MPC Morning Call 20th January 2026 – Index Futures lower on Trump EU threats

Today’s MPC Markets Morning Call with Mark Gardner breaks down a volatile macro backdrop driven by Trump’s new tariff threats on Europe over Greenland, rising geopolitical risk, and what it all means for equities, commodities, currencies, and defence names heading into a pivotal 2026 earnings season and data week.• US index futures were weaker with the Dow, S&P 500, Nasdaq and Russell all down as US cash markets were closed for Martin Luther King Day while futures traded risk-off.• Chinese GDP hit the 5% growth target, pressuring China A50 and Hang Seng, while ASX held up relatively well, closing only about 0.3% lower.• Trump’s threat of 10–25% tariffs on multiple European nations over Greenland has triggered an EU emergency summit, retaliation talk, and questions over legality in US courts.• Safe-haven and real-asset flows saw gold and silver hit new records, platinum and palladium rally, and the US dollar weaken as the Aussie dollar and euro caught bids.• Mark highlights investable angles in European defence stocks and selective Australian defence names, plus ongoing themes in gold, silver, platinum and critical minerals against a noisy geopolitical backdrop.