1. Asian stocks surge as trade tensions ease, Nikkei hits record
Asian stocks rose on Tuesday as the prospect of easing trade tensions between the world’s top two economies boosted risk sentiment, while the near-certainty of Sanae Takaichi becoming Japan’s next prime minister sent the Nikkei to a record high. U.S. President Donald Trump said he expects to reach a fair-trade deal with Chinese President Xi Jinping and downplayed risks of a clash over the issue of Taiwan. Trade tensions between the U.S. and China have weighed on the markets in recent weeks, with investor focus now on Trump’s planned meeting with Xi on the sidelines of an economic conference in South Korea next week. The lingering hope that a resolution could be on the cards lifted investor sentiment. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan hit an over four-and-half-year high and was last up 0.94%. China stocks rose 0.2% while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was 1% higher in early trading.
2. Dow closes 500 points higher as Apple revives stock rally
Stocks moved higher on Monday, thanks to a rise in Apple shares, as investors looked ahead to a possible end to the ongoing U.S. government shutdown as well as a slew of big-name earnings reports and inflation data expected in the coming days. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 515.97 points, or 1.12%, higher at 46,706.58. The S&P 500 also climbed 1.07% to settle at 6,735.13, while the Nasdaq Composite advanced 1.37% to settle at 22,990.54.
3. Gold’s record run pauses as investors book profits
Gold prices inched lower on Tuesday, as investors booked profits after bullion hit a fresh high in the previous session on hopes of further interest rate cuts from the U.S. Federal Reserve and strong safe-haven demand. Spot gold was down 0.3% at $4,340.29 per ounce, as of 0248 GMT, having hit an all-time high of $4,381.21 on Monday. U.S. gold futures for December delivery eased 0.1% to $4,356.40 per ounce. Elsewhere, spot silver dipped 1.6% to $51.64 per ounce, platinum slipped 0.7% to $1,627.62 and palladium gained 0.5% to $1,503.17. The data, scheduled for release on Friday after a delay due to the government shutdown, is expected to show that the index rose 3.1% on a year-over-year basis in September.
4. Oil falls for a second day as oversupply concerns dominate
Oil prices fell for a second day on Tuesday as concerns about excess supply and risks to demand stemming from tensions between the U.S. and China, the world’s top two oil consumers, weigh on the market. Brent crude futures fell 17 cents, or 0.28%, at $60.84 a barrel at 0343 GMT. The U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude (WTI) contract for November delivery, set to expire on Tuesday, eased 0.52% to $57.22. The more active December contract was down 19 cents, or 0.33%, at $56.83. Prices declined to their lowest since early May in Monday’s session on the concerns about slowing economic growth from the recent escalations in the U.S.-China trade dispute.
5. Japan makes history as Takaichi set to become the country’s first woman prime minister
Sanae Takaichi on Tuesday created history, winning Japan’s parliamentary vote to become the country’s first woman prime minister, with domestic stock markets cheering her ascendancy. Takaichi garnered 237 votes in the first round of voting, negating the need for a runoff vote in the 465-seat Lower House, according to public broadcaster NHK. Her victory comes after the ruling Liberal Democratic Party allied with the Japan Innovation Party and reportedly signed an agreement over the weekend to form a coalition government. Domestic Japanese media has also reported that the JIP is not looking at cabinet positions in the new administration, and will instead support the government from the outside.
6. U.S. and Australia sign critical minerals agreement with $8.5 billion project pipeline
President Donald Trump and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Monday signed an agreement on critical minerals and rare earths that Albanese said includes plans for projects worth a total of up to $8.5 billion. Albanese, during a meeting with Trump at the White House, said, “There will be $1 billion contributed from Australia and the United States over the next six months with projects that are immediately available.” But the White House subsequently issued a fact sheet that said the countries would invest more than $3 billion in critical mineral projects over the next six months. It described the agreement as a “framework.” The White House also said that the Export-Import Bank of the United States will issue seven letters of interest for more than $2.2 billion in financing, unlocking up to $5 billion in total investment.
7. Trump calls for Ukraine to be carved up with Russia after tense meeting with Zelenskyy
Trump held a tense meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the White House on Friday, with the potential supply of U.S. long-range cruise missiles, Tomahawks, on the agenda. Zelenskyy walked away from the meeting not only empty-handed, but apparently upbraided by Trump, who said Ukraine should accept Russia’s terms for ending the war — by handing over the entire eastern territory of Donbas, the epicenter of ongoing fighting in Ukraine. Speaking to reporters this weekend, Trump said for Donbas to be “cut the way it is.” “It’s cut up right now, I think 78% of the land is already taken by Russia,” he said on Air Force One on Sunday. “They should stop right now at the battle lines. … Go home, stop killing people and be done.”
