The FTSE 100 jumped on Wednesday on hopes that the trade war triggered by Donald Trump’s trade tariffs had a chance of reconciliation after Trump signalled he was willing to negotiate with China.
- FTSE 100 gained more than 1.5% in early trade
- Trump signals willingness to negotiate with China
- FTSE 100 miners and China-exposed banks lead rally
The softening in Trump’s approach to China sparked a rally in US stocks overnight that followed through into the European session on Wednesday.
London’s leading index was 1.5% higher at the time of writing, while the German DAX surged more than 2.5%.
“Hopes for a reprieve in the trade war are leading to a small swell of investor confidence, with European markets set to ride a wave of gains in early trade,” explained Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets, Hargreaves Lansdown.
“While there’s been no concrete decisions to hang the hat of optimism on, Trump has indicated that he is in a mood for negotiation, saying that eventual tariffs on China won’t be as onerous as 145% threatened. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent says he’s also expecting a de-escalation in the trade war with China. While there had already been expectations of a recalibration, these comments have helped wash away some more pessimistic vibes.”
Markets were also buoyed by Donald Trump stepping back from his attack on Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell and comments that the US President would not try to oust him. Trump’s threat against the Fed chair sent US stocks into free fall on Monday.
“Worries about Trump wanting to meddle in monetary policy, following his comments about Fed chair Jerome Powell at the weekend appear to be ebbing away, after the President said he had no indication of removing him from office,” Streeter said.
FTSE 100 gainers
The FTSE 100’s China-exposed stocks led the index higher on hopes of reconciliation between the US and China. Natural Resource stocks were among the top risers, with BP adding 4.6% and Glencore rising 4.3%. Glencore was one of the heaviest hit following Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’ tariff announcement.
Copper miner Antofagasta jumped over 5%.
HSBC and Standard Chartered – two banks with substantial operations in China – rose 4% and 5% respectively.
Croda was the FTSE 100’s top riser after revealing an uptick in Q1 revenues and maintaining its profit outlook despite uncertainties around tariffs.
“After a robust start to the year, the outlook remains unchanged, which is likely to come as a relief to shareholders who have seen the stock price fall 19% so far this year,” said Derren Nathan, head of equity research, Hargreaves Lansdown.
Silver-miner Fresnillo sank to the bottom of the FTSE 100 leaderboard, halting a meteoric rally driven by rising precious metals prices amid tariff uncertainty.
“Fresnillo shares slipped this morning following an underwhelming production update from the world’s largest silver miner. Despite the fervour currently gripping the precious metals market, silver output fell nearly 10%, though this was partially offset by a rise in gold production,” explained Mark Crouch, market analyst at eToro.
Fresnillo is still the FTSE 100’s best-performing stock of 2025 with a gain of 55%.