1. Japan’s Nikkei 225 erases gains to trade lower after BOJ keeps interest rate steady
Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 index pared gains to fall 0.57% Friday, after the Bank of Japan kept its policy rate steady at 0.5%, in line with the forecast from a poll of economists. The benchmark index had hit a fresh record high for a second consecutive session earlier in the day. The index closed at 45,045.81, while the Japanese yen appreciated by 0.14% against the dollar to 147.80. The decision to hold rates comes as Japan’s core inflation rate in August fell to its lowest since November 2024 at 2.7%, marking a third straight month of decline. The core inflation figure — which strips out prices of fresh food — was in line with the 2.7% expected by economists.
2. Dow, S&P 500 close at fresh records, log big gains for the week after Fed rate cut
Stocks rose on Friday, with major U.S. indexes notching weekly gains, as the Federal Reserve’s decision to cut interest rates set in investors’ minds. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 172.85 points, or 0.37%, to close at 46,315.27, reaching a fresh record high. The S&P 500 settled up 0.49% at 6,664.36, while the Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.72% to finish at 22,631.48. The small-cap Russell 2000 dipped 0.7%, taking back some gains this week after the index touched a fresh record high earlier in the session. Apple led the way higher, rising 3.2%, as the company’s latest iPhone went on sale around the world. Tesla shares were also up more than 2.2%.
3. Gold drifts higher with spotlight on Fed policy path
Gold prices moved higher on Friday and headed for a fifth consecutive weekly gain, with market attention focused on further cues after the U.S. Federal Reserve delivered its first rate cut of the year. Spot gold was up 1.1% at $3,683.24 per ounce. Prices were also up 1.1% this week. U.S. gold futures for December delivery gained 1.1% to $3,718.50. The U.S. central bank cut its key interest rate by 25 basis points on Wednesday but tempered the move with warnings about persistent inflation, casting doubt over the pace of future easing. Following the decision, spot gold prices hit a record high of $3,707.40 before retreating in volatile trading. Fed Bank of Minneapolis President Neel Kashkari said job market risks warranted this week’s rate cut and likely reductions at the central bank’s next two meetings.
4. Oil prices slip as robust supply outweighs outlook for more consumption
Oil prices dropped on Friday as worries about large supplies and declining demand outweighed expectations that the year’s first interest-rate cut by the U.S. Federal Reserve would trigger more consumption. Brent crude futures settled at $66.68 a barrel, down 76 cents or 1.1%. U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures finished at $62.68, down 89 cents or 1.4%. Both benchmarks rose for a second consecutive week. The Fed cut its policy rate by a quarter of a percentage point on Wednesday and indicated that more cuts would follow as it responded to signs of weakness in the U.S. jobs market.
5. Trump says Murdochs are potential TikTok deal partners
President Donald Trump said in an interview that aired Sunday that conservative media baron Rupert Murdoch and his son Lachlan are likely to be involved in the deal to save TikTok in the United States. “A man named Lachlan is involved,” Trump said on Fox News’ “The Sunday Briefing.” “Lachlan Murdoch … Rupert [Murdoch] is probably going to be in the group, I think they’re going to be in the group,” he continued. Trump also said that Oracle executive chairman Larry Ellison and Dell Technologies CEO Michael Dell are also likely to be involved in the TikTok deal. “Couple of others, really great people, very prominent people,” Trump said. “And they’re also American patriots, you know, they love this country. So, I think they’re going to do a really good job,” he continued.
6. U.S. House lawmakers make rare China visit to stabilize ties
A group of U.S. lawmakers on a rare visit to Beijing told China’s No.2 leader, Premier Li Qiang, that the world’s two largest economies need to step up engagement and “break the ice” as both superpowers made further inroads into stabilizing ties. The visit on Sunday was the first House of Representatives delegation to visit China since 2019. The COVID-19 pandemic ended formal House visits in 2020, and relations rapidly deteriorated due to disagreement over the origins of the coronavirus that had spread all over the world. The trip by the bipartisan delegation, announced this month, follows a call on Friday between presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping as both countries seek a course out of a period of strained ties exacerbated by trade tensions, U.S. restrictions over semiconductor chips, the ownership of TikTok, Chinese activities in the South China Sea, and matters related to Taiwan, which Beijing claims as part of its territory.
