2025-10-07 01:31
MANILA, Oct 7 (Reuters) - Philippine annual inflation was1.7% in September, above the previous month's 1.5% rate, the statistics agency said on Tuesday. Economists in a Reuters poll had expected annual inflation to pick up to 2.0% in September. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/philippine-annual-inflation-17-september-2025-10-07/
2025-10-07 00:00
AMD soars after OpenAI deal Tesla up as company teases Tuesday event Crypto companies gain as bitcoin breaches $125k Indexes: S&P 500 up 0.36%, Nasdaq up 0.71%, Dow down 0.14% NEW YORK, Oct 6 (Reuters) - The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq advanced on Monday, as artificial intelligence-related dealmaking boosted investor sentiment even as the U.S. government shutdown extended through its sixth day. The Nasdaq and the S&P 500 reached record closing highs, while the blue-chip Dow inched lower. Sign up here. Chips took the lead after AMD (AMD.O) , opens new tab said it would supply AI chips to OpenAI in a deal that could generate tens of billions of dollars in yearly revenue and would allow the ChatGPT creator to buy a stake of up to 10% in the chipmaker. AMD surged 23.7%, while the broader Philadelphia Semiconductor Index rose 2.9%. "The market is seeing some strength in areas like technology and consumer discretionary and it's flying in the face of the government shutdown," said Robert Pavlik, senior portfolio manager at Dakota Wealth in Fairfield, Connecticut. "The market is still interested in the AI trade and the companies that support and use it." "It's a wave and waves don't go on forever; it will eventually crest and decline," Pavlik added. "But where are we this cycle of the wave? It's impossible to know." The federal government remained shuttered for the sixth day as lawmakers idled in a partisan impasse. The shutdown has postponed the release of key economic indicators, forcing investors to rely on secondary, non-government data to gauge the timing and extent of Federal Reserve interest rate cuts. Monetary policymakers have cautioned against rushing to lower the Federal Funds target rate as inflation remains high, while others believe signs of softness in the labor market merit rate cuts. Financial markets have priced in an all-but-certain 94.6% chance of a 25 basis point interest rate reduction at the conclusion of the Fed's October meeting. Without new U.S. government data this week, market participants are monitoring reports on outstanding consumer credit, mortgage demand and the University of Michigan's preliminary take on October consumer sentiment. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI) , opens new tab fell 63.31 points, or 0.14%, to 46,694.97, the S&P 500 (.SPX) , opens new tab gained 24.49 points, or 0.36%, to 6,740.28 and the Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC) , opens new tab gained 161.16 points, or 0.71%, to 22,941.67. Among the 11 major sectors of the S&P 500, consumer discretionary (.SPLRCD) , opens new tab led the gainers, while real estate (.SPRLCR) , opens new tab suffered the steepest percentage decline. Next week, third-quarter earnings will provide market catalysts as the reporting season gets underway with results from large U.S. banks. Analysts estimate aggregate year-on-year S&P 500 earnings growth of 8.8% for the July-to-September period, up 0.8 percentage points from projections at the beginning of the third quarter, according to LSEG data. Tesla (TSLA.O) , opens new tab advanced 5.5% after the electric carmaker teased an event scheduled for Tuesday on social media platform X over the weekend. TD Cowen cut its Starbucks (SBUX.O) , opens new tab price target, citing a weakening labor market affecting Generation Z, sending the coffee chain's shares down 5.0%. Bitcoin breached the $125,000 mark on Sunday, sending crypto-related firms Coinbase (COIN.O) , opens new tab, Strategy (MSTR.O) , opens new tab, Riot Platforms and MARA Holdings (MARA.O) , opens new tab all gained ground. Regional bank Comerica (CMA.N) , opens new tab gained 13.7% after Fifth Third (FITB.O) , opens new tab said it will buy the company in an all-stock deal valued at $10.9 billion. Verizon (VZ.N) , opens new tab shares dipped 5.1% after the telecommunications company named former PayPal (PYPL.O) , opens new tab boss Dan Schulman as its new chief executive officer. Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.05-to-1 ratio on the NYSE. There were 665 new highs and 75 new lows on the NYSE. On the Nasdaq, 2,602 stocks rose and 2,062 fell as advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.26-to-1 ratio. The S&P 500 posted 46 new 52-week highs and nine new lows while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 187 new highs and 58 new lows. Volume on U.S. exchanges was 19.69 billion shares, compared with the 19.17 billion average for the full session over the last 20 trading days. https://www.reuters.com/business/wall-street-futures-rise-investors-focus-ai-rate-cut-themes-2025-10-06/
