The FTSE 100 ticked higher on Friday as investors digested a fight between the world’s richest man and the world’s most powerful man that played out on social media overnight.
Donald Trump and Elon Musk fired shots at each other on the social media platforms they own, with Musk claiming that Donald Trump is in the Epstein files, and Trump suggesting that he will cancel billions in government contracts with Musk’s companies.
Time to drop the really big bomb:@realDonaldTrump is in the Epstein files. That is the real reason they have not been made public.
Have a nice day, DJT!
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 5, 2025
Tesla shares fell 14% overnight, and Musk said Trump should be impeached. Elon Musk also said that Donald Trump’s tariffs will push the US into recession.
“We all knew it would end like this. Two big beasts in the White House were unlikely to last long, and the bromance has turned sour. Tesla shares are the big loser from the fallout, after their nosedive yesterday, while markets patiently await the latest payroll report,” said Chris Beauchamp, Chief Market Analyst at global trading platform IG.
The Trump tariffs will cause a recession in the second half of this year https://t.co/rbBC11iynE
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 5, 2025
While the spat makes for very interesting reading for traders, it’s yet to have a major impact on UK markets. The S&P 500 closed down 0.5%, but futures are pointing to a higher open.
“The FTSE looks unlikely to move much this morning with little scheduled in the way of corporate news for investors to hang their hat on. That sentiment reflects an unremarkable 24 hours on markets across the globe,” said Derren Nathan, head of equity research, Hargreaves Lansdown.
“But world markets remain at close to all-time highs, despite the reality of higher tariffs and diminishing confidence for both businesses and consumers. So, it’s little surprise investors are taking their foot off the gas.”
There were slightly more FTSE 100 gainers than losers at the time of writing, with 58 of the 100 constituents trading higher.
SSE was the FTSE 100’s top riser with a gain of 1.5%.
Housebuilders were higher after Halifax released data showing the average UK house price fell 0.4% in the month to May. Persimmon rose 1% and Taylor Wimpey added 0.7%.