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  • Asian Stocks Decline, weighed by Japan Before BOJ: Markets Wrap

(Bloomberg) — Asian stocks fell, weighed by Japanese shares, while the yen traded in a narrow range as markets awaited the outcome of the Bank of Japan’s two-day policy meeting. The Nikkei and Topix fell, while the Japanese currency hovered around the 157.10 per dollar mark, as the central bank is widely expected to consider reducing bond purchases.

  • Bank of Japan set to reduce JGB purchases, stands pat on interest rate

The Bank of Japan kept its benchmark interest rate unchanged on Friday, but indicated it’s considering the reduction of its purchase of Japanese government bonds. The central bank left short-term rates unchanged at between 0% to 0.1% at the end of its two-day policy meeting, as widely expected. But notably, the bank said in its statement it could reduce its purchases of Japanese government bonds after the next monetary policy meeting, scheduled for July 30 and 31. The decision was passed with an 8-1 majority vote, with board member Nakamura Toyoaki dissenting.

  • Microsoft Pulls Back Wide Release of Criticized Windows AI Tool

(Bloomberg) — Microsoft Corp., facing scrutiny over the security of its products, is withdrawing a new artificial intelligence feature of its Windows software for new personal computers from broad release and instead will test it with a smaller group. Recall, a Windows feature unveiled in May, creates a record of everything people do on their PCs — an approach that’s intended to make it easier to handle tasks such as sorting through emails or searching files. Microsoft planned to release Recall broadly on June 18, but said it will now be available in the coming weeks only in the Windows Insider Program.

  • UBS Nears Sale of Credit Suisse China Unit to Beijing Fund

(Bloomberg) — UBS Group AG has entered final negotiations with a Beijing-backed fund over the sale of Credit Suisse’s money-losing China venture after talks with Citadel Securities LLC stalled, according to people familiar with the matter. UBS is now in exclusive talks with its Chinese partner, Beijing State-Owned Assets Management Co., on the deal, the people said, asking not to be identified because the discussions are private.

  • Judge Likely to Reject $30 Billion Visa, Mastercard Fee Deal

(Bloomberg) — A $30 billion settlement between Visa Inc., Mastercard Inc. and retailers to cap credit-card swipe fees is likely to be rejected by a federal judge in Brooklyn, a setback in the two decade-long litigation. Judge Margo Brodie of the US District Court of the Eastern District of New York indicated in a hearing Thursday that she probably won’t approve the deal, according to court records.

  • Biden Vows Allies Will Stand with Ukraine ‘Until They Prevail’

(Bloomberg) — US President Joe Biden hailed a new security agreement, plans for $50 billion in Ukraine aid and expanded sanctions targeting Moscow as a clear signal to Russian President Vladimir Putin that the US and allies are not “backing down” from their support for Kyiv.  “We’ll be with Ukraine until they prevail in this war,” Biden said Thursday alongside Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy at a press conference in Italy, hailing the measures as critical to sustaining support for Ukraine as its war to repel Russia’s invasion enters a third year.

  • Fed’s Favored Inflation Gauge Seen Rising by Least in Six Months

(Bloomberg) — The Federal Reserve’s favored inflation gauge is set for the smallest advance since November following two better-than-expected reports on prices out this week. Bureau of Labor Statistics data on producer prices Thursday showed declines in key categories that feed into the central bank’s preferred metric — known as the personal consumption expenditures price index, which is due later this month.

  • Wholesale prices unexpectedly fell 0.2% in May

A measure of wholesale prices unexpectedly decreased in May, adding another piece of evidence that inflation is pulling back. The producer price index, a gauge of prices that producers get for their goods and services in the open market, declined 0.2% for the month, the Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Thursday. That reversed a 0.5% increase in April and compared with the Dow Jones estimate for a 0.1% rise. Excluding food, energy and trade services, the PPI was unchanged, compared with expectations for a 0.3% increase. On an annual basis, the all-items PPI rose 2.2%.

  • G-7 to Tap Frozen Russian Assets for $50 Billion to Ukraine

(Bloomberg) — Group of Seven nations have agreed on a loan syndicate based on the size of their economies to provide Ukraine with about $50 billion of fresh aid starting to flow by the end of the year, according to people familiar with the matter. After months of discussions on how to use the profits generated by frozen Russian sovereign assets, the plan is set to win the backing of leaders at a summit in Italy this week.

  • US Lawmakers Take on Uber, Lyft Rider Surveillance in New Bill

(Bloomberg) — Two US senators are introducing a bill that would require ride-hailing companies including Uber Technologies Inc. and Lyft Inc. to notify passengers if their assigned drivers are using dashcams to record them.  The proposed legislation from Republican Senator Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee and Democratic Senator Peter Welch of Vermont would require companies to give customers the option of being paired with a new driver if they don’t want to ride with a driver using a recording device.

