ASX set to rise, Wall Street mixed; Trump labels Fed chief a ‘numbskull'
The S&P 500 was 0.1 per cent higher in late trading and on track to squeak to another all-time high. The Dow Jones was up 164 points, or 0.4 per cent, in late trade, and the Nasdaq composite was down 0.2 per cent after setting its own record.
The Australian sharemarket is set to rise, with futures pointing to a gain of 40 points, or 0.5 per cent, at the open. The ASX edged 0.1 per cent higher on Tuesday.
General Motors dropped 7.5 per cent despite reporting a stronger profit for the spring than analysts expected. The automaker said it's still expecting a $US4 billion-$US5 billion ($6.1 billion- $7.6 billion) hit to its results over 2025 because of tariffs and that it hopes to mitigate 30 per cent of that. GM also said it will feel more pain because of tariffs in the current quarter than it did during the spring.
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That helped to offset big gains for some homebuilders after they reported stronger profits for the spring than Wall Street had forecast. D.R. Horton rallied 16.5 per cent, and PulteGroup jumped 11.4 per cent. That was even as both companies said homebuyers are continuing to deal with challenging conditions, including higher mortgage rates and an uncertain economy.
So far, the US economy seems to be powering through all the uncertainty created by Trump's on-and-off tariffs. Many of Trump's stiff proposed taxes on imports are currently on pause, and the next big deadline is Aug. 1. Talks are underway on possible trade deals with other countries that could lower the proposed tariffs before they kick in.
Companies are already feeling effects. Genuine Parts, the Atlanta-based company that sells auto and industrial replacement parts around the world, trimmed its profit forecast for the full year in order to incorporate 'all US tariffs currently in effect,' along with its updated expectations for business conditions in the second half of the year.
Its stock rose 6.5 per cent after it reported a stronger profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected.
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The Advertiser
an hour ago
- The Advertiser
Risk of higher US tariffs looms despite beef deal
Australia's move to lift restrictions on US beef is unlikely to shift the dial on tariff negotiations, as the nation's products face the possibility of even steeper duties. The Albanese government will allow access to US beef that has been raised in Canada or Mexico but processed in America, following a safety review. Australia is subject to a baseline 10 per cent tariff applied by the Trump administration and has been keeping an eye on the trade negotiations of other countries. AMP chief economist Shane Oliver said Donald Trump's flagged higher tariffs might include the nation's exports. "The risk for Australia is that we may be lucky to hang on to 10 per cent, which could actually turn out to be higher," he told AAP. "This (beef decision) might help us hang on to 10 per cent or avoid a worse outcome, but I don't think there's any guarantees of that." American beef was banned from Australia almost two decades ago following an outbreak of mad cow disease. Mr Trump has pressured the government to ease restrictions as Labor argues for an exemption from the tariffs as part of the US president's deepening trade war. Former ambassador to the US Arthur Sinodinos said while biosecurity investigations can take a while to finalise, it was a "sensible outcome". "The challenge here is it doesn't look like we're putting together a package deal," he said. "It'd be better if there was a package approach to this if we're seeking to gather an overall trade outcome with the US." Australian Farm Institute executive director Katie McRobert said the cattle industry has been "extremely nervous" about biosecurity traceability from different parts of the north and South America regions. "We wouldn't expect a significant impact on Australian producers from the potential to import American beef ... because we already produce far more beef in Australia than we can possibly eat," she said. Trade Minister Don Farrell said he didn't have any meetings scheduled with American counterparts after last meeting US trade representative Jamieson Greer on the sidelines of an OECD ministerial meeting in Paris in June. Senator Farrell said Mr Greer didn't raise beef concerns at that meeting. "We believe that America should lift those tariffs on Australia, there's no justification whatsoever for the United States to apply tariffs to Australia," he told reporters in Canberra on Thursday. "We have a free trade agreement, that agreement makes it very clear that it's a tariff free arrangement." Senator Farrell also denied the move was to create a bargaining chip. The Philippines and Japan recently struck agreements with the US to lower their tariff rates, but both are still above the 10 per cent baseline. Australia's move to lift restrictions on US beef is unlikely to shift the dial on tariff negotiations, as the nation's products face the possibility of even steeper duties. The Albanese government will allow access to US