Wall Street ends sharply lower as Iran retaliates against Israel attack
NEW YORK (REUTERS)Wall Street ended sharply lower on Friday after Iran launched missiles at Israel in response to intensive Israeli strikes on Iran.Oil prices surged nearly 7% on fears the conflict could disrupt crude supply from the Middle East. US energy stocks rose in tandem, with Exxon up 2.2% and Diamondback Energy rallying 3.7%.Airline stocks fell on fears that fuel costs could climb. Delta Air Lines lost 3.8%, United Airlines fell 4.4% and American Airlines declined 4.9%.Defense stocks climbed, with Lockheed Martin, RTX Corporation and Northrop Grumman all gaining over 3%.The S&P 500 declined 1.13% to end the session at 5,976.97 points.The Nasdaq declined 1.30% to 19,406.83 points, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 1.79% to 42,197.79 points.Ten of the 11 S&P 500 sector indexes declined, led lower by financials, down 2.06%, followed by a 1.5% loss in information technology.Volume on U.S. exchanges was 17.9 billion shares traded, compared with an average of 18.2 billion shares over the previous 20 sessions.For the week, the S&P 500 dipped 0.4%, the Nasdaq lost 0.6% and the Dow fell 1.3%. Photoshop maker Adobe fell 5.3% as concerns that the company's pace of AI adoption was too slow overshadowed an increased annual revenue forecast. Oracle jumped 7.7% to a record high, rallying for a second day after the technology company gave an upbeat forecast driven by demand for its AI services.Nvidia dipped 2.1% and Apple lost 1.4%. Visa and Mastercard both fell more than 4% after the Wall Street Journal reported that major retailers are exploring cryptocurrencies that could eliminate the need for payment intermediaries. A tame consumer price report, softer-than-expected producer price data and largely unchanged initial jobless claims earlier this week helped calm investor jitters around tariff-driven price pressures. US Federal Reserve policymakers are widely expected to keep interest rates unchanged at their meeting next week. With investors betting the United States will reach trade agreements that reduce President Donald Trump's steep trade barriers, the S&P 500 is now trading just below its February record highs. The University of Michigan's Surveys of Consumers showed consumer sentiment improved for the first time in six months in June amid trade uncertainty.Declining stocks outnumbered rising ones within the S&P 500 by a 6.1-to-one ratio.
The S&P 500 posted 10 new highs and 6 new lows; the Nasdaq recorded 37 new highs and 131 new lows.
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The National
a day ago
- The National
'Genius' move: What are the goals of the three US crypto bills?
US President Donald Trump has signed the Genius Act into law, setting the stage for greater cryptocurrency supervision in line with America's aim to be the global leader in digital asset s. The bipartisan bill is one of three that had both Capitol Hill and crypto enthusiasts buzzing, as it would set the US up for the future of finance, while also being a legacy move for Mr Trump, who has gone from crypto sceptic to champion. 'The Genius Act could become a defining milestone for stablecoin policy. Moving stablecoins out of regulatory ambiguity won't just enable institutional participation, it will require it,' said Omar Elassar, managing director of venture capital firm Animoca Brands Middle East. The National reported that cryptocurrencies will not become mainstream unless the acts enforce strong regulations. We take a look at the three acts and how they would redefine cryptocurrency regulation and its future. Genius Act: 'Long overdue' According to the White House, the Genius Act is meant to make America 'the undisputed leader in digital assets'. The 'long-overdue' law is intended to prioritise consumer protection and strengthen the US dollar's reserve currency status, in addition to improving national security, which is one of the Trump administration's pillars. Also, the Genius Act is aimed at bringing 'massive' investment and innovation to the US, the world's top economy – although the latter is being challenged by others, most notably by rival China. The bill details strict regulations for stablecoins, which aim to address cryptocurrencies' shortcomings by pegging their value to a unit of an underlying asset, are often issued on faster blockchains and backed by state-issued tender such as the dollar, pound, euro and highly liquid reserves including government treasuries or commodities such as precious metals. Also, a stablecoin is different from a central bank digital currency, or CBDC: the former is privately issued, while the latter is government-backed. Both, however, aim to make transactions faster, cheaper and more secure, and would serve emerging markets well. The Genius Act will usher in the creation of the first-federal regulatory system for stablecoins. It also requires 100 per cent reserve backing with liquid assets like the dollar or short-term Treasuries and mandates issuers to make monthly, public disclosures. Should a stablecoin issuer become insolvent, the Genius Act will prioritises stablecoin holders' claims over all other creditors, it added. 