- Asian Stocks Rise as Investors Count Down to Cuts: Markets Wrap
(Bloomberg) — Asian stocks advanced and the yen strengthened early Monday as investors took positions in
anticipation of the Federal Reserve cutting US interest rates from next month. Shares in Australia and Korea
climbed, benefitting from Chair Jerome Powell’s Jackson Hole speech, when he said the time has come to
pivot to monetary easing. - Dow closes more than 450 points higher as Powell signals Fed rate cuts are coming
Stocks rose Friday after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell indicated interest rate cuts were on the
horizon. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 462.30 points, or 1.14%, to 41,175.08. The Nasdaq
Composite advanced 1.47% to 17,877.79. The S&P 500 gained 1.15% to finish at 5,634.61, back within striking
distance of all-time highs set last month. With Friday’s gains, the three major averages also posted a winning
week. The Dow surged nearly 1.3%, and the Nasdaq added 1.4%. The S&P 500 rose 1.45% for the period.
Stocks took a leg up Friday morning after Powell signaled decreases to interest rates ahead during his speech
in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. But Powell did not provide specific information on when, or by how big any cuts
to the borrowing cost would be. - Oil Rises as Israeli Strikes on Lebanon Ratchet Tensions Higher
(Bloomberg) — Oil advanced after an Israeli strike on Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon raised tensions in
the Middle East. Global benchmark Brent rose toward $80 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate climbed
past $75. Israel sent more than 100 warplanes to take out thousands of Hezbollah missile launchers on
Sunday. - Gold Holds Near Record After Powell Affirms Rate Cut Next Month
(Bloomberg) — Gold steadied near a record high after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell affirmed
expectations the central bank will start cutting interest rates next month. Bullion traded near $2,510 an
ounce after rising 1.1% on Friday. Powell said the time has come to pivot to monetary easing at Jackson Hole,
Wyoming, on Friday. - Regal, hedge funds are sticking with Japan after the crash
(Financial Review) Australian fund managers are backing the rapid rebound in Japanese stocks, despite the
worst crash in almost four decades pouring cold water on one of the best-performing markets of the past 12
months. - Singapore Dollar Trades Around Ten-Year High on Policy Outlook
(Bloomberg) — Singapore’s dollar advanced to its strongest in almost a decade as traders weighed the
difference between the local monetary authority’s relatively hawkish policy outlook compared with that of
the Federal Reserve. The local dollar hit levels last seen in 2014 against the greenback late Friday, and
fluctuated around the 1.30 per dollar in early trading Monday. - PBOC Starts Bank Stress Tests to Avoid Stampede Out of Bonds
(Bloomberg) — China has initiated stress tests with financial institutions on their bond investments, to make
sure they can handle any market volatility should a record-breaking rally reverse, according to state-run
media. The People’s Bank of China has made a gradual start to the tests recently, wary that a bull run might
lead to one-sided bets in long-term government. - Telegram Says It Abides by EU Laws After CEO Detained in France
(Bloomberg) — Telegram on Sunday questioned the grounds for France’s detention of Chief Executive Officer
Pavel Durov, the messaging app’s billionaire co-founder who was taken into custody at a Paris airport over
the weekend. Durov, 39, was detained at Le Bourget on Saturday on suspicion of failing to take steps to
prevent criminal use of Telegram. - Powell’s Pivot Leaves Traders Debating Size, Path of Rate Cuts
(Bloomberg) — Now that Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell has made it crystal clear that interest-rate cuts
are coming next month, bond traders are focusing in on bets over the size of that first reduction and the
future path of easing. Powell, speaking Friday at the US central bank’s annual symposium in Wyoming, said
the time has come for the Fed to lower benchmark. - Yuan Carry Trade Prospers Even After Yen Version Collapses
(Bloomberg) — The hugely popular yen carry trade crashed and burned this month as Japan’s currency
surged. A less well-known version of the strategy is likely to be more immune to those kind of shocks. Trades
involving borrowing yuan to buy higher-yielding assets are set to be more resilient as China’s central bank
keeps its monetary policy dovish. - China Says It’ll Raise Taiwan, Tariffs With Visiting Biden Aide
(Bloomberg) — China will bring up issues related to Taiwan and arbitrary measures like tariffs when US
National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan visits this week, a trip aimed at maintaining dialogue between the
geopolitical rivals. - Bank of China President Liu resigns, chairman to be acting president
Bank of China Vice Chairman and President Liu Jin resigned for personal reasons effective on Sunday, the
bank said. The state-owned lender said in a statement that its board had approved Chairman Ge Haijiao to
serve as acting president. Liu, 57, has held senior roles at major Chinese banks, including ICBC and China
Development Bank. He served as president of China Everbright Bank before joining Bank of China as vice
chairman and president in 2021. - South Korea Sees US by Its Side Regardless of Election’s Outcome
(Bloomberg) — South Korea’s government isn’t worried about which candidate wins the US presidential
election since it expects to work with whoever takes the White House to confront the nuclear threat from
North Korea, according to a senior official in Seoul. - China slams U.S. for adding firms to export control list over alleged support for Russian military
China on Sunday vowed action against a U.S. move to place some Chinese firms on its export control list.
