European stocks traded flat to lower on Friday as investors turned cautious ahead of Fed Chair Jerome Powell's Jackson Hole speech and weighed the impact of the EU's new trade deal with the US. Under the pact, the EU pledged $750 billion in US energy spending and at least $600 billion in investment, securing a tariff cap of 15% instead of the threatened 30%. Pharmaceuticals, like other EU exports, will face the 15% levy. Meanwhile, revised data showed Germany's economy contracted more sharply in Q2, dragged by a weaker manufacturing sector after US firms front-loaded purchases earlier in...
The Hang Seng Index rose 212 points, or 0.8%, to close at 25,317 on Friday (August 22nd), rebounding from the previous session's decline as mainland Chinese markets reached a decade-high on resurgent tech optimism. The Hang Seng Technology Index surged 2.7% after DeepSeek launched its upgraded AI V3 model on Thursday, boosted by domestic semiconductors as Beijing develops chip self-sufficiency. Consumer stocks also rose sharply on hopes of fresh stimulus from Beijing after signs of a slowdown in Chinese activity in July. Locally, Hong Kong's annual inflation fell to a four-year low of 1.0%...
US stocks rose slightly on Friday after a decline led by the technology sector this week as the market awaited Federal Reserve Chairman Powell's speech at the Jackson Hole Economic Symposium. The S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average rose more than 0.6%, while the Nasdaq 100 edged up only slightly. Powell is likely to reveal how the FOMC is balancing inflation risks with a slowing labor market, as downward revisions to payrolls data weighed on high producer prices and cost measures in the PMI. Technology stocks were the highlight of the corporate sector. Alphabet rose 1.5% after...