'The passage of the Genius Act is a true watershed moment for the US. It is a defining step for responsible crypto policy … giving issuers, builders, and regulators the clear rules they have been asking for,' said Ji-Hun Kim, president of the Washington-based Crypto Council for Innovation. All said, the Genius Act aims to ensure the greenback remains the world's reserve currency, help fight illicit activity in the crypto world and make the US the global leader for digital assets. Clarity Act: Dual supervision The Digital Asset Market Clarity Act of 2025, or Clarity Act, meanwhile, aims to establish a regulatory framework for digital commodities – namely, the classification, offering, trading and supervision of digital assets. It will also define clear lines of jurisdiction between the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, two of the top US asset regulators that have been monitoring the digital asset situation and cracked down on crime – most notably the case involving jailed FTX boss Sam Bankman-Fried. That means it is expected to be a strict law because, 'at its core, it introduces a dual-agency approach to oversight', said Jerry Huang, an associate at Canadian law firm McMillan. The Clarity Act calls for how digital assets may be offered, sold and traded in the US, and the registration of brokers, dealers and trading facilities, who must maintain fair trading and anti-manipulation systems, ensure real-time transparency and adopt anti-money laundering and know-your-customer programmes. These would help reduce 'legal uncertainty for issuers, developers and intermediaries, while strengthening investor protections and market integrity', Mr Huang added. Anti-CBDC Surveillance State Act: 'Weapon' control The summary of the Anti-CBDC Surveillance State Act is to 'amend the Federal Reserve Act to prohibit the Federal reserve banks from offering certain products or services directly to an individual, to prohibit the use of central bank digital currency for monetary policy and for other purposes'. In other words, a CBDC carries the risk of the government being able to surveil people's financial transactions and 'suppress politically unpopular activity', said Congressman Tom Emmer, the bill's main author, who also noted that a CBDC is 'is government-controlled, programmable money'. 'For years, we have worked to educate our colleagues on the dangers of this insidious technology, which would undermine our values and destroy Americans' right to privacy. Now, we must codify [CBDC] to ensure that the United States' digital currency policy remains in the hands of the American people. The bill aims to prevent future administrations from weaponising CBDC technology against the American people, he said. The American Bankers Association agreed in a letter to Mr Emmer, saying that a CBDC 'is unnecessary in the US and would present unacceptable risks and costs to the financial system'. Are these bills bulletproof? Whether these three legislations work as they are intended to do so remains to be seen, especially as digital assets remain vulnerable to misuse and are being used in illegal activity – a lot. In 2024, more than 99 per cent of stablecoin volume was legitimate – but stablecoins accounted for about 60 per cent of illicit transaction across the crypto ecosystem, according to an analysis from blockchain platform TRM Labs. 'Their speed, liquidity, and perceived stability can make them attractive for ransomware payments, terrorist financing, romance and investment scams, sanctions evasion, over-the-counter fraud and large-scale laundering,' said Ari Redbord, a vice president at San Francisco-based TRM. That corroborates an earlier report from Chainalysis, which found out that 63 per cent of all illicit transaction volumes involve stablecoins. 'The integration of stablecoins into traditional finance creates new systemic risk vectors that extend beyond individual protocols or platforms,' analysts at New York-based Chainalysis said. 'A failure of a major stablecoin could trigger cascading liquidations across interconnected protocols, potentially freezing large portions of the DeFi [decentralised finance] ecosystem.'
The National
a day ago
- The National
Mixed US economic signals dampen Wall Street's record week
Wall Street ended a record-breaking week with a whimper after investors digested mixed signals from US economic data and President Donald Trump's threat to impose higher tariffs on the EU. Both the benchmark S&P 500 and tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite rose to record highs in recent weeks, with the former hitting another new high on Thursday on the back of solid corporate earnings and strong economic reports. On Thursday, the Labour Department reported that jobless claims for the week ended July 12 declined from the previous week, with June retail sales data stronger than forecast and economic sentiment rising in early July. However, expectations for inflation targets continued to drop, as America's consumer price index rose to 2.7 per cent in June, from 2.4 per cent. While inflation levels are below peak levels recorded about three years ago, it is still above the goal of 2 per cent. Lower inflation also makes it easier to lower interest rates – a key sticking point in Mr Trump's frustrations with Federal Reserve boss Jerome Powell. Mr Trump has long and repeatedly criticised and insulted Mr Powell, threatening, then denying, to fire the Fed chairman – which is another episode being closely watched by investors and economists, who widely agree that such a move would have a negative effect on Wall Street. Also, the producer price index retreated to 2.3 per cent in June, from 2.5 per cent a month earlier. In addition, homebuilding, home purchases and residential investment all dropped in June, amid uncertainty in the world's top economy. Mr Trump has also threatened to impose new tariffs of at least 15 per cent to 20 per cent on products from the EU, which is another concern investors have to digest. Mr Trump's comments