  • Trump Says He’ll Restart Oil Drilling in Alaska Wildlife Refuge

(Bloomberg) — Donald Trump told Senate Republicans Thursday he would restart oil drilling in Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, reversing a move by the Biden administration to cancel leases in the frozen wilderness. “He said ‘We’ll get back to that,’” Senator Kevin Cramer, a North Dakota Republican, told reporters after emerging from a closed-door meeting with Trump and other Republican senators.

  • Trump Tells CEOs He Would Cut Corporate Tax Rate to 20%

(Bloomberg) — Donald Trump promised to lower the corporate tax rate to 20%, further reducing the income levy on the largest US companies that he already slashed while president, according to people familiar with the remarks. The presumptive Republican presidential nominee pitched his support for cutting the business tax rate during a private meeting in Washington Thursday with roughly 100 chief executive officers of some of the biggest American companies, including JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s Jamie Dimon and Tim Cook of Apple Inc.

  • Oil Field Services Firm HMH Said to Pick JPMorgan, Piper for IPO

(Bloomberg) — HMH Holding Inc., an oil field services joint venture between two sector giants, has selected banks for a planned US initial public offering, according to people familiar with the matter. JPMorgan Chase & Co., Piper Sandler Cos. and Evercore Inc. are underwriting on the Houston-based company’s IPO, the people said.

  • Medical Data Firm Tempus AI Meets Goal in $410.7 Million IPO

(Bloomberg) — Tempus AI Inc., a technology platform company using artificial intelligence to process medical data, priced its initial public offering at the top of a marketed range to raise $410.7 million. Joining a rush of companies going public while touting their AI credentials, Tempus sold 11.1 million shares for $37 each after offering them for $35 to $37, according to a statement Thursday confirming an earlier report by Bloomberg News.

  • Broadcom shares surged 12.27% after it reported an upbeat second quarter results.

Adjusted earnings per share came in at $10.96, beating estimates of $10.80. Adjusted net revenue was at $12.49 billion, beating estimates of $12.06 billion. Broadcom Chief Executive Officer Hock Tan believes Broadcom’s results were supported by a strong demand for artificial intelligence products, which fueled the company’s growth. The chip supplier also announced a 10-for-1 stock split, which will be effective on 15 July 2024. 

  • Adobe shares surged as much as 15% in extended trading after it reported its second quarter results and raised its full year forecast on key metrics.

In the second quarter, adjusted earnings per share came in at $4.48 vs $3.91 YoY, beating estimates of $4.40. Revenue was at $5.31 billion, +10% YoY, beating estimates of $5.29 billion. For the financial year ahead, Adobe forecasted an adjusted earnings per share between $18.00 and $18.20, versus market estimate of $18.02. It also sees revenue to be between $21.40 billion and $21.50 billion, versus market estimate of $21.46 billion.

  • Tesla Inc. shares rose 2.9% after Elon Musk said shareholders voted “by wide margins” in favour of re-approving his compensation package and moving the company’s state of incorporation to Texas.

The chief executive officer posted voting results on X, the social media site he owns, hours before shareholder voting ended and ahead of Tesla’s annual meeting Thursday in Austin. He shared two charts suggesting the proposals had been approved. Musk and Tesla’s board have spent the last two months rallying support for the measures, putting particular emphasis on the pay deal that made Musk eligible for as much as $55.8 billion in stock options based on the company hitting certain milestones. A Delaware judge voided the award earlier this year, pointing to conflicts of interest among Tesla directors and disclosure failures. The vote on Musk’s pay carries more symbolic weight than legal power. While shareholders’ approval may help Tesla with an appeal or a rehearing in a new case, the company acknowledged in its proxy filing that it “cannot predict with certainty how a vote to ratify Musk’s compensation would be treated under Delaware law.”

  • Coupang Inc. shares fell 4.4% after South Korea’s Fair-Trade Commission announced that it imposed a tentative fine of 140 billion won ($102 million) on the company for giving preferential treatment to its own private-label products over other sellers working with the country’s top online shopping company.

Coupang got its employees to write favorable purchase reviews and manipulated algorithms to promote its own private brand products at the top and mislead consumers said South Korea’s FTC. The regulator is asking prosecutors to investigate Coupang and its wholly-owned private label brand unit CPLB. Coupang says it regrets the FTC’s decision to impose an excessive fine and move to push criminal charges and it will “vigorously challenge the unfairness of the decision in court through administrative proceedings.”

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