Post-tariff US ‘unrecognizable,’ looks more like an emerging market: Business exec

Investing.com -- The United States is beginning to resemble an emerging market more than a developed economy, according to Stephane Boujnah, CEO of pan-European exchange operator Euronext (EPA:ENX), as global markets remain unsettled in the wake of sweeping U.S. tariffs.

“Fear exists all over,” Boujnah told France Inter radio, adding that “the country (United States) is unrecognisable and we are living in a transition period.”

He described a broader sense of mourning, saying the U.S. no longer reflects the values and institutional stability it once shared with Europe. “Now,” he said, it “resembles more an emerging market.”

Investors, Boujnah noted, have been dealing with persistent uncertainty since U.S. President Donald Trump took office. “People ... have difficulty understanding the volatility of decisions that are made,” he said, calling it “a form of intimidation that diffuses in the system and is difficult to navigate.”

Markets are now repositioning as they adapt to a version of the U.S. they no longer recognize, he added.

The adjustment follows the latest round of tariffs imposed by the Trump administration, which include a blanket 10% rate on all imports and targeted duties as high as 50%. The U.S. president has argued that the measures will help rebuild the country’s industrial base, weakened by decades of globalization.

Such protectionist tactics are more commonly associated with emerging markets, where tariffs are often used to shield developing industries.

Boujnah acknowledged that the situation isn’t without some silver linings – oil prices and long-term yields have declined, and capital has started flowing out of the U.S. and back into Europe.

The global trade war intensified on Monday after U.S. President Donald Trump threatened higher tariffs on China, prompting the European Union to propose its own countermeasures.

Financial markets extended their losses for a third straight session, with the S&P 500 hitting its lowest level in over a year before closing down.