Risk assets are once again experiencing a sharp sell-off! According to the latest information, the European Parliament announced on the 20th local time that it is freezing the approval process for a US-EU trade agreement. Previously, US President Trump threatened to impose additional tariffs on eight European countries until the "complete acquisition of Greenland" is achieved. Furthermore, Trump also threatened to levy a 200% tariff on French wine and champagne. Currently, concerns about the deterioration of US-EU trade relations are spreading continuously throughout global markets. This morning, Japanese and South Korean stock markets opened significantly lower, with the Nikkei 225 and the KOSPI indices at one point falling by more than 1%. Overnight, the three major US stock indices collectively slumped, with the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 indices dropping over 2%, while Nvidia and Tesla fell more than 4%. The cryptocurrency market, known for its speculative nature, also experienced a broad-based plunge. As of the time of writing, Bitcoin had fallen below $89,000, with a drop exceeding 4% within 24 hours. Among other cryptocurrencies, Ethereum plummeted nearly 8%, BNB fell over 6%, Solana dropped close to 6%, and XRP and Cardano declined more than 4%. Data from Coinglass shows that in the last 24 hours, over $1 billion in cryptocurrency futures positions were liquidated across the entire network, affecting a staggering 180,000 individuals, with more than ninety percent of these being long positions.
A Broad-Based Decline On the morning of January 21st, the cryptocurrency market fell across the board. As of the latest update, Bitcoin was quoted at $88,300, down 4.66% in 24 hours. Ethereum plunged 7.98%, BNB dropped 6.65%, Solana fell 5.80%, and the declines for XRP and Cardano also exceeded 4%. Coinglass data indicates that in the past 24 hours, a total of $1.064 billion in cryptocurrency futures positions were liquidated globally. Japanese and South Korean stock markets also fell collectively. The Nikkei 225 index saw an intraday decline reaching 1.5% at one point, while the KOSPI index dropped over 1.6%. By the latest update, the Nikkei 225's loss had narrowed to 0.57%, and the KOSPI index showed a slight gain of 0.16%. Overnight, the three major US stock indices all closed lower. At the close, the Dow Jones fell 1.76%, the S&P 500 dropped 2.06%, and the Nasdaq declined 2.39%. Most major tech stocks fell, with Oracle and Broadcom down over 5%, and Nvidia and Tesla dropping more than 4%. Intel bucked the trend, rising 3.41%. On Tuesday local time, major European stock indices also closed lower collectively; the UK's FTSE 100 fell 0.67%, France's CAC 40 declined 0.61%, and Germany's DAX dropped over 1%. Due to escalating geopolitical crises fueling high market risk aversion, gold and silver futures prices on the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange continued their rise on the 20th, again hitting record highs. On Tuesday, the front-month COMEX gold futures contract rose by $173.70, a gain of 3.78%, to settle at $4,769.10 per ounce. In early Asian trading on Wednesday, gold and silver prices continued to climb. Spot gold broke through the $4,800 per ounce milestone for the first time, currently up 0.75%, with a monthly gain exceeding 10%. Spot silver rose 0.66% to $95.183 per ounce. Since the start of the year, spot gold has accumulated a gain of over 10%, while spot silver has surged nearly 33%.
EU Retaliation According to a CCTV news report, on January 20th local time, the European Parliament announced the freezing of the approval process for a trade agreement reached with the United States last July. This is seen as the EU's first official response to US President Trump's latest pressure tactics. On January 17th local time, US President Trump stated on his social media platform "Truth Social" that, effective February 1, 2026, a 10% tariff would be imposed on all goods exported to the US from Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, the UK, the Netherlands, and Finland. Starting June 1, 2026, this tariff rate would increase to 25%. He stated this measure would remain in effect until an agreement is reached for the "complete and total purchase of Greenland." On January 19th local time, after learning that French President Macron had no intention of joining a US-led "peace committee" intended to oversee post-war transitional governance in Gaza, Trump threatened to impose a 200% tariff on French wine and champagne. Additionally, Trump stated at a White House press conference on January 20th that he would not attend an emergency G7 leaders' meeting proposed by French President Macron to be held soon in Paris. That same day, Trump also stated that his objective of controlling Greenland "will absolutely not change" and did not rule out the possibility of using military force to seize Greenland. On social media, Trump clarified his aim: to seize sovereignty over Greenland from NATO ally Denmark. Just the day before, during an interview, Trump refused to specify whether he would use military force to take Greenland, stating "no comment." In a separate report by Xinhua News Agency, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on January 20th that the US imposing punitive tariffs on European allies over the Greenland issue was a "mistake." Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland that day, von der Leyen said the EU is developing a package of measures to support Arctic security. Its primary principle is solidarity with Greenland and Denmark, whose territorial sovereignty and integrity are non-negotiable. Secondly, the EU is working to promote massive investment in Greenland and is collaborating with Greenland and Denmark to explore how to further support the local economy and infrastructure development. Von der Leyen indicated that the EU is formulating its own security strategy, planned for release later this year. The Arctic strategy within it will be upgraded, and a core principle of this strategy is that sovereign nations have the right to decide their own future.
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