7. Big Tech companies, foreign governments scramble after Trump slaps $100,000 fee on H-1B visas
Major technology companies and foreign governments are rushing to respond after President Donald Trump late Friday announced plans to impose a $100,000 fee on H-1B visas, threatening to upend the program that underpins America’s technology workforce. The fee would apply to new H-1B applicants, not renewals or current visa holders, according to a White House official. It will first apply in the upcoming lottery cycle, and it does not apply to 2025 lottery winners, the person said. The White House also clarified that the new $100,000 fee is not an annual charge, as previously reported by several media outlets. The move could deal a massive blow to companies — primarily in the technology and finance sectors — that rely heavily on highly skilled immigrants, particularly from India and China.
8. China leaves benchmark lending rates unchanged as expected, despite Fed rate cut
China kept its benchmark lending rates unchanged for the fourth straight month on Monday despite the U.S. Federal Reserve’s interest rate cut last week. The People’s Bank of China kept the one-year loan prime rate unchanged at 3.0% while the five-year rate remained at 3.5%, according to a statement. The one-year rate influences most new and outstanding loans, while the five-year benchmark affects mortgages. The central bank last trimmed the key lending rates by 10 basis points in May as part of Beijing’s efforts to shore up its economy. The PBOC last Thursday kept the seven-day reverse repo rate, which serves as the main policy rate, unchanged, following the Fed’s 25-basis-point cut. The benchmark CSI 300 index opened higher on Monday before edging down 0.24%. The offshore yuan strengthened slightly to 7.1161 against the U.S. dollar.
9. UK, Canada and Australia formally recognize a Palestinian state, breaking with the U.S.
The United Kingdom, Canada and Australia officially recognized Palestine as a state on Sunday, marking a significant shift in foreign policy and a step away from their alignment with the United States, with several other European nations and U.S. allies set tofollow suit this week. “Today, to revive the hope of peace for the Palestinians and Israelis, and a two-state solution, the United Kingdom formally recognizes the State of Palestine,” British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said in a statement. Canada had, moments before, become the first Group of 7 nation to recognize the state of Palestine, as Prime Minister Mark Carney promised a “peaceful future for both the State of Palestine and the State of Israel.” The move is largely symbolic, and grants the Palestinians increased diplomatic standing and the potential for treaty-making.
10. South Korea’s President Lee says U.S. investment demands would spark a financial crisis
South Korea’s economy could fall into crises rivalling its 1997 meltdown if the government accepts current U.S. demands in stalled trade talks without safeguards, President Lee Jae Myung said. Seoul and Washington verbally agreed to a trade deal in July in which the U.S. would lower President Donald Trump’s tariffs on South Korean goods in exchange for $350 billion in investment from South Korea, among other measures. They have yet to put the agreement on paper because of disputes over how the investments would be handled, Lee said. “Without a currency swap, if we were to withdraw $350 billion in the manner that the U.S. is demanding and to invest this all in cash in the U.S., South Korea would face a situation as it had in the 1997 financial crisis,” he said through a translator.
11. Tesla wins approval to test autonomous robotaxis in Arizona
Tesla has been approved to start testing autonomous robotaxi vehicles with a safety monitor in Arizona, the state transportation department said in an email on Friday. Tesla had applied in June for a permit to begin trials for an autonomous vehicle ride-sharing service, and now plans to test robotaxis in the Phoenix Metro area using safety drivers, the Arizona Department of Transportation said in its email. It was not immediately clear when the trials would start or how long they would last. Tesla Chief Executive Elon Musk previously stated that Tesla plans to launch an autonomous ride-hailing service to about half of the U.S. population by the end of this year. Tesla rolled out a small test of its robotaxi service in a limited area of Austin, Texas, in June, with about a dozen vehicles, a select group of passengers and many restrictions, including a safety monitor in the front passenger seat.