beef that has been raised in Canada or Mexico but processed in America, following a safety review. Australia is subject to a baseline 10 per cent tariff applied by the Trump administration and has been keeping an eye on the trade negotiations of other countries. AMP chief economist Shane Oliver said Donald Trump's flagged higher tariffs might include the nation's exports. "The risk for Australia is that we may be lucky to hang on to 10 per cent, which could actually turn out to be higher," he told AAP. "This (beef decision) might help us hang on to 10 per cent or avoid a worse outcome, but I don't think there's any guarantees of that." American beef was banned from Australia almost two decades ago following an outbreak of mad cow disease. Mr Trump has pressured the government to ease restrictions as Labor argues for an exemption from the tariffs as part of the US president's deepening trade war. Former ambassador to the US Arthur Sinodinos said while biosecurity investigations can take a while to finalise, it was a "sensible outcome". "The challenge here is it doesn't look like we're putting together a package deal," he said. "It'd be better if there was a package approach to this if we're seeking to gather an overall trade outcome with the US." Australian Farm Institute executive director Katie McRobert said the cattle industry has been "extremely nervous" about biosecurity traceability from different parts of the north and South America regions. "We wouldn't expect a significant impact on Australian producers from the potential to import American beef ... because we already produce far more beef in Australia than we can possibly eat," she said. Trade Minister Don Farrell said he didn't have any meetings scheduled with American counterparts after last meeting US trade representative Jamieson Greer on the sidelines of an OECD ministerial meeting in Paris in June. Senator Farrell said Mr Greer didn't raise beef concerns at that meeting. "We believe that America should lift those tariffs on Australia, there's no justification whatsoever for the United States to apply tariffs to Australia," he told reporters in Canberra on Thursday. "We have a free trade agreement, that agreement makes it very clear that it's a tariff free arrangement." Senator Farrell also denied the move was to create a bargaining chip. The Philippines and Japan recently struck agreements with the US to lower their tariff rates, but both are still above the 10 per cent baseline. Australia's move to lift restrictions on US beef is unlikely to shift the dial on tariff negotiations, as the nation's products face the possibility of even steeper duties. The Albanese government will allow access to US beef that has been raised in Canada or Mexico but processed in America, following a safety review. Australia is subject to a baseline 10 per cent tariff applied by the Trump administration and has been keeping an eye on the trade negotiations of other countries. AMP chief economist Shane Oliver said Donald Trump's flagged higher tariffs might include the nation's exports. "The risk for Australia is that we may be lucky to hang on to 10 per cent, which could actually turn out to be higher," he told AAP. "This (beef decision) might help us hang on to 10 per cent or avoid a worse outcome, but I don't think there's any guarantees of that." American beef was banned from Australia almost two decades ago following an outbreak of mad cow disease. Mr Trump has pressured the government to ease restrictions as Labor argues for an exemption from the tariffs as part of the US president's deepening trade war. Former ambassador to the US Arthur Sinodinos said while biosecurity investigations can take a while to finalise, it was a "sensible outcome". "The challenge here is it doesn't look like we're putting together a package deal," he said. "It'd be better if there was a package approach to this if we're seeking to gather an overall trade outcome with the US." Australian Farm Institute executive director Katie McRobert said the cattle industry has been "extremely nervous" about biosecurity traceability from different parts of the north and South America regions. "We wouldn't expect a significant impact on Australian producers from the potential to import American beef ... because we already produce far more beef in Australia than we can possibly eat," she said. Trade Minister Don Farrell said he didn't have any meetings scheduled with American counterparts after last meeting US trade representative Jamieson Greer on the sidelines of an OECD ministerial meeting in Paris in June. Senator Farrell said Mr Greer didn't raise beef concerns at that meeting. "We believe that America should lift those tariffs on Australia, there's no justification whatsoever for the United States to apply tariffs to Australia," he told reporters in Canberra on Thursday. "We have a free trade agreement, that agreement makes it very clear that it's a tariff free arrangement." Senator Farrell also denied the move was to create a bargaining chip. The Philippines and Japan recently struck agreements with the US to lower their tariff rates, but both are still above the 10 per cent baseline. Australia's