Markets Slip as Trump–Xi Strike Rare-Earths Truce; Yen Sags on Cautious BOJ

With input from Reuters, Bloomberg, AP, the Guardian, and CNBC.

Stocks eased Thursday as investors digested a headline deal between President Donald Trump and China’s Xi Jinping: Washington will trim tariffs while Beijing keeps rare-earth exports flowing and resumes farm buys.

It’s a welcome ceasefire, but traders treated it as a tactical pause rather than a turning point—good news, just not enough to chase risk higher.

The macro backdrop didn’t help. Fed chair Jerome Powell’s quarter-point cut landed as expected, but his guidance hinted it could be the last move of 2025, pushing Treasury yields up and taking a bit of air out of equities. Over in Tokyo, the Bank of Japan stood pat and tip-toed toward future hikes, a stance that lifted the dollar and knocked the yen to fresh lows.

Earnings added weight. Big Tech’s mixed scorecard — strong headlines but heavier AI spend — kept megacaps on the defensive and pulled US futures and global indices lower. Europe opened softer ahead of the ECB, where policymakers are widely expected to keep rates on hold for a third straight meeting.

Bottom line: a fragile risk rally met a “truce, not peace” US–China deal, a possibly done-for-now Fed, and a BOJ still in no hurry. That cocktail firmed the dollar, dented the yen, and left equities drifting as investors wait for harder proof that policy and profits can carry the next leg higher.