(Bloomberg) — Days before his inauguration, Donald Trump is moving stock markets with comments on everything from defense to renewable energy, and even Greenland.
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Shares in companies exposed to wind power including Orsted A/S, Siemens Energy AG and Vestas Wind Systems A/S all fell more than 6% on Wednesday after the US president-elect said he would seek not erect any wind farms during his second. term.
Tank and missile makers got a boost after Trump called on NATO members to spend the equivalent of 5% of their economic output on defence, more than double the current target. Shares in Norwegian missile maker Kongsberg Gruppen ASA gained as much as 4.1%, while Sweden's Saab AB was up 5.4% and Germany's Rheinmetall AG rose 5.3%.
Meanwhile, CNN's report that Trump is considering declaring a national economic emergency to provide a legal basis for blanket tariffs dealt a fresh blow to shares of automakers and luxury goods stocks. Stellantis NV, maker of Fiat and Alfa Romeo cars, fell as much as 3.1%, while Louis Vuitton owner LVMH slipped as much as 2.2%.
European stocks with the most exposure to tariffs have underperformed the market since last year on concern that any fallout from a potential trade war could hit company profits, with UBS Group AG's basket tracking such names falling around 8% .
Wednesday's moves are an early taste of the volatility investors can expect from Trump's term in office. His comments have triggered moves in stocks as far away as Australia, with small-cap miner Energy Transition Minerals, which has a rare earth project in Greenland, surging 52% after Trump reiterated his interest in acquiring the island.
“Currently, his statements raise questions and create uncertainty about the trade and foreign policy he plans to implement the day after his inauguration on January 20,” wrote a team led by CIC Market Solutions economist Adrien Regnier-Laurent, in a note.
–With help from Paul Jarvis.
(Updates with luxury autos and stocks in the fourth paragraph.)
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