US trade policy uncertainty sees muted response from markets

Vijay Valecha, February 23, 2026, Arab News

RIYADH: President Donald Trump renewed his condemnation of the US Supreme Court on Monday after it ruled against his sweeping tariff program last week, vowing to ‌turn to ‌other ​powers ‌and ⁠licenses ​but giving no ⁠details.

The Supreme Court, in a 6-3 ruling on Friday, voided most of the tariffs Trump imposed in 2025, finding that the emergency law he relied on did not allow the imposition of the levies.

Trump said on Saturday he would raise ‌a temporary tariff from 10 percent to 15 percent on US ⁠imports ⁠from all countries, the maximum level allowed under the law, a day after the court ruled he had exceeded his presidential authority when he imposed an array of higher rates ​under an ​economic emergency law.

The 24K gold price is still trading below Tuesday’s opening rate of Dh596.75 per gram."The court has also approved all other Tariffs, of which there are many, and they can all be used in ⁠a much more ‌powerful and obnoxious ‌way, with legal ​certainty, than ‌the Tariffs as initially ‌used," he wrote in a social media post.

US stock index futures slipped on Monday as traders reacted to the latest twist in the US’s economic policy.

At 12noon GMT, Dow E-minis were down ​162 points, or 0.33 percent, Nasdaq 100 E-minis ‌were down 129 points, or 0.51 percent, and S&P 500 E-minis were down 23.75 points, or 0.34 percent.

Most ‌megacap and growth stocks were lower in premarket trading, though Alphabet bucked the trend with a 0.3 percent gain after rising around 4 percent on Friday.

All three main stock ⁠indexes clocked weekly gains on Friday as markets took the Supreme ‌Court’s decision in stride, with the Nasdaq snapping a five-week ‌losing streak.

Other stock markets across the world greeted the latest wave of uncertainty with a muted response.

In the Gulf region, Saudi Arabia’s main market — which had been closed on Sunday due to a national holiday — ended the day up 0.34 percent.

Dubai’s main share index closed up 1.82 percent, led by a 3.64 percent gain in blue-chip developer Emaar Properties and a 2.92 percent leap in Emirates NBD Bank.

In Abu Dhabi, the index ended the session up 0.55 percent, with Americana Restaurants International leading the gainers with its share price surging 7.73 percent.

Qatar’s index closed up 1.08 percent, driven ​by banking shares, including ​a 0.43 percent uptick in Qatar National Bank, the region’s largest lender.

Other global markets faced a mixed picture, with the UK's FTSE 100 subdued on Monday.

Vijay Valecha, chief investment officer at Century Financial said the possible US tariff increase from 10 percent to 15 percent “ has brought trade tensions back into focus, tempering the optimism seen after the recent Supreme Court tariff ruling.”

He added: “Markets are now reassessing the economic impact of higher import costs, possible retaliation from trade partners, and the broader implications for global growth.”

Source

Arab News