8. Trump downplays Taiwan risk in China talks, expects fair trade deal
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday he expects to reach a fair-trade deal with Chinese President Xi Jinping and downplayed risks of a clash over the issue of Taiwan, even as his top trade negotiator accused Beijing of engaging in “economic coercion.” Trump suggested to reporters that China had no designs on invading Taiwan but acknowledged he expected the issue to be on the agenda at a planned meeting with Xi on the sidelines of an economic conference in South Korea next week. Trade tensions between the U.S. and China, the world’s two biggest economies, have lingered. Disputes over tariffs, technology and market access remain unresolved days before the meeting. Trump spoke at the start of a meeting with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese where the two signed a critical minerals agreement aimed at countering China. Trump’s comments on Taiwan reflect one of the most sensitive issues in U.S.-China relations. Beijing has repeatedly pressed Washington to alter the language it uses when discussing its position on Taiwanese independence.
9. US business lobby urges Trump to end new curbs on exports to China
A lobbying group whose board includes U.S. firms like Oracle, Amazon.com and Exxon Mobil is urging the Trump administration to immediately suspend a rule it says halted billions of dollars’ worth of U.S. exports and will prompt China and other countries to drop U.S. firms from their supply chains. In a letter addressed to President Donald Trump, the National Foreign Trade Council takes aim at the so-called Affiliates Rule, which bars American companies from shipping goods and technology to companies part-owned by sanctioned firms. The rule “has resulted in an immediate pause of billions in U.S. exports, which is contrary to your desire to reduce the trade deficit and increase U.S. exports globally,” NFTC President Jake Colvin wrote in the letter. The rule, if left intact, would encourage other countries to turn to non-U.S.-made goods, “resulting in weakening U.S. national security as the rest of the world, led by China, removes American nodes from its supply chains,” he added.
10. Alibaba shares surge on report of AI project to rival ByteDance’s Doubao
Alibaba Group shares rallied in Hong Kong trade on Tuesday after local media reported the company is developing an artificial intelligence project aimed at rivalling offerings from tech major ByteDance. Alibaba rose as much as 4.2% to HK$169.0, and was among the biggest boosts to the Hang Seng index, which added 1.7%. Chinese media outlet Sina Tech reported that Alibaba’s Quark unit is developing a new initiative aimed at developing conversational AI products. The project, dubbed “Plan C,” could be intended to directly challenge ByteDance’s AI chatbot Doubao. Plan C is being developed by Quark’s core team with support from Alibaba’s Tongyi Labs, with the latter being at the heart of Alibaba’s AI development efforts. Tongyi has developed all of Alibaba’s flagship Qwen large language models, and is also among the top Chinese LLMs in the market.
11. Amazon says AWS cloud service is back to normal after outage disrupts businesses worldwide
Amazon.com cloud service returned to normal operations on Monday afternoon, the company said, after an internet outage that caused global turmoil among thousands of sites, including some of the web’s most popular apps like Snapchat and Reddit. Still, Amazon said some AWS services had a backlog of messages that would take a few hours to process. AWS hosts applications and computer processes for companies around the world, and the disruption knocked workers from London to Tokyo offline and halted others from conducting normal everyday tasks like paying hairdressers or changing their airline tickets. Users on Monday afternoon had complained of lingering difficulties using services such as digital wallet Venmo and video calling site Zoom.
12. Apple nears $4 trillion valuation as shares surge on strong iPhone 17 demand
Apple shares surged to an all-time high on Monday, with the iPhone maker close to becoming the third company to hit a $4 trillion market valuation as data showed strong momentum for the latest iPhone. Data from research firm Counterpoint showed the iPhone 17 series outperformed its predecessor in early sales in China and the United States, with the newer models out-selling the iPhone 16 series by 14% during their first 10 days of availability in the two countries. Apple shares jumped 4.2% to $262.9, giving it a market capitalization of about $3.9 trillion and making it the second most valuable company in the world after AI-chip giant Nvidia. The stock has risen modestly since early August after the company pledged $100 billion in additional U.S. investment, a move that could help it sidestep potential tariffs.
