Daily News 2nd July 26
Daily News
Kospi Plunges 5.36% to Lead Asia Lower; Dow Closes Flat After Touching Record as Nasdaq Slides; Gold Reclaims $4,000; Crude Sinks Below $68 to a Four-Month Low
02 July 2026
Today in Brief
South Korea's Kospi led Asian losses, tumbling 5.36% at the open and triggering a five-minute trading halt, while the Kosdaq fell 3.55%, Japan's Nikkei 225 slipped 0.70% (Topix +0.13%), Australia's ASX 200 dropped 0.59%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 1.27% and the CSI 300 fell more than 2%. The moves followed a lower Wednesday session on Wall Street: the Dow surged to an intraday record of 52,742.66 before closing down 13.96 points, or 0.03%, at 52,305.24 as AI beneficiary Caterpillar pulled back almost 7%, the S&P 500 eased 0.22% to 7,483.23, and the Nasdaq slid 0.66% to 26,040.03 as investors took profits on semiconductors that had jumped more than 80% in the first half of 2026. Gold strengthened back above $4,000 an ounce after an eight-month low, as Fed Chair Kevin Warsh said inflation expectations had eased, while crude fell below $68 — its lowest since late February — as Strait of Hormuz flows topped 10 million barrels per day.
In other news: Russia launched a large-scale missile and drone strike on Ukraine, prompting Poland to scramble jets and Finland to briefly restrict airspace; Warsh declined to hint at the July rate decision but called inflation "too high"; Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey said rate cuts are off the table for Britain; RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra suggested India may lower its inflation target over the long term; OpenAI proposed handing the U.S. government a 5% stake, worth roughly $42.6 billion; Chinese EV makers BYD and Xiaomi surged on strong June delivery figures; Meta closed 8.8% higher on plans to enter the cloud infrastructure market; and Netflix rose after a report walked back speculation of an NBCUniversal bid.
South Korea's Kospi led losses in Asia, falling 5.36% at the open
South Korea's Kospi led losses in Asia, falling 5.36% at the open, prompting the Korean Exchange to temporarily halt trading for five minutes to curb volatility. The small-cap Kosdaq dropped 3.55%. Japan's Nikkei 225 declined 0.70%, while the Topix inched up 0.13%. Australia's benchmark S&P/ASX 200 was down 0.59%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose 1.27%, while the CSI 300 was down more than 2%. The moves come after the major U.S. averages ended Wednesday's session lower, with the Dow erasing a 423.46-point jump that brought it to record highs to close just below the flatline.
Dow closes little changed after touching record; Nasdaq slides to start July
The Dow Jones Industrial Average scaled to a record high before cooling on Wednesday, while the Nasdaq Composite struggled amid declines in chipmakers. The 30-stock average lost 13.96 points, or 0.03%, to close at 52,305.24. Earlier in the session, the Dow surged to a new intraday high of 52,742.66 before retreating as artificial intelligence beneficiary Caterpillar pulled back almost 7%. The S&P 500 dropped 0.22%, ending at 7,483.23. The Nasdaq Composite declined 0.66% to 26,040.03. The tech-heavy index fell as investors dumped semiconductor names, taking profit after the swath of stocks surged more than 80% in the first half of 2026.
Gold strengthened above $4,000 an ounce on Thursday after falling to an eight-month low earlier this week
Gold strengthened above $4,000 an ounce on Thursday after falling to an eight-month low earlier this week, as Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh said inflation expectations had eased over the past month, suggesting there was no urgency to raise interest rates. However, he reiterated the central bank's commitment to restoring price stability. Data released on Wednesday also showed private-sector hiring in the US slowed more than expected last month, while investors now await the nonfarm payrolls report later today for fresh insights into labor market conditions and the Fed's policy outlook. Markets continue to price in more than a 60% chance of a Fed rate hike in September.
Crude oil fell below $68 per barrel on Thursday, reaching its lowest level since late February
Crude oil fell below $68 per barrel on Thursday, reaching its lowest level since late February as oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz continued to increase and investors welcomed signs of progress in indirect US-Iran talks. A US official said crude flows through the strategic waterway exceeded 10 million barrels per day with support from the American military. The UAE's oil exports have also returned to pre-war levels through workarounds. Meanwhile, Iranian oil exports jumped above 40 million barrels following the lifting of a US naval blockade, while record Russian shipments contributed to a significant buildup in seaborne inventories. At the same time, President Donald Trump praised the progress in negotiations, and Qatar said the next round of talks would be held as soon as possible.
Russia launches massive strike on Ukraine as Poland scrambles jets, Finland restricts airspace
Russia launched a large-scale missile and drone attack on Ukraine Thursday, targeting Kyiv and other regions across the country. Russia's Defense Ministry said that it carried out a "massive strike using long-range precision air, land, and sea-based weapons and attack drones." Moscow said the strikes targeted military-industrial facilities, fuel and energy complexes in Kyiv and the Kyiv region, as well as military airfields in the Dnipropetrovsk, Poltava, Cherkasy and Chernihiv regions. "Kyiv is under attack from ballistic missiles and UAVs," Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said on Telegram, adding that there were 10 deaths and 34 injured. It was not immediately clear how many missiles and drones were launched at Ukraine, or how many Ukraine had managed to intercept. Finland had temporarily imposed an "aviation restriction zone" in the eastern Gulf of the country before lifting it.
