Max Severijns

On Sunday, Brussels bowed to demands from across the Atlantic. Some call it a strategic blunder. Others say it’s a clever bluff.

With just one week to go until the U.S. deadline of August 1, European policymakers are finalising retaliation measures that could place transatlantic relations under severe strain.

Hiring freezes, automation, and a shrinking talent funnel point to a structural reset in America’s financial sector. One with growing implications for Europe.

Washington’s revived protectionism is putting fresh pressure on the Federal Reserve. Investors are once again bracing for trade disruption, rising inflation, and slower U.S. growth. For now, Asia is taking the first hit.

The U.S. has dropped plans for a controversial tax provision that would have targeted foreign investors, but tax experts say the risk of fiscal retaliation hasn’t gone away.

With traditional market dynamics breaking down and foreign holdings of U.S. assets at record highs, US fund houses Doubleline Capital and Pimco both warn that investors can no longer rely on the old dollar playbook.

University endowment funds in the U.S. are offloading private equity stakes as tax hikes loom. They frame it as strategic, but industry voices increasingly suspect disappointing returns are forcing their hand.

Scott Bessent, the U.S. Treasury Secretary and key architect of President Trump’s economic agenda, is being discussed as a potential successor to Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell. Bloomberg cited anonymous sources saying his name has been floated for the role.

There’s an 82 percent chance the 10-year Treasury yield will exceed 7 percent before the end of the decade, according to Joe Davis, global chief economist at Vanguard. The odds of yields topping 9 percent? One in five.

Continuation funds face mounting criticism over self-dealing and inflated valuations. Private equity specialists however see reality as more nuanced.