Latest Irish Life weekly markets update

Key talking points include:

• There was positive news on tariffs last week, with the US and Japan agreeing to a deal whereby Japanese imports to America would be taxed at 15%, which was 10% lower than that threatened by Trump.
• The ECB left its deposit unchanged at 2.0%, in line with market forecasts, and President Lagarde stated that the central bank was now "in a wait-and-watch situation". Interest rate markets subsequently priced in a lower probability of rate cuts for the rest of 2025.
• Global equities rallied as sentiment was supported by the potential for global trade deals with the US and lower tariffs than threatened, as well as good economic data. The S&P 500 was up by 1.5% last week while the Stoxx Europe 600 rose by 0.5%.