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According to Golden Ten Data on January 2, on the first trading day of 2026, the US dollar edged higher, although it remains at a weak level after the US Dollar Index recorded its worst year since 2017 last year. Data from LSEG shows that the DXY index, which measures the value of the US dollar against a basket of trade-weighted currencies, fell by 9.37% in 2025. Concerns over Trump's tariff policies, increased diversification into safe-haven US dollar assets by investors, and more operations to hedge against the risk of US dollar depreciation have all contributed to the weakening of the dollar.

Golden Ten Data reported on January 2 that U.S. President Trump stated in a post that the White House medical team has just released a report confirming that he is currently in "absolutely healthy" condition, and that he has achieved a "perfect score" for the third time in a cognitive ability test (that is, he answered all questions 100% correctly!). Trump said, "No other president or former vice president is willing to take the test. Additional note: I firmly believe that anyone running for president or vice president should be required to take a serious, effective, and validated cognitive test. Our great country cannot be governed by 'stupid' or incompetent people!"

According to Golden Ten Data on January 2, Elliott Jordan-Doak, an analyst at Pantheon Macroeconomics, stated that UK manufacturing activity is expected to rise slowly in the coming months. Although not as strong as the general market expectation, the UK's manufacturing PMI for December rose from 50.2 in the previous month to 50.6, reaching a 15-month high. Jordan-Doak noted that the easing of post-budget policy uncertainty, a rebound in activity following the Jaguar Land Rover cyberattack incident, and improved external demand have boosted market sentiment. He said: "Most sub-indices of the December manufacturing PMI improved, giving us reason to be optimistic that economic activity will continue to improve in the first quarter." Nevertheless, high borrowing costs and further tariff uncertainties may continue to weigh on economic activity in 2026. "Therefore, the PMI may soon peak."