Before the bell: Tariffs, Tariffs, and More Tariffs

A storm of earnings reports is coming this week. Barco fails to impress, and Trump is contemplating even more tariffs.

A new day, a new tariff—that seems to be Donald Trump’s motto. Yesterday, he announced 25% import duties on steel and aluminum. What will it be today? According to the U.S. president, these new tariffs are a response to countries that impose their own duties on American goods. Shares of American steel and aluminum producers had an outstanding day, with U.S. Steel, Cleveland-Cliffs, and Nucor posting significant gains. Approximately 80% of the aluminum used in the U.S. is imported, with Canada as the primary supplier. Meanwhile, European stock markets remained calm. The Euro Stoxx 50 rose by 0.6%, while Belgium’s Bel20 gained 0.3%. Pharmaceutical company UCB announced a 100-million-euro investment in a new research center at its site in Eigenbrakel, which currently employs 2,500 people. More jobs will be added. “This is necessary because we are entering a decade of growth,” the company stated.

In Asia, markets are taking a pause. The Topix in Tokyo remained flat for the second consecutive day, while the Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong dipped 0.3%, after already rising 13.7% over the past month. Wereldhave Belgium is publishing its results today, and Montea will release its earnings after the closing bell. In France, luxury group Kering will present its financials, while in the UK, BP is in the spotlight after activist investor Elliott took a significant stake in the company, causing its stock to jump 6.7% yesterday. In the U.S., investors are awaiting earnings reports from Shopify, Coca-Cola, S&P Global, hotel chain Marriott, and server hardware and software producer Supermicro.

A Little More Happy (Meal)

Fast-food giant McDonald’s reported fourth-quarter revenue of 6.39 billion dollars, slightly below the expected 6.45 billion dollars. Earnings per share of 2.83 dollars also missed analysts’ estimates. Bad news, one might think. Yet, the stock surged 4.8% yesterday. The reason? For the first time in several quarters, McDonald’s managed to increase customer visits in the U.S. While those customers spent less per order, the fast-food chain’s “McValue” strategy of lowering prices appears to be working. Management is pleased and expects profit margins to expand again in 2025.

Cinema

Barco’s headquarters in Kortrijk may be impressive—Spaarvarken Jan has visited several times—but its stock chart is a different story. At best, shareholders briefly felt wealthy. Barco itself described 2024 as a “challenging” year, which seems like an understatement. The company operates in the cinema projector market, a sector struggling under the rise of streaming platforms like Netflix and Disney. Over the past year, Barco’s revenue dropped below the one-billion-euro mark, landing at 947 million euros, a decline of 10%. Net profit fell even further, plummeting by 21% to 63 million euros. If this trend continues, the only thing left standing might be Barco’s impressive headquarters.

Did You Know …

that in 1962, the member states of the European Economic Community imposed import duties on American chicken? U.S. chicken was so cheap that it threatened the survival of European poultry farmers.

This article was translated from Dutch and was originally published on Spaarvarkens.be.