1. Asia-Pacific markets mostly rose, with Australian stocks among the top gainers
Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell for the third straight session and ended the day 0.65% lower at 42,610.17. Losses were led by Daiichi Sankyo, Socionext and Lasertec Corp. Meanwhile, the broader Topix index dropped 0.52% to 3,082.95. Yields on Japan’s 20-year government bonds rose to 2.645%, after hitting a 26-year high earlier in the session. Yields on the 10-year government bonds ticked up to a 17-year high of 1.61%. In South Korea, the Kospi index pared earlier gains to rise 0.37% at 3,141.74, while the small-cap Kosdaq was flat at 777.24. Mainland China’s CSI 300 increased by 0.39% to 4,288.07, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index was down 0.22% to 25,109.43.
2. S&P 500 posts fifth losing day ahead of Powell speech, Dow drops 150 points
Stocks fell broadly on Thursday, with the S&P 500 sliding for a fifth day in a row, as traders look to Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s speech on Friday. The broad-market index shed 0.4% and closed at 6,370.17, while the Nasdaq Composite slid 0.34% and settled at 21,100.31. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 152.81 points, or 0.34%, ending at 44,785.50. Investors are looking to hear from Powell at the central bank’s annual economic symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyo., where he could offer insights into the path of interest rates that could offer some reprieve about persistent inflation concerns. Fed funds futures are pricing in a nearly 74% likelihood of the central bank cutting rates at its next policy gathering in September, according to CME’s FedWatch tool.
3. Gold slips as dollar firms ahead of Powell’s Jackson Hole speech
Gold prices edged lower on Thursday as the dollar strengthened, while investors awaited U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s speech at the Jackson Hole symposium for signals on U.S. policy direction. Spot gold fell 0.3% to $3,337.95 per ounce. U.S. gold futures for December delivery settled 0.2% lower at $3,386.50. The U.S. dollar index was up 0.4%, making U.S. dollar-priced gold expensive for overseas buyers. Powell is expected to speak at the Jackson Hole conference about the economic outlook and the Fed’s policy stance on Friday. The Fed has kept rates unchanged since December, but traders see a 71% chance of a quarter-point cut by September, according to CME’s FedWatch tool.
4. Oil rises on signs of strong demand, Russia-Ukraine peace uncertainty
Oil prices rose on Thursday, bolstered by signs of strong demand in the United States, with uncertainty over efforts to end the war in Ukraine also lending support. Brent crude futures rose 83 cents, or 1.24%, to close at $67.67 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate gained 81 cents, or 1.29%, to settle at $63.52. Both contracts climbed over 1% in the prior session. Russia said on Wednesday that attempts to resolve security issues relating to Ukraine without Moscow’s participation were a “road to nowhere.” Volodymyr Zelenskiy to be followed by a trilateral summit among the three presidents. Russia has not confirmed it will take part in talks with Zelenskiy. Russian embassy officials in New Delhi said on Wednesday that Moscow expects to continue supplying oil to India despite U.S. warnings.
5. Dollar gains before key Powell speech at Jackson Hole on Friday
The dollar gained on Thursday before a highly anticipated speech by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on Friday will be evaluated for any new clues on whether the U.S. central bank is likely to cut interest rates next month. Traders ramped up bets on a cut at the Fed’s September 16-17 meeting after an unexpectedly weak jobs report for July. The risk of higher inflation as President Donald Trump’s administration enacts new trade tariffs, however, remains a wild card that is making some policymakers hesitant to ease. The dollar briefly pared gains on Thursday after data showed that the number of Americans filing new applications for jobless benefits rose by the most in about three months last week.
6. U.S. and EU spell out tariffs for autos, pharmaceuticals and more
The U.S. and European Union on Thursday revealed fresh details about their trade framework, including on hotly contested and anticipated pharma and semiconductor tariffs. After weeks of heated negotiation, Brussels and Washington finally arrived at a trade agreement late last month, setting out 15% blanket tariffs on EU exports to the U.S. Under the deal, the EU also committed to purchase $750 billion worth of U.S. energy and invest at least an additional $600 billion in the U.S. Several questions remained unanswered including on what tariff rate would apply to some goods U.S. President Donald Trump has hit with sectoral duties. Thursday’s announcement at last shed more details at a time when many other trading partners are still waiting, and negotiating, for similar clarity on their respective trade deals with the U.S.
7. US factory in Ukraine hit in largest Russian air attack for weeks
Russia has targeted Ukraine’s cities and hit a US-owned consumer electronics factory in the largest combined drone and missile attack in more than a month, only five days after Donald Trump’s meeting with Vladimir Putin in Alaska. Kyiv’s air force on Thursday said Moscow had launched 574 drones and 40 cruise and ballistic missiles overnight, targeting five cities in western Ukraine as well as the industrial city of Zaporizhzhia near the southern front line. A missile strike on Mukachevo, a city 30km from the Hungarian border, struck a large US-owned electronics manufacturing plant, Ukraine’s government said on Thursday. Officials said 19 people were injured, and some 600 employees were on shift but had taken shelter after an air raid warning.
8. Taiwan raises defence spending by 23% under US pressure to counter China threat
Taiwan plans to raise defence spending by almost a quarter next year in an effort to show the US its determination to strengthen itself against threats from China. The increase, if approved by parliament, would lift Taiwan’s defence spending to more than 3.3 per cent of GDP, above that of most Nato member countries apart from the US, Poland and Estonia. “It demonstrates in concrete terms to the world and our own people that we are determined and able to safeguard our sovereignty and security . . . and fulfil our responsibilities,” premier Cho Jung-tai said when presenting the cabinet’s draft budget on Thursday. The sharp increase comes as US President Donald Trump’s ambiguous stance towards Taiwan has raised anxiety in Taipei over the risk that Washington could back away from its support for the country’s security. China claims sovereignty over Taiwan and threatens to annex it by force if Taipei resists unification indefinitely. The cabinet’s budget plan would raise total defence spending to NT $949.5bn (US$31.13bn), or 3.32 per cent of the latest 2026 annual GDP forecast.
