This month, EquiLend’s Head of Trading Solutions, Mike Norwood returns with analysis of the continuing volatility from U.S. policy decisions following ‘liberation day’ tariffs as the Trump Administration continues to rock global markets.

Read on for NGT-backed data on the highs and lows of global securities lending markets.

The following data has been measured and derived from EquiLend NGT. 

As volatility in the market surged at the beginning of April to post-pandemic highs, so did demand in the securities lending market. April represented another record month for EquiLend’s NGT platform as 3.3m trades were executed v $3.7T (+1% month-over-month). The U.S. was in focus as ‘liberation day’ tariff announcements proved more punitive and more broadly applicable than was anticipated. While markets observed some amount of recovery following announcements of a 90–day pause, overall, the U.S. market underperformed for the month, as despite relatively solid earnings reports, the uncertainty around global trade policy has weighed on consumer and investor confidence.

In our March Market Review, we anticipated elevated levels of trading activity – this held true as NGT saw a new single day high of 184,192 trades executed on 7 April. Demand for global equities remained heightened as EMEA, APAC and North America all saw volume increases month over month with South Korea (+31%), Japan (+22%), and Canada (+11%) setting the pace. Increases were driven by new opportunities in South Korea following the removal of the short selling ban. Japanese names came back into focus post dividend season and as equities were relatively strong globally. Canadian equities were in demand as consumer confidence plummeted in the face of the ongoing tariff disputes.

Fixed income lagged (-6% month-over-month) as demand for investment-grade corporate bonds softened (-3%). Widening spreads linked with relatively flat returns in the credit space indicated market uncertainty with activity focused on the increasingly volatile equity market. High-yield bonds picked up some of the slack (+16%) but still represent a minority share of borrowing activity in the corporate space. Sovereign debt was also in demand globally (+9% month-over-month) as firms saw demand for collateral in the face of fluctuating margin requirements.

Going forward, all eyes will be on the evolution of the U.S. administration’s tariff policy and its impact on inflation. More broadly, global markets seem to be anticipating central bank rate cuts later this year in the face of potential inflationary drivers. We’ll bring you the latest securities finance trading data in our monthly analysis as this unfolds.