Fed Chief Kevin Warsh declines to hint at July rate decision, but says inflation 'too high'
Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin Warsh, in comments Wednesday at the ECB Forum on Central Banking, declined to give any signal as to what the central bank may do at its meeting later this month, but did note that inflation was too elevated. "We're all in the price stability business, that might not be our only business, but if there was a common thing I heard over the last couple of days, it was open-mindedness on these questions of AI, open-mindedness on productivity, but we've all looked around, and we've seen that prices are too high," Warsh told CNBC's Sara Eisen during the panel in Sintra, Portugal.
Rate cuts are not back on the table for Britain, Bank of England's Bailey says
The Bank of England is not in a position to consider cutting interest rates, Governor Andrew Bailey said on Wednesday, despite oil prices falling back near pre-Iran war levels. "There was an expectation that we would cut rates this year. That's not unreasonable in the context of a softening economy. That was off the table in March, and it's off the table at the moment," Bailey said at a European Central Bank conference in Sintra, Portugal. Other panelists speaking alongside Bailey, including new Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh, expressed their opposition to giving "forward guidance" on their policy plans. Most economists polled by Reuters expect, by a slim margin, that the BoE will leave rates unchanged this year, while financial markets see a roughly 75% chance of a single quarter-point rate hike.
India may lower inflation target long-term, says RBI governor
India is not expected to increase its official inflation target and may consider reducing it in the future, Reserve Bank of India Governor Sanjay Malhotra said Wednesday at an event in Russia. The country's inflation-targeting framework has contributed to lower average inflation, Malhotra stated during a conversation with Russian central bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina at the Financial Congress of the Bank of Russia. India implemented its inflation-targeting framework in 2016, which requires the Reserve Bank of India to maintain headline consumer price inflation within a band established by the government. In March, the government maintained its retail inflation target at 4%, within a comfort band of 2%-6%, following a review. The target will remain effective for five years.
OpenAI proposes 5% stake to Trump administration to ease Washington pressure
OpenAI has proposed handing the U.S. government a 5% stake in the company, the Financial Times reported Thursday, as the artificial intelligence startup seeks to defuse mounting political pressure in Washington. A 5% holding would be worth roughly $42.6 billion, after the AI fab closed a record-breaking funding round in March at a post-money valuation of $852 billion. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman argued that giving the public a financial interest in the company is the best way to share the upside of AI, the FT reported, citing two people familiar with the talks. Altman suggested a stake of that size in early conversations with the Trump administration, according to the report. It is not clear whether the administration intends to pursue the stake.
Shares of BYD and Xiaomi surge as June delivery figures fuel optimism
Hong Kong-listed shares of Chinese electric vehicle makers surged Thursday after June delivery figures buoyed investor sentiment, with BYD gaining around 9% and Xiaomi climbing about 5%. Xiaomi reported its third consecutive month of having over 30,000 deliveries in June. The company's shipments from January to June totalled over 180,000 units, representing about 33% of its 2026 delivery target of 550,000 units, according to Citi. Citi said Xiaomi's shares could rebound in August with the launch of its YU9 luxury sport utility vehicle. "Any sign of memory peaking given more capex announcement from global Chinese memory makers could be positive to Xiaomi shares," it added. Meanwhile, BYD posted a vehicle sales volume of 403,472 units in June, up 5.46% from 382,585 units in the same period a year ago.
Meta Platforms stock closes 9% higher on cloud business plans
Meta Platforms shares closed 8.8% higher on Wednesday following a Bloomberg report that the tech giant plans to enter the cloud infrastructure market by selling its excess AI computing capacity. The move sets up direct competition with established hyperscale giants like Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud Platform (GCP), while introducing new dynamics to the broader AI ecosystem. According to sources familiar with the matter, the initiatives are developing under an internal segment known as Meta Compute. Meta is reportedly exploring a dual-pronged approach to monetize its massive infrastructure investments.
Netflix gained on Wednesday as report refutes NBCUniversal acquisition speculation
Netflix Inc shares are trading up 3.8% at $74.14 on Wednesday, rebounding from near their 52-week low after The Wall Street Journal walked back speculation that the streaming giant was lining up a bid for NBCUniversal following Comcast Corp's announced spinoff. The relief rally reflects fading fears that the company would pursue another costly megadeal so soon after losing a bidding war for Warner Bros. Discovery. With the stock already down roughly 43% over the past year and trading near its 52-week low of $70.86, the prospect of yet another expensive acquisition attempt was poorly received. The WSJ's subsequent reporting on June 30, which framed the NBCU spinoff as a broad Hollywood deal target rather than an imminent Netflix objective, helped reverse that sentiment.