12.Striking Boeing Defence workers approve union’s proposed contract that company rejected
Striking workers at Boeing Defence voted 90% to approve a four-year contract proposal from union leadership that management has already refused to consider, the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) announced on Friday. Niam leadership said Boeing can end the 46-day-long strike that has slowed production of military aircraft by accepting the offer. The union sent it to management even though Boeing leadership pre-emptively dismissed it as a “publicity stunt.” “Our members have spoken loudly – we are ready to return to work once Boeing accepts this agreement,” IAM District 837 President Tom Boelling said in a statement.
13. Pfizer closes in on $7.3 billion takeover of anti-obesity drugmaker Metsera
Pfizer is closing in on a potential $7.3 billion takeover of weight-loss drug developer Metsera . Pfizer, one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the United States, will acquire New York City-based Metsera for $47.50 per share in cash, with an additional $22.50 per share contingent on the achievement of certain performance milestones, the newspaper said. Talks to acquire Metsera come just months after the biotech firm’s blockbuster Nasdaq debut, underscoring surging investor appetite for companies developing next-generation weight-loss therapies. Some experts forecast that the global weight-loss drug market could be valued at $150 billion by the early 2030s.
14. Indian software stocks slide after H-1B visa fee hike
Indian software stocks fell on Monday after the U.S. government sharply raised fees for H-1B visa applications, stoking concerns over higher costs and operational disruptions for the country’s IT services sector. The Nifty IT index dropped nearly 3%, lagging broader markets, which were largely steady. Tech Mahindra led declines by falling more than 4%, while Tata Consultancy Services shares dropped 2.5%. Wipro shares declined 2%, and Infosys stock dropped as much as 4%. HCL Technologies also shed 2%. The Trump administration announced late last week that new H-1B visa applications will now carry a fee of $100,000, more than three times higher than previous levels. Indian IT firms rely heavily on the visas to send engineers to the United States, their largest market, to service client projects. The fee had initially stirred confusion after comments by Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick suggested it might apply annually and also affect renewals.
15. Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway exits China’s BYD
Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway has fully exited Chinese automaker BYD, a filing showed, ending a 17-year investment that grew over 20-fold in value in that period. The filing by Berkshire’s energy subsidiary recorded the value of its BYD investment as zero as of end-March, down from $415 million at the end of 2024. Buffett’s company began investing in Shenzhen-based BYD in 2008, when it paid $230 million for about 225 million shares, equivalent to a 10% stake at the time. It began selling those shares in 2022 after BYD’s share price had risen more than twentyfold. The biggest rival to Tesla saw quarterly profit fall for the first time in three and a half years as its expansion hit a speed bump amid a government campaign against price wars.
16. Nvidia and Abu Dhabi institute launch joint AI and robotics lab in the UAE
Abu Dhabi’s Technology Innovation Institute and Nvidia have launched a joint research lab in the United Arab Emirates that will focus on developing next-generation AI models and robotics platforms, TII said on Monday. The joint research hub is the first Nvidia AI Technology Centre in the Middle East, TII said in a statement, combining its multidisciplinary research with the U.S. company’s AI models and computing power, which are fuelling a global artificial intelligence boom. Under the agreement, the institute will be able to use specific edge GPU chips to advance its research on robotics among other areas, said Najwa Aaraj, the CEO of TII, which is working on humanoids, four-legged robots and robotic arms. The Gulf country, a major oil exporter, has been spending billions of dollars in recent years on its AI push, looking to leverage its strong relations with the United States to secure access to technology.
