The past week has provided investors with a mix of mixed emotions, with Europe weighed down by geopolitical tensions unleashed by the White House, Wall Street torn between Intel's collapse and the resilience of the tech sector, while China continued to rack up gains on the back of promised monetary stimulus. Let's take a look at what happened and what insights we can draw for the coming weeks.

Europe: Greenland shakes markets

The Old Continent endured a turbulent week, with the STOXX 50 falling 1.2% and the STOXX 600 down 0.9%, abruptly ending what had been the longest consecutive streak of gains since May. Dominating the scene was yet another outburst from Donald Trump, who on Saturday, January 18, announced via Truth Social the imposition of 10% tariffs on eight European countries, threatening an escalation to 25% by June if Denmark did not cede Greenland.

The market reaction was swift: on Monday, European stock markets opened in deep red, with the luxury and automotive sectors among the hardest hit. LVMH and BMW fell 3.9% and 3.3%, respectively, in the first hours of trading, as investors began to price in the potential impact on the margins of companies most exposed to the US market. Tensions remained high for much of the week, at least until Trump backtracked on Thursday evening, announcing the suspension of tariffs after reaching a framework agreement with NATO.

On the macroeconomic front, PMI data painted a mixed picture. Germany surprised positively with a composite index of 52.5, the highest level in three months, driven by the services sector. Conversely, France disappointed, with services unexpectedly sliding into contraction territory. Also notable was Ubisoft 's slump, which plunged 34% on Thursday after announcing a major restructuring and canceling six titles in development.

US: Intel sinks, Russell 2000 soars

Across the pond, the week proved equally eventful, albeit with different nuances. The S&P 500 dropped half a percentage point, while the Dow Jones lost 0.6%. The Nasdaq partially saved the day, closing in positive territory by 0.2% thanks to the resilience of tech giants.

The week's biggest downsider was undoubtedly Intel , which lost 17% of its market value on Friday after releasing disappointing guidance and admitting ongoing operating difficulties. The plunge dragged down the entire semiconductor sector, with Broadcom falling 1.7%. Bucking the trend was Nvidia , which gained 1.5% on rumors that Chinese authorities had given local tech companies the green light to order H200 chips.

The VIX, the so-called "fear index," hit 21 on Tuesday before falling back below 16 by the end of the week, signaling that retail investors continue to view volatility spikes as buying opportunities rather than reasons to flee. Macroeconomic data painted a mixed picture: the University of Michigan consumer confidence index was revised higher to multi-month highs, while flash PMIs pointed to a slight slowdown in both services and manufacturing.

China: The Shanghai Composite looks optimistically to 2026.

The Chinese currency closed the week bucking the trend of other major global markets. The Shanghai Composite gained 0.33% to 4,136 points, while the Shenzhen Component did even better, gaining 0.79% to 14,440 points. Both indices benefited from statements from the Chinese central bank, which confirmed its intention to maintain a moderately expansionary monetary policy in 2026, with possible cuts to interest rates and reserve requirements.

The only sour note came from Hong Kong's Hang Seng , which fell 1.5% on the week, penalized by less encouraging macroeconomic data. Chinese retail sales in December grew just 0.9% year-over-year, the weakest pace since December 2022, highlighting how weak domestic consumption remains the Chinese economy's Achilles heel. On the other hand, industrial production surprised positively with a 5.2% increase, the best reading since September.

Investors' attention has also been drawn to semiconductor news. After months of uncertainty, Beijing appears ready to approve the import of Nvidia H200 chips for commercial use, obviously excluding military and government applications. Alibaba and ByteDance have reportedly already expressed interest in orders exceeding 200,000 units each, a sign that China's AI race shows no signs of slowing despite US restrictions. Meanwhile, the anniversary of the "DeepSeek moment" last January has reminded everyone how quickly the balance of power can shift in the AI sector.

Aerospace and renewable energy stocks led the week's gains, with China Aerospace and Goldwind Science & Technology both reaching the 10% mark. The offshore yuan strengthened against the dollar, hitting a 32-month high and providing further support for Asian markets.

What to expect next week

Investors' eyes will be on several key events. In the United States, the Federal Reserve is meeting, with the market now pricing in unchanged rates at 97%. A flurry of quarterly results are also coming from big tech companies: Microsoft, Meta, and Tesla will publish their results, offering valuable insights into the health of the sector. In Europe, the ECB's decision and new inflation data are awaited, while the official PMI indices for January will be released from China.

Volatility may remain high, but as we've seen this week, markets appear to have developed some resilience to geopolitical turbulence. The key, as always, will be to distinguish the background noise from the signals that really matter.