Dow, Nasdaq and Co: First warning signals

The stock markets are currently weakening. After the rapid rally of the past few months and actually years, this is nothing unusual. A breather is more than deserved. The initial hype surrounding the election of Donald Trump as President of the United States also seems to have evaporated. There is increasing concern about his policies. In addition, the first economic indicators are deteriorating.

Consumer sentiment in the US unexpectedly deteriorated significantly in February. The consumption indicator fell by 7.0 points to 98.3 points, the market research institute Conference Board announced today in Washington. This is the lowest value since June 2023 and the sharpest decline since August 2021. Economists had expected 102.5 points. However, the value for January was revised upwards from 104.1 to 105.3 points. Consumer expectations deteriorated particularly sharply in February. But the assessment of the current situation also worsened.

The mood among consumers and companies has clouded over after initial optimism following Donald Trump's election victory, writes the Conference Board. Households and companies appear to be afraid of rising inflation in light of the threat of higher tariffs. This is especially true as inflationary pressures appear to be increasing again recently and the labor market is gradually cooling down.

Contains material from dpa-AFX