Trump’s policies add more uncertainty to the economic outlook, and economists say they have the potential to stoke inflation

The European Union plans to retaliate against the United States for new steel and aluminum tariffs.

The nine-member Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) lowered the bank’s benchmark rate by a quarter point to 4.5 per cent,

Capital Economics, a U.K.-based research firm, estimated that China's additional tariffs would apply to about $20 billion of annual imports

The US and Mexico will use the month-long suspension to engage in further negotiations, Mr Trump said on social media.

The greenback surge also drove the Singapore dollar down 0.9 per cent to 1.3686 per US dollar as at 9.58am.

Speaking in parliament, Akazawa also said households face even higher inflation that is driven more by cost-push factors, such as rising import prices.

Canada will retaliate against President Donald Trump's new tariffs with 25% levies on a raft of U.S. imports,

Trump will be implementing 25% tariffs on Mexico and Canada as well as a 10% duty on China,

The Fed has forecast only two rate cuts this year, down from the four it had projected in September.

The euro was down 0.2 per cent against the US dollar at US$1.0403, broadly in line with where it was trading before the decision.

The European Central Bank announced a 25-basis-point interest rate cut on Thursday, its fifth one since the central bank began easing monetary policy in June last year.