on Powell "caused some sell-off across major US indices, but the S&P 500 still managed to close with gains. Softer-than-expected PPI data helped cool mounting inflation fears after the previous day's CPI print surprised on the upside", said Ipek Ozkardeskaya, a senior analyst at Swissquote Bank. "We'll see if Mr Trump chickens out – and whether this triggers a market correction." Major markets mostly down On Wall Street, the S&P 500 closed flat, the Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 0.3 per cent and the Nasdaq inched up 0.1 per cent. For the week, the S&P 500 gained 0.6 per cent, the Dow retreated 0.1 per cent and the Nasdaq added 1.5 per cent. Year-to-date, the indices are up 7.1 per cent, 4.2 per cent and 8.2 per cent, respectively. In Europe, London's FTSE 100 settled 0.2 per cent higher, as European shares tracked corporate earnings reports and the situation on US tariffs. Frankfurt's DAX slid 0.3 per cent, while Paris' CAC 40 ended flat. Earlier in Asia, stocks in China and Hong Kong stocks closed higher, after Beijing vowed to rein in Chinese companies' aggressive price cutting in an effort to tackle deflation. The Shanghai Composite settled 0.5 per cent higher and Hong Kong's Hang Seng index jumped 1.3 per cent. Tokyo's Nikkei 225, however, declined 0.2 per cent, as investors await Sunday's upper house elections in Japan, which may give a hint of economic direction moving forward. In commodities, oil prices jumped on Friday but retreated to settle lower as mixed US economic data offset concerns over drone attacks against Opec member Iraq that raised supply concerns and after the EU approved more sanctions against Russia. Brent closed 0.35 per cent lower at $69.28 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate retreated 0.30 per cent to $67.34 a barrel. Intraday gains peaked at about 1.5 per cent. Gold, meanwhile, closed the week higher as economic uncertainty and a weaker dollar boosted the safe-haven asset's appeal. The precious metal, widely viewed as a hedge against inflation, added 0.3 per cent to $3,350.53 an ounce.
Khaleej Times
a day ago
- Khaleej Times
Trump signs stablecoin law as crypto industry aims for mainstream adoption
US President Donald Trump on Friday signed a law to create a regulatory regime for dollar-pegged cryptocurrencies known as stablecoins, a milestone that could pave the way for the digital assets to become an everyday way to make payments and move money. The bill, dubbed the GENIUS Act, passed in the House of Representatives by a vote of 308 to 122, with support from nearly half the Democratic members and most Republicans. It had earlier been approved by the Senate. The law is a huge win for crypto supporters, who have long lobbied for such a regulatory framework in a bid to gain greater legitimacy for an industry that began in 2009 as a digital Wild West famed for its innovation and speculative chaos. "This signing is a massive validation of your hard work and pioneering spirit," said Trump at a signing event that included dozens of government officials, crypto executives and lawmakers. "It's good for the dollar and it's good for the country." Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, in a statement, said the new technology would buttress the dollar's status as the global reserve currency, expand access to the dollar economy and boost demand for US Treasuries, which back stablecoins. Stablecoins are designed to maintain a constant value, usually a 1:1 US dollar peg, and their use has exploded, notably by crypto traders moving funds between tokens. The industry hopes they will enter mainstream use for sending and receiving payments instantly. The new law requires stablecoins to be backed by liquid assets - such as US dollars and short-term Treasury bills - and for issuers to disclose publicly the composition of their reserves monthly. Crypto companies and executives argue such legislation will enhance stablecoins' credibility and make banks, retailers and consumers more willing to use them to transfer funds instantly. Long lobbying effort The stablecoin market, which crypto data provider CoinGecko said is valued at more than $260 billion, could grow to $2 trillion by 2028 under the new law, Standard Chartered bank estimated earlier this year. The law's passage culminates a long lobbying effort by the industry, which donated more than $245 million in last year's elections to aid pro-crypto candidates including Trump, according to Federal Election Commission data. The Republican president, who has launched his own coin, thanked executives for their support during the 2024 presidential campaign, saying, "I pledged that we would bring back American liberty and leadership and make the United States the crypto capital of the world, and that's what we've done." Democrats and critics have said the law should have blocked big tech companies from issuing their own stablecoins, which could increase the clout of an already powerful sector, contained stronger anti-money laundering protections and prohibited foreign stablecoin issuers. "By failing to close known loopholes and protect America's digital dollar infrastructure, Congress has risked making the U.S. financial system a global haven for criminals and adversarial regimes to exploit," said Scott Greytak, deputy executive director of Transparency International U.S. Trump has sought to broadly overhaul US cryptocurrency policies, signing an executive order in March establishing a strategic bitcoin reserve. The president launched a meme coin called $TRUMP in January and partly owns the crypto company World Liberty Financial.