move to lift restrictions on US beef is unlikely to shift the dial on tariff negotiations, as the nation's products face the possibility of even steeper duties. The Albanese government will allow access to US beef that has been raised in Canada or Mexico but processed in America, following a safety review. Australia is subject to a baseline 10 per cent tariff applied by the Trump administration and has been keeping an eye on the trade negotiations of other countries. AMP chief economist Shane Oliver said Donald Trump's flagged higher tariffs might include the nation's exports. "The risk for Australia is that we may be lucky to hang on to 10 per cent, which could actually turn out to be higher," he told AAP. "This (beef decision) might help us hang on to 10 per cent or avoid a worse outcome, but I don't think there's any guarantees of that." American beef was banned from Australia almost two decades ago following an outbreak of mad cow disease. Mr Trump has pressured the government to ease restrictions as Labor argues for an exemption from the tariffs as part of the US president's deepening trade war. Former ambassador to the US Arthur Sinodinos said while biosecurity investigations can take a while to finalise, it was a "sensible outcome". "The challenge here is it doesn't look like we're putting together a package deal," he said. "It'd be better if there was a package approach to this if we're seeking to gather an overall trade outcome with the US." Australian Farm Institute executive director Katie McRobert said the cattle industry has been "extremely nervous" about biosecurity traceability from different parts of the north and South America regions. "We wouldn't expect a significant impact on Australian producers from the potential to import American beef ... because we already produce far more beef in Australia than we can possibly eat," she said. Trade Minister Don Farrell said he didn't have any meetings scheduled with American counterparts after last meeting US trade representative Jamieson Greer on the sidelines of an OECD ministerial meeting in Paris in June. Senator Farrell said Mr Greer didn't raise beef concerns at that meeting. "We believe that America should lift those tariffs on Australia, there's no justification whatsoever for the United States to apply tariffs to Australia," he told reporters in Canberra on Thursday. "We have a free trade agreement, that agreement makes it very clear that it's a tariff free arrangement." Senator Farrell also denied the move was to create a bargaining chip. The Philippines and Japan recently struck agreements with the US to lower their tariff rates, but both are still above the 10 per cent baseline.
The Age
an hour ago
- The Age
ASX set to slide, Wall Street mixed; Tesla falls, Alphabet surges
Wall Street is hanging near its records on Thursday, though the calm surface of the US stock market is hiding some roiling moves underneath. Alphabet is rising, and Tesla is tumbling following a jumble of profit reports from big US companies. The S&P 500 was 0.3 per cent higher in afternoon trading, coming off its all-time high set the day before. The Dow Jones was down 174 points, or 0.4 per cent, and the Nasdaq composite was 0.4 per cent higher. The Australian sharemarket is set to retreat, with futures at pointing to a fall of 33 points, or 0.4 per cent, at the open. The ASX lost 0.8 per cent on Thursday. Alphabet climbed 1.9 per cent after the company behind Google and YouTube delivered a fatter profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected. It's leaning more into artificial-intelligence technology and said it's increasing its budget to spend on AI chips and other investments this year by $US10 billion ($15.2 bilion) to $US85 billion. That helped push up other stocks in the AI industry, including a 1.1 per cent rise for Nvidia. The chip company was one of the strongest forces lifting the S&P 500 because it's the largest on Wall Street in terms of value. But an 8.8 per cent drop for Tesla kept the market in check. Elon Musk's electric-vehicle company reported results for the spring that were roughly in line with or above analysts' expectations, and Musk is trying to highlight Tesla's moves into AI and robotaxis. Loading The focus, though, remains on how Musk's foray into politics is turning off potential customers, and he said several rough quarters may be ahead as 'we're in this weird transition period where we'll lose a lot of incentives in the US' Stocks have broadly been rallying for weeks on hopes that President Donald Trump will reach trade deals with other countries that will lower his stiff proposed tariffs, along with the risk that they could cause a recession and drive up inflation. The record-setting gains have been so strong that criticism is rising about how expensive stock prices have become. That in turn puts pressure on companies to deliver solid growth in profits in order to justify their gains. Chipotle Mexican Grill also helped weigh on the market despite delivering a profit for the spring that topped analysts' expectations. The restaurant chain's growth in revenue came up short of expectations, and its stock fell 13.8 per cent.
