(The opinions expressed here are those of the author, a
columnist for Reuters.)
By Mike Dolan
LONDON, Aug 7 (Reuters) - What matters in U.S. and
global markets today
By Mike Dolan, Editor-At-Large, Finance and Markets
Wall Street and global stocks rose on Thursday, as Apple's
domestic investment push, dovish noises on interest rates and a
generally upbeat earnings season trumped chip stock hits and the
arrival of the U.S. tariff day.
The day's diary is topped by a likely Bank of England interest
rate cut and U.S. weekly jobless numbers that take on unusual
importance in light of last week's July payrolls confusion.
* Stocks in Asia and Europe pushed higher even as U.S. tariffs
were introduced, with Shanghai's index hitting its highest since
2021 following above-forecast Chinese import and export numbers
for July. Although eight major trading partners accounting for
about 40% of U.S. trade flows have reached framework deals to
reduce tariffs to 15% or less, imports from Brazil, India,
Switzerland and Canada face rates of 35% to 50%. Though, Taiwan
and South Korea are breathing sighs of relief following
exemptions from 100% chip import levies.
* Expectations for Federal Reserve easing as soon as next month
were buoyed again as two regional Fed chiefs - Minneapolis Fed
boss Neel Kashkari and San Francisco's Mary Daly - indicated
more rate cuts were coming this year. President Donald Trump
said on Wednesday he would likely appoint a temporary
replacement to Adriana Kugler's vacant Fed board seat.
Meanwhile, candidates to replace Chair Jerome Powell next year
are likely down to three, including former Fed Governor Kevin
Warsh and White House adviser Kevin Hassett.
* Fed easing speculation knocked the dollar back to 10-day lows,
with Treasury yields remaining close to the week's three-month
lows despite another underwhelming 10-year auction overnight and
a long bond sale later today. Sterling was slightly firmer
against the dollar but down on the euro, as the BoE looks set to
lower British rates by a quarter point to 4% later today.
Make sure to check out today's column, where I argue that
investors looking for the impact of Trump's tariffs are looking
at the wrong earnings season.
Today's Market Minute
* President Donald Trump's higher tariff rates of 10% to 50%
on dozens of trading partners kicked in on Thursday, testing his
strategy for shrinking U.S. trade deficits without massive
disruptions to global supply chains, higher inflation and stiff
retaliation from trading partners.
* Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Thursday he will
not compromise the interests of the country's farmers even if he
has to pay a heavy price, in his first comments after Trump's
salvo of a 50% tariff on Indian goods.
* Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Donald
Trump will meet in the coming days, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov
said on Thursday, in what would be the first summit between
leaders of the two countries since 2021.
* Markets' relatively speedy acceptance of higher tariffs and
threats to institutional independence raises the question: What
happened to the last 40 years of economic orthodoxy? ROI
columnist Jamie McGeever asks whether the Washington Consensus
has been broken.
* The U.S.-EU trade deal has been heavily criticised as a
capitulation by the bloc. But Panmure Liberum investment
strategist Joachim Klement argues that the European Union is
likely not only to suffer less than the U.S. but may even see
its economy benefit from the new global tariff regime.
Latest Donald Trump News | Top Headlines on Donald Trump |
Reuters
Discover the latest headlines on Donald Trump, including
coverage of his second presidency, trade and tariff policies,
legal developments and more.
Chart of the day
Trump said on Wednesday that the United States would impose a
tariff of about 100% on imports of semiconductors but offered up
a big exemption - it will not apply to companies that are
manufacturing in the U.S. or have committed to do so. South
Korea's top trade envoy said major chipmakers Samsung
Electronics and SK Hynix would not be subject to the 100%
levies.
Taiwanese chip contract manufacturer TSMC was expected to be
relatively unscathed as it has U.S. factories, so key customers
such as Nvidia are unlikely to face increased tariff costs for
U.S-made chips. Malaysia's trade minister Tengku Zafrul Aziz
warned parliament his country would risk losing a major market
in the United States.
Today's events to watch
* Bank of England policy decision and monetary policy report
(7:00 AM EDT), with press conference from BoE Governor Andrew
Bailey
* U.S. weekly jobless claims (8:30 AM EDT), Q2 labor costs
and productivity, June consumer credit (3:00 AM EDT); Mexico
July inflation (8:00 AM EDT)
* Mexico central bank policy decision (3:00 PM EDT)
* Atlanta Federal Reserve President Raphael Bostic speaks
* U.S. corporate earnings: Eli Lilly, Gilead, Zimmer Biomet,
Warner Bros Discovery, Expedia, ConocoPhillips, Sempra,
Constellation Energy, Alliant Energy, Evergy, Consolidated
Edison, Motorola Solutions, Microchip Technology, GenDigital,
Ralph Lauren, Monster Beverages, Block, GoDaddy, Live Nation,
Wynn Resorts, Trade Desk, EOG,
* U.S. Treasury auctions $25 billion of 30-year bonds
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Opinions expressed are those of the author. They do not reflect
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