A China’s Ministry of Commerce spokesperson said the U.S. move undermines the international trade order
and rules and impacts the security and stability of global industrial and supply chains. On Friday, the U.S. said
it was adding entities from China, Russia as well as other countries to further constrain Russia’s ability to arm
its military amid the Kremlin’s war on Ukraine. - Trump says Musk wouldn’t have time to be in his White House cabinet, but could consult
Donald Trump said Elon Musk likely couldn’t serve in his White House cabinet if he were elected due to the
demands of running his various companies. As recently as two years ago, Trump and Musk were in an open
feud, exchanging insults on public forums like social media and at political rallies. Trump’s comment gives
him something of an exit ramp from his newly formed alliance with Musk if he wins the November election. - Tesla’s Optimus faces stiff humanoid competition at Beijing robot conference
While Chinese companies last week showed off humanlike robots playing the zither or grabbing sodas, Tesla
displayed its Optimus humanoid inside a clear box, next to its cars. The World Robot Conference that began
Wednesday in Beijing claimed it revealed 27 humanoids, a record. Wei Cao, partner at Lanchi Ventures,
expects the next milestone for humanoid development will occur in the next year or two: a commercially
viable use case in manufacturing in which the robots can move around and know how to prioritize a series of
tasks. - Unilever Explores Sale of Kate Somerville, REN Brands: Sky
(Bloomberg) — Unilever Plc is exploring the sale of two skincare brands, including the Kate Somerville line
that it bought in 2015, Sky News reported. The consumer brands behemoth has hired
PricewaterhouseCoopers for the potential disposal, Sky reported, citing City sources. It’s not clear what
valuation Unilever is seeking for the brand. - Micron to Buy Factories From Taiwan Panel Maker AUO: EDN
(Bloomberg) — Memory chip designer Micron Technology Inc. plans to buy two factories located in southern
Taiwan from Taiwanese panel manufacturer AUO Corp. for up to NT$20 billion, Taipei-based Economic Daily
News reports, citing unidentified people. Micron and AUO Corp. declined to comment on the deal. Micron is
looking to buy the factories to expand its advanced packaging and HBM chips. - Workday shares rallied 12.5% on Friday, after the software company said it would increase profitability
over the next three years to enable strategic investments
The firm also reported second-quarter results that beat expectations on improving operating margin.
SECOND QUARTER RESULTS: Adjusted EPS $1.75 vs. $1.43 y/y, estimate $1.64. Revenue $2.09 billion, +17%
y/y, estimate $2.08 billion. Backlog $21.58 billion, +21% y/y, estimate $21.52 billion. Adjusted operating
margin 24.9% vs. 23.6% y/y, estimate 24.7%. 2025 YEAR FORECAST: Still sees subscription revenue $7.70
billion to $7.73 billion. Sees adjusted operating margin 25.3%, saw 25%, estimate 25.1%. Morgan Stanley
analyst Keith Weiss, overweight, PT to $315 from $325: While Workday cut its growth outlook, it went on to
raise the FY27 operating margin target, a trade-off likely seen as positive. The decision to focus on margin
improvement is a clearer path to delivering attractive EPS growth, but a lower growth profile could weigh on
the multiple. - Alibaba Group Holdings Ltd
Shareholders of the Chinese e-commerce giant have approved a plan to upgrade its Hong Kong listing to
primary status, the company said, a move that is expected to attract huge investments from mainland China.
The listing status upgrade allows Alibaba to be part of a program which would connect the respective bourses
in Shenzhen and Shanghai to the Hong Kong stock exchange. The conversion to dual primary listing does not
involve any issue of new shares or even raising of funds by the company, Alibaba said. Shares of the company
were up 1.24%, HK listed, and 2.95%, US listed, as of Friday’s close. - Moderna
Moderna shares rose 1.73% after the drugmaker said the European Commission had granted marketing
authorization for mRESVIA, an mRNA respiratory syncytial virus vaccine. The authorization is valid in all 27 EU
member states, as well as Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway.
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