The Advertiser
an hour ago
- The Advertiser
UK touted as important partner as US uncertainty grows
The United Kingdom has fast become one of Australia's most important defence allies amid turmoil under the Trump administration, a security analyst says. Foreign Minister Penny Wong and Defence Minister Richard Marles will host their UK counterparts David Lammy and John Healey in Sydney for joint talks on Friday. Australian Strategic Policy Institute senior analyst Alex Bristow said ministerial meetings moving to more of a six-monthly cycle rather than their traditional annual timeline highlighted strengthened ties between the two nations. "The tempo of it increasing, I think, is a signal that Britain is moving into an elite category," he told AAP. The UK was probably third behind Japan and the US in terms of how strategically significant the defence relationship was to Australia, Dr Bristow said. The UK's Carrier Strike Group, led by Royal Navy flagship HMS Prince of Wales, arrived in Darwin on Wednesday as Australia's largest military exercise Talisman Sabre is underway. It's the first UK carrier strike group to visit Australia since 1997. It is an international task group which includes five core ships, 24 jets, and 17 helicopters, centred around the flagship aircraft carrier. UK High Commissioner to Australia Sarah MacIntosh said the arrival of the strike group was a demonstration of commitment to the region and the strong relationship with Canberra. "This is an anchor relationship in a contested world," she said. Dr Bristow said Australia should be welcoming carrier strike groups from European countries. He said NATO had identified China as a threat to its interests as Beijing continues to collaborate with Russia and North Korea. "It's entirely in the interests of European allies in NATO to be working with Indo-Pacific allies," Dr Bristow said. The US has promised to sell Australia nuclear-powered submarines under the AUKUS agreement, which has since been put under review by the Trump administration. The three-nation pact, which includes the UK, will likely be discussed during the high level talks in Sydney. Defence analysts believe a likely outcome of the review will be a request for more money from Australia towards the US submarine industrial base, rather than the deal being scrapped. The Australian government has said it remains confident in the nuclear-submarine deal being delivered. The United Kingdom has fast become one of Australia's most important defence allies amid turmoil under the Trump administration, a security analyst says. Foreign Minister Penny Wong and Defence Minister Richard Marles will host their UK counterparts David Lammy and John Healey in Sydney for joint talks on Friday. Australian Strategic Policy Institute senior analyst Alex Bristow said ministerial meetings moving to more of a six-monthly cycle rather than their traditional annual timeline highlighted strengthened ties between the two nations. "The tempo of it increasing, I think, is a signal that Britain is moving into an elite category," he told AAP. The UK was probably third behind Japan and the US in terms of how strategically significant the defence relationship was to Australia, Dr Bristow said. The UK's Carrier Strike Group, led by Royal Navy flagship HMS Prince of Wales, arrived in Darwin on Wednesday as Australia's largest military exercise Talisman Sabre is underway. It's the first UK carrier strike group to visit Australia since 1997. It is an international task group which includes five core ships, 24 jets, and 17 helicopters, centred around the flagship aircraft carrier. UK High Commissioner to Australia Sarah MacIntosh said the arrival of the strike group was a demonstration of commitment to the region and the strong relationship with Canberra. "This is an anchor relationship in a contested world," she said. Dr Bristow said Australia should be welcoming carrier strike groups from European countries. He said NATO had identified China as a threat to its interests as Beijing continues to collaborate with Russia and North Korea. "It's entirely in the interests of European allies in NATO to be working with Indo-Pacific allies," Dr Bristow said. The US has promised to sell Australia nuclear-powered submarines under the AUKUS agreement, which has since been put under review by the Trump administration. The three-nation pact, which includes the UK, will likely be discussed during the high level talks in Sydney. Defence analysts believe a likely outcome of the review will be a request for more money from Australia towards the US submarine industrial base, rather than the deal being scrapped. The Australian government has said it remains confident