While gold and silver prices rose, stock markets in Asia saw modest falls with Japan’s Nikkei index closing down 0.6%.
In Europe, London’s FTSE 100 index was down just 0.1%, and shares in gold miners Fresnillo and Endeavour were up on the back of the latest increase in precious metal prices.
But there were bigger falls elsewhere, with companies deemed vulnerable to the latest threatened tariffs taking the biggest hits. In Germany, the Dax index fell 1% with carmakers BMW, Mercedes-Benz and VW among the top losers.
In France, the Cac 40 was down 1.2%, with luxury goods firms taking a hit. Shares in LVMH fell 3.8% and Hermes was down 2.5%.
However, European defence stocks rose, with Germany’s Rheinmetall and France’s Thales both trading higher.
Markets in the US are closed on Monday for a public holiday.
On Saturday, Trump announced a 10% tariff on goods from Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, the UK, the Netherlands and Finland would come into force on 1 February, but could later rise to 25% – and would last until a deal on Greenland was reached.
Reports have suggested the EU is considering responding with a €93bn (£80bn) package of tariffs on US imports.
Last year, the price of gold soared by more than 60%, partly due to concerns about global tensions and economic uncertainty.
“Gold has hit fresh record highs on its glittering run upwards,” said Susannah Streeter, chief investment strategist at Wealth Club.
“The precious metal is holding even more allure as a safe haven as worries spread about the repercussions of the US aggressive trade and geopolitical policies.” (Agencies)
