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Reuters
2 hours ago
- Reuters
Wall Street rises on US-Japan trade deal, hopes for more tariff talks
July 23 (Reuters) - Wall Street climbed on Wednesday after President Donald Trump secured a trade deal with Japan, sparking optimism for a flurry of new agreements as the August 1 deadline looms. The pact will slash tariffs on the Japanese auto sector to 15% from 27.5%, with duties on other goods also dropping to 15% from 25%. At 9:41 a.m. ET, the S&P 500 (.SPX), opens new tab gained 20.11 points, or 0.31%, to 6,329.73 and the Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC), opens new tab gained 39.71 points, or 0.19%, to 20,932.40. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI), opens new tab rose 215.38 points, or 0.48%, to 44,717.82, closing in on its all-time high. Meanwhile, Wall Street's "fear gauge," the CBOE Volatility Index (.VIX), opens new tab, dipped to its lowest level in nearly two weeks. As U.S. and EU officials head into crucial trade talks, hopes are high for a breakthrough agreement. However, the European Commission signaled it's ready to play hardball, preparing to seek approval for 93 billion euros ($109 billion) in counter-tariffs on American goods. "The United States has been working very hard on trying to get a lot of trade deals in time before the August 1st deadline, and it seems like they're starting to get some momentum. So I do think this is a very positive sign," said Chris Zaccarelli, chief investment officer at Northlight Asset Management. Investors are now laser-focused on earnings from the "Magnificent Seven" — the market's star performers who have powered stocks to record highs. Tesla (TSLA.O), opens new tab and Alphabet (GOOGL.O), opens new tab are set to report after the bell on Wednesday. With AI optimism running high and valuations stretched, expectations for these tech giants are sky-high, leaving little margin for disappointment. In earnings-focused moves, GE Vernova's (GEV.N), opens new tab shares climbed 13.7% to an all-time high, as the power equipment maker raised its current-year revenue and free cash flow forecasts after beating Wall Street estimates for second-quarter profit. Texas Instruments (TXN.O), opens new tab tumbled 12.7% after its quarterly profit forecast failed to impress investors, as it pointed to weaker-than-expected demand for its analog chips from some customers and underscored tariff-related uncertainty. The earnings also weighed on its peer analog chipmakers, with NXP Semiconductors (NXPI.O), opens new tab, Analog Devices (ADI.O), opens new tab and ON Semiconductor (ON.O), opens new tab falling between 3.5% and 5.6%. Toymaker Hasbro (HAS.O), opens new tab slipped 2.4% even after raising its annual revenue forecast. A 1.7% drop in AT&T (T.N), opens new tab kept the communications sector (.SPLRCL), opens new tab in the red, with all other sectors in positive territory. The company's stock dropped despite beating quarterly profit estimates. In economic data, existing home sales numbers for June are due on the day. Thursday's weekly jobless claims numbers and S&P Global's flash PMI data will be closely assessed to gauge economic health in the wake of tariff uncertainties. Following a mixed set of economic data last week, traders have ruled out an interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve next week. Odds for a September reduction stand at 58%, according to the CME FedWatch tool. The Fed's July meeting will follow on the heels of mounting concerns about its independence amid political interference and President Trump's persistent attacks on Chair Jerome Powell for his reluctance to cut rates. Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 2.22-to-1 ratio on the NYSE and by a 1.76-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq. The S&P 500 posted 30 new 52-week highs and two new low, while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 48 new highs and eight new lows.
