90-Day Tariff Pause: Pound CRASHES vs Australian, NZ, Canadian Dollars - Steady vs Euro and Dollar

April 9, 2025 - Written by David Woodsmith

STORY LINK 90-Day Tariff Pause: Pound CRASHES vs Australian, NZ, Canadian Dollars - Steady vs Euro and Dollar

US markets surged on the news that the global tariffs would be suspended for 90 days, except for China, and foreign exchange rates also saw significant moves.

The Pound logged its biggest advance against the Israeli Sheqel (GBP/ILS), rising by 1.6% to 4.8945. It also gained 1.53% on the Japanese Yen (GBP/JPY), climbing to 189.36139, and rose 1.21% versus the Swiss Franc (GBP/CHF), reaching 1.09494.

More moderate upticks were seen against the Euro (GBP/EUR), which improved by 0.4%, and the US Dollar (GBP/USD), which inched up by 0.13%. Meanwhile, Sterling stood largely unchanged against the Swedish Krona (GBP/SEK).

GBP's most substantial drop came against the Australian Dollar (GBP/AUD), losing 2.99% to 2.08364.

It also slid 2.04% relative to the New Zealand Dollar (GBP/NZD) and 2.01% versus the South African Rand (GBP/ZAR), reflecting a clear divergence in performance across commodity-linked currencies.

Declines continued against the Norwegian Krone (GBP/NOK), falling 1.51%, and the Canadian Dollar (GBP/CAD), down by 1.01%.

Sterling also weakened by 0.76% against the Singapore Dollar (GBP/SGD), indicating a broader retreat in some markets despite its concurrent strength elsewhere.


The S&P 500 index has jumped over 8% with the Nasdaq surging 10% while immediate demand for safe-haven assets has evaporated.

China, however, has been subjected to further punishment due its stance in retaliating against the US.

The Euro has lost ground on the crosses with the Pound to Euro (GBP/EUR) exchange rate recovering to 1.1650 from earlier 15-month lows below 1.1550.

The Pound to Dollar (GBP/USD) exchange rate is relatively little changed at 1.2775 as both currencies pare losses.

The Swiss franc and Japanese yen have both lost ground with GBP/CHF rebounding from 2025 lows below 1.07 to trade above 1.09.

Trump announced that there will be a 90-day pause on the reciprocal tariffs which came in today. According to Trump this will allow negotiation with trade partners. This delay would, however, only apply to countries that did not retaliate.

Meanwhile the 10% tariffs on all countries would continue and be extended to both Canada and Mexico.


In this context, Trump again pushed back against China and stated that their tariff would be increased further to 125%.

Earlier the EU approved a list of retaliatory tariffs, but these have not gone into effect and it is not clear at this stage whether the reciprocal tariffs on the EU have been dropped.

The announcement triggered a surge in risk assets with oil prices also staging a sharp rebound.

Escalation in the US-China trade war is likely to dampen investor optimism while volatility will remain intense.

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TAGS: Pound Sterling Forecasts