Asia-Pacific markets traded higher, tracking Wall Street gains overnight. Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 rose 0.41% after hitting a fresh record high on Thursday, while the Topix added 0.61%. South Korea's Kospi climbed 0.83%, and the small-cap Kosdaq jumped 0.65%. Australia's benchmark S&P/ASX 200 added 0.41%. Futures for Hong Kong's Hang Seng index stood at 26,464, higher than its last close of 26,086.32. Equities in several parts of the world have been rallying as easing inflation pressures and expectations for U.S. rate cuts boost investor sentiment. "Momentum and the promise of...
Israel launched widescale strikes against Iran on Friday, saying it targeted nuclear facilities, ballistic missile factories and military commanders and that this was start of a prolonged operation to prevent Tehran from building an atomic weapon. Iranian media and witnesses reported explosions including at the country's main uranium enrichment facility at Natanz, while Israel declared a state of emergency in anticipation of retaliatory missile and drone strikes. Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards corps said its top commander, Hossein Salami, was killed and state media reported the unit's...
The Israeli Air Force conducted a strike in Iran on Thursday, according to two sources with knowledge of the operation. It's not yet clear what Israel is targeting, but explosions were reported in Tehran. Why it matters: Israel is directly attacking its biggest and best-armed adversary, without clear backing from the U.S. President Trump publicly opposed an Israeli attack on Iran's nuclear sites on Thursday, saying he still believed a nuclear deal was possible. It's not clear whether Israel has ordered strikes on Iran's nuclear program, or whether the U.S. opposed this specific...
The Trump administration began sending termination notices Thursday to about 500,000 foreign nationals who had received temporary stays to live and work in the United States under a special humanitarian exception. The so-called CHNV program was open to applicants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela from 2023 until it was terminated by President Donald Trump earlier this year. Recipients of the notices from the Department of Homeland Security are encouraged to "self-deport immediately." The move came two weeks after the Supreme Court ruled that DHS can order CHNV participants to...
President Donald trump ramped up his attacks on Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on Thursday, calling him a "numbskull" and demanding steep rate cuts to ease the $600 billion annual interest bill on U.S. debt. Now, with inflation cooling faster than expected, rate cuts could be on the Fed's monetary policy table as soon as September, according to Citi economists. "We continue to pencil in 125bp of consecutive rate cuts from the Fed starting in September," Citi economists wrote, pointing to a rapid slowdown in core inflation as the key catalyst for policy easing. Trump's latest broadside...
U.S. President Donald Trump continues to press Jerome Powell and the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates, as inflation data remains subdued despite his aggressive tariff policy. While Trump continues to press for lower rates, he said he won't fire Powell. "We're going to spend $600 billion a year because of one numbskull that sits here," Trump said. "Cut your rates now, there's no inflation." Trump suggested the Fed cut interest rates by two full percentage points, which could save the U.S. up to $900 billion. This is larger than his past ask for a one percentage point cut from the Fed....
Asia-Pacific markets traded higher, tracking Wall Street gains overnight.
Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 rose 0.41% after hitting a fresh record high on Thursday, while the Topix added 0.61%. South...
Both the STOXX 50 and STOXX 600 hovered around the flatline on Friday, as investors adopted a cautious stance ahead of further developments in trade talks between US President Trump and Chinese...
Less than four months ago, President Donald Trump met with Qatar's leader, praised his magnificent palace, and signed a comprehensive defense agreement with the Gulf monarchy, a key ally that hosts...