Reuters
2 hours ago
- Reuters
EU to advance retaliation on US goods as tariff hike looms
BRUSSELS, July 23 (Reuters) - The European Commission plans to submit counter-tariffs on 93 billion euros ($109 billion) of U.S. goods for approval to EU members, while its trade chief will hold talks with U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick. The Commission said on Wednesday its primary focus was to achieve a negotiated outcome with the United States to avert 30% U.S. tariffs that U.S. President Donald Trump has said he will impose on the 27-nation bloc on August 1. European Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic will speak with Lutnick from Brussels on Wednesday afternoon, the Commission said, before Commission officials brief EU ambassadors on the state of play. The Commission said it would in parallel press on with potential countermeasures. It said it would merge its two sets of possible tariffs of 21 billion euros and 72 billion euros into a single list. It added it would submit this to EU members for approval. No countermeasures would enter force until August 7. So far the EU has not imposed any countermeasures, agreeing to, but then immediately suspending, the first set in April. Germany supports the EU readying countermeasures, a government representative said. The Commission may be buoyed by the initial deal struck between the United States and Japan. European shares climbed about 1%, led by automobile stocks, after Trump revived hopes for a trade deal with the EU following the U.S. agreement with Japan, which includes a 15% baseline rate. One stand-out feature of the deal was that the same rate applies to cars, against the current U.S. tariff of 25%, something the EU may want for its similar level of auto exports. In 2024, the U.S. imported more than $55 billion of vehicles and automotive parts from Japan. From the EU, the equivalent figure was 47.3 billion euros ($55.45 billion), with far fewer U.S. models sold into the EU or Japanese market. EU official say Washington has shown little sign of budging over car tariffs, but the Japan deal could point the way. The German government representative said U.S.-Japan relations were not comparable to those between the EU and the United States. UBS analysts said it was difficult to make assumptions for a potential EU-U.S. deal, but did say that unless the EU secured an agreement, Japanese automakers would be at an advantage. Volkswagen and BMW declined to comment. EU diplomats were reluctant to provide early comments, instead saying they were picking through details of the U.S.-Japan deal, such as that Japan would buy more rice from the United States, but would keep existing tariffs on agricultural products. Simon Evenett, professor of geopolitics and strategy at IMD Business School, said the 15% rate was lower than what Trump had recently threatened Japan with and it was notable that it appeared to apply to Japanese cars. "Whatever the Japanese got will become the minimum for the EU negotiating objectives," he said. ($1 = 0.8524 euros)
South Wales Guardian
2 hours ago
- South Wales Guardian
Donald Trump announces trade deal with Japan
'This Deal will create Hundreds of Thousands of Jobs – There has never been anything like it,' Mr Trump posted on Truth Social, adding that the United States 'will continue to always have a great relationship with the Country of Japan'. The president said Japan would invest 'at my direction' 550 billion dollars into the US and would 'open' its economy to American cars and rice. The 15% tax on imported Japanese goods is a meaningful drop from the 25% rate that Mr Trump, in a recent letter to Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, said would be levied starting on August 1. Early Wednesday, Mr Ishiba acknowledged the new trade agreement, saying it would benefit both sides and help them work together. With the announcement, Mr Trump is seeking to tout his ability as a dealmaker — even as his tariffs, when initially announced in early April led to a market panic and fears of slower growth that for the moment appear to have subsided. Key details remained unclear from his post, such as whether Japanese-built cars would face a higher 25% tariff that Mr Trump imposed on the sector. But the framework fits a growing pattern for Mr Trump, who is eager to portray the tariffs as a win for the US. His administration says the revenues will help reduce the budget deficit and more factories will relocate to America to avoid the import taxes and cause trade imbalances to disappear. The wave of tariffs continues to be a source of uncertainty about whether it could lead to higher prices for consumers and businesses if companies simply pass along the costs. The problem was seen sharply on Tuesday after General Motors reported a 35% drop in its net income during the second quarter as it warned that tariffs would hit its business in the months ahead, causing its stock to tumble. As the August 1 deadline for the tariff rates in his letters to world leaders is approaching, Mr Trump also announced a trade framework with the Philippines that would impose a tariff of 19% on its goods, while American-made products would face no import taxes. The president also reaffirmed his 19% tariffs on Indonesia. The US ran a 69.4 billion dollar trade imbalance on goods with Japan last year, according to the Census Bureau. America had a trade imbalance of 17.9 billion dollars with Indonesia and an imbalance of 4.9 billion dollars with the Philippines. Both nations are less affluent than the US and an imbalance means America imports more from those countries than it exports to them. The president is set to impose the broad tariffs listed in his recent letters to other world leaders on August 1, raising questions of whether there will be any breakthrough in talks with the European Union. At a Tuesday dinner, Mr Trump said the EU would be in Washington on Wednesday for trade talks. 'We have Europe coming in tomorrow, the next day,' Mr Trump told guests. The president earlier this month sent a letter threatening the 27 member states in the EU with 30% taxes on their goods to be imposed starting on August 1.