in the nuclear-submarine deal being delivered. The United Kingdom has fast become one of Australia's most important defence allies amid turmoil under the Trump administration, a security analyst says. Foreign Minister Penny Wong and Defence Minister Richard Marles will host their UK counterparts David Lammy and John Healey in Sydney for joint talks on Friday. Australian Strategic Policy Institute senior analyst Alex Bristow said ministerial meetings moving to more of a six-monthly cycle rather than their traditional annual timeline highlighted strengthened ties between the two nations. "The tempo of it increasing, I think, is a signal that Britain is moving into an elite category," he told AAP. The UK was probably third behind Japan and the US in terms of how strategically significant the defence relationship was to Australia, Dr Bristow said. The UK's Carrier Strike Group, led by Royal Navy flagship HMS Prince of Wales, arrived in Darwin on Wednesday as Australia's largest military exercise Talisman Sabre is underway. It's the first UK carrier strike group to visit Australia since 1997. It is an international task group which includes five core ships, 24 jets, and 17 helicopters, centred around the flagship aircraft carrier. UK High Commissioner to Australia Sarah MacIntosh said the arrival of the strike group was a demonstration of commitment to the region and the strong relationship with Canberra. "This is an anchor relationship in a contested world," she said. Dr Bristow said Australia should be welcoming carrier strike groups from European countries. He said NATO had identified China as a threat to its interests as Beijing continues to collaborate with Russia and North Korea. "It's entirely in the interests of European allies in NATO to be working with Indo-Pacific allies," Dr Bristow said. The US has promised to sell Australia nuclear-powered submarines under the AUKUS agreement, which has since been put under review by the Trump administration. The three-nation pact, which includes the UK, will likely be discussed during the high level talks in Sydney. Defence analysts believe a likely outcome of the review will be a request for more money from Australia towards the US submarine industrial base, rather than the deal being scrapped. The Australian government has said it remains confident in the nuclear-submarine deal being delivered. The United Kingdom has fast become one of Australia's most important defence allies amid turmoil under the Trump administration, a security analyst says. Foreign Minister Penny Wong and Defence Minister Richard Marles will host their UK counterparts David Lammy and John Healey in Sydney for joint talks on Friday. Australian Strategic Policy Institute senior analyst Alex Bristow said ministerial meetings moving to more of a six-monthly cycle rather than their traditional annual timeline highlighted strengthened ties between the two nations. "The tempo of it increasing, I think, is a signal that Britain is moving into an elite category," he told AAP. The UK was probably third behind Japan and the US in terms of how strategically significant the defence relationship was to Australia, Dr Bristow said. The UK's Carrier Strike Group, led by Royal Navy flagship HMS Prince of Wales, arrived in Darwin on Wednesday as Australia's largest military exercise Talisman Sabre is underway. It's the first UK carrier strike group to visit Australia since 1997. It is an international task group which includes five core ships, 24 jets, and 17 helicopters, centred around the flagship aircraft carrier. UK High Commissioner to Australia Sarah MacIntosh said the arrival of the strike group was a demonstration of commitment to the region and the strong relationship with Canberra. "This is an anchor relationship in a contested world," she said. Dr Bristow said Australia should be welcoming carrier strike groups from European countries. He said NATO had identified China as a threat to its interests as Beijing continues to collaborate with Russia and North Korea. "It's entirely in the interests of European allies in NATO to be working with Indo-Pacific allies," Dr Bristow said. The US has promised to sell Australia nuclear-powered submarines under the AUKUS agreement, which has since been put under review by the Trump administration. The three-nation pact, which includes the UK, will likely be discussed during the high level talks in Sydney. Defence analysts believe a likely outcome of the review will be a request for more money from Australia towards the US submarine industrial base, rather than the deal being scrapped. The Australian government has said it remains confident in the nuclear-submarine deal being delivered.
