that President Donald Trump's most punitive levies come into effect. Others said that they are altering their supply chains and potentially revising their sales forecasts amid U.S. trade policy uncertainty.
Last month, Trump announced sweeping, so-called reciprocal import duties on all U.S. trading partners. The charges were later paused for 90 days and reduced to 10% for most countries except China, pending trade negotiations.
Here's what some major European retailers have been saying about their product prices and earnings outlooks.