09:28 AM EDT, 04/01/2025 (MT Newswires) -- It has been a quieter trading early Tuesday after the risk-off start to the week, said MUFG.
The major foreign exchange rates have been relatively stable early Tuesday ahead of the release on Wednesday of United States President Donald Trump's plans for "reciprocal tariffs," wrote the bank in a note to clients. The US dollar (USD) has benefited at the start of this week from news reports suggesting that President Trump is considering implementing more "broad-based" tariffs that could be more disruptive for global trade and growth.
The high beta G10 commodity currencies of the New Zealand dollar (-0.7% versus the USD), Canadian dollar (-0.5% versus the USD) and the Australian dollar (-0.5%) have been the worst-performing G10 currencies at the start of this week while the yen (JPY) has outperformed alongside the US dollar, stated MUFG.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Fox News Monday that the tariff announcement would be at 3 p.m. ET Wednesday. The WSJ reported Monday that President Trump's advisers in recent days were considering implementing tariffs of up to 20% on virtually all trading partners, while at the same time a narrower plan involving reciprocal tariffs is still on the table.
According to an administration official, President Trump is inclined to tariff every nation with which the U.S. runs a trade deficit, and he wants a "clean number" for each nation. Whatever the final plan, the official added that he wants it to be "big and simple."
In addition, to the debate over reciprocal tariffs, the president's team is also considering unveiling a slate of new industry-specific tariffs that could hit critical minerals and products, among other industries. It is still unclear if those tariffs will be unveiled on Wednesday, pointed out the bank. It quickly follows last week's decision to announce 25% tariffs on imports of autos and certain parts.