U.S. inflation rose to 2.7% in July, keeping Fed rates steady at 4.25–4.50%. Trump escalated trade tensions with new tariffs, while markets rebounded, led by Nvidia surpassing $4 trillion. Spain faced tourism strikes, and England’s Lionesses clinched the UEFA Women’s Euro 2025 in Basel.

June was shaped by Middle East tensions, a sharp but short-lived oil price spike, and diverging central bank paths, with the Fed on hold and the ECB cutting rates. Trump’s renewed attacks on Powell pressured the dollar, while the BIS warned of rising global fragility. A 90-day US-China tariff truce brought only temporary relief to markets.

May 2025 saw a shift in the global landscape: the U.S. economy contracted, Moody’s downgraded U.S. debt, and trade tensions eased with delayed tariffs. Equity markets rallied, especially in Europe and North America. Friedrich Merz became Germany’s new Chancellor, Pope Leo XIV was elected, and bond yields rose as markets reacted to fiscal concerns and central bank signals.

President Trump’s sweeping tariffs and public attacks on the Federal Reserve rattled markets and global allies in April 2025. His increasingly autocratic rhetoric added to geopolitical unease. Tesla reported a sharp earnings slump, hit by reputational backlash tied to Musk’s political ties. Meanwhile, U.S. consumer confidence dropped to a 13-year low, reflecting growing economic and political uncertainty.