9. Zoom Communications lifts annual forecasts on robust demand for AI tools
Zoom Communications raised its annual revenue and profit forecasts on Thursday, banking on hybrid work trends and the integration of artificial intelligence technology into its products, sending its shares up 4.5% in extended trading. The integration of AI across its product line and the broadening of its service portfolio have helped Zoom sustain growth in its core video-conferencing offering, while enabling it to enter and scale in new markets. The company in June introduced its Virtual Agent 2.0, which can autonomously complete complex tasks such as processing returns, updating accounts or booking appointments, powered by agentic AI. Zoom also launched a slew of new agentic AI capabilities in July. Zoom now expects fiscal 2026 revenue between $4.83 billion and $4.84 billion, above its earlier projection of $4.80 billion to $4.81 billion.
10. Walmart results show consumer resilience; shares down after recent rally
Walmart’s results on Thursday show U.S. consumers across the spectrum are still flocking to the retailer’s stores despite economic headwinds, but shares dipped as the company’s margins ebbed and inventory costs rose. The world’s largest retailer has scooped up market share from rivals as wealthier consumers frequent the store more often, worried about the effects of tariffs on prices. That’s fuelled an 85% surge in the stock over the last year-and-a-half that some analysts say has made its valuation too lofty. Shares were down 4% in midday trading, as its second-quarter profit was lower than expected, registering Walmart ’s first earnings miss in more than three years. Its 12-month forward price-to-earnings ratio of 36.64 is roughly double the industry median and nearly three times higher than Target’s. Investors also focused on Walmart’s gross margins for the quarter, which fell short of their expectations.
11. Apple boosts subscription price for TV+ to $12.99
The ad-free streaming service will now cost $12.99 per month, up from $9.99 earlier, for new subscribers in the U.S. and select international markets, Apple said in a statement. The annual subscription price remains unchanged, as does the pricing for Apple One, which bundles Apple TV+ with services such as iCloud and Apple Music, among others. However, the streaming network has lagged behind rivals Netflix, Disney+ and Amazon’s Prime Video in terms of subscribers. The iPhone maker is estimated to have reached 40.4 million at the end of 2024, according to analysts. In comparison, Netflix had over 300 million paid memberships at the end of last year. Apple had last increased the subscription price for Apple TV+ by $3 in October 2023.
12. Amazon continues to gain share in U.S. e-commerce market, JPM says
Amazon extended its lead in the U.S. e-commerce market in the second quarter, according to JPMorgan, which cited the company’s accelerating retail growth and logistics advantages. In an update to its U.S. e-commerce model, JPMorgan said U.S. online sales rose 5.3% year over year in the second quarter, broadly stable with the 5.6% growth seen in the first quarter. Amazon’s retail business outpaced the broader market. JPMorgan said Amazon’s global first-party sales growth accelerated to 10% year over year in constant currency, compared with 6% in the prior quarter. JPMorgan forecasts a slight deceleration in overall U.S. e-commerce growth in the second half of 2025 due to tougher comparisons and potential tariff effects, but expects penetration to keep rising.
13. Boeing in talks to sell up to 500 jets to China
Boeing is in talks to sell as many as 500 jets to China, Bloomberg News reported on Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter. Shares of the U.S. plane maker rose 2% before the market open as the potential order would be China’s first major purchase of Boeing jets since U.S. President Donald Trump’s visit in his previous term. The two sides are negotiating the details such as jet models, types and delivery schedules, the report said, adding that the order could be the centrepiece of a trade deal between the world’s two largest economies. It would also help Boeing narrow the gap with rival Airbus, which has pulled far ahead in China in recent years. Chinese officials have begun consulting their domestic airlines on their requirements for Boeing jets, the report said. Jet purchases have increasingly featured in Trump’s diplomatic visits this year.
14. Disney’s new ESPN app reaches for sports fans outside cable TV
Walt Disney’s ESPN will deliver its full range of sports programming outside of pay TV for the first time starting on Thursday, when the network debuts an app designed to be a hub for live games and personalized news, stats and highlights. The ESPN app is Disney’s effort to capture some of the tens of millions of customers that the pioneering sports channel has lost since 2010 during the streaming TV revolution. ESPN executives said they have tailored the new offering, which is far broader than the limited ESPN+ app launched in 2018, to cater to the tastes of today’s sports fans. The app will offer more than 47,000 live events each year from the NFL, NBA, WNBA, NHL, college football, tennis, golf and other sports. It will cost $30 per month. An introductory offer will include ad-supported versions of the Disney+ and Hulu streaming services for free.
15. Xpeng CEO just loaded up stake in the company, shares up nearly 12%
Xpeng Inc is pushing meaningfully to the upside this morning following reports that He Xiaopeng, its chief executive and co-founder has loaded up on the EV stock. Xiaopeng has bought roughly 3.1 million shares of the Guangzhou-headquartered electric vehicle company. Following the transaction, the CEO and his affiliates now own nearly 19% of XPEV. Xpeng stock has been on an absolute tear over the past month. Including the rally on Thursday, the EV stock is up well over 30% from its low in July. With Xiaopeng and affiliates now holding 19% of XPEV, the management’s strategic priorities are now fully aligned with shareholder interests and commitment to driving sustainable value. All in all, the CEO’s increased stake reinforces confidence in execution and future value creation.