2025-10-06 22:41
Oct 7 (Reuters) - Gold raced to log a record high in early Asia hours trading on Tuesday, driven by economic uncertainty and as market participants saw possibilities of further rate cuts by the U.S. Federal Reserve. Spot gold gained 0.3% to $3,970.59 per ounce by 2230 GMT after hitting a record high of $3,972.01 earlier, while U.S. gold futures for December delivery gained 0.5% to $3,994.10, also hitting a record high at $3,997/oz. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/india/spot-gold-hits-record-high-amid-safe-haven-demand-fed-rate-easing-hopes-2025-10-06/
2025-10-06 22:08
MELBOURNE, Oct 7 (Reuters) - Australia said on Tuesday it expected gold to become its second most valuable resource export after iron ore this financial year, dislodging liquefied natural gas, as concerns over geopolitical instability fuel demand for the safe-haven metal. Australia's gold exports are expected to rise by A$12 billion ($7.9 billion) to A$60 billion in the current financial year ending in June 2026, as the country exports more gold at higher prices, the department of industry said in its September quarterly report. Sign up here. That would eclipse Australia's export earnings for LNG, which are expected to fall to A$54 billion this financial year, and to A$48 billion the following year, tracking lower oil prices. A lower interest rate environment in the United States is also expected to support gold prices above $3,200 a troy ounce over the next two years, the report said. Gold prices hit a record high on Monday and are trading close to $4,000 an ounce. Gold is bucking the trend seen across most of Australia's resources export earnings which have dropped as energy prices normalise following the spike at the onset of the war in Ukraine that drove earnings to a record above A$460 billion in 2022-2023. Total Australian resource and energy export earnings are forecast to drop by 5% to A$369 billion in the current financial year, and to fall further to A$354 billion in the following year. "Commodity markets are anticipating slower world growth as a result of rising trade barriers and monetary conditions that are still on the restrictive side of neutral in the US," the report said. Iron ore remains the cornerstone of Australia's resource export earnings, accounting for more than 25% of all resource and energy commodities earnings over the next two years. The report lifted its iron ore price forecast by 10% to average $87 a metric ton this financial year from a June forecast, as steel demand is supported by a proposed new hydro dam in Tibet and China's aim to curtail overcapacity in its steel industry. Overall, Australia still sees a downward trend in iron ore earnings, which it expects will fall by A$3.9 billion to A$113 billion in 2025–26 and then to A$103 billion in 2026–27. ($1 = 1.5147 Australian dollars) https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/gold-set-become-australias-second-biggest-resource-earner-2025-10-06/
2025-10-06 21:59
White House meetings on aid held, announcement expected soon Plan faces hurdles due to ongoing government shutdown Bailout framed as a 'bridge' for harvest months, source says WASHINGTON, Oct 6 (Reuters) - The Trump administration is expected to announce a plan as soon as Tuesday to bail out U.S. farmers stung by trade disputes and big harvests, with the initial outlay potentially totaling up to $15 billion, according to sources familiar with the matter. The plan, however, could be difficult to roll out as an ongoing government shutdown prevents the kind of Congressional action needed to approve such a large payout, and existing government reserves fall short, the sources said. Sign up here. Farmers generally support President Donald Trump but have pressed his administration for trade deals as China continues to spurn U.S. soybean purchases amid tit-for-tat tariffs, and a record corn harvest threatens to sink farmer profits. Republican lawmakers have warned farmers face "financial calamity" if they do not receive aid by the end of the year. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said last week , opens new tab that the White House would announce aid for farmers on Tuesday. Three sources told Reuters they expected the administration to announce the package this week. One of those sources said the bailout would total somewhere between $10 billion and $15 billion, and would be a necessary bridge to get farmers through the harvest months and could be followed by additional aid. The funds would go to soybean farmers affected by the China trade spat, as well as other types of commodity farmers, though the exact details were not yet determined, that source said. A U.S. Department of Agriculture spokesperson said farmers are benefiting from lower taxes, trade deals and updates to farm programs included in Trump's July tax-cut and spending bill. "President Trump has made it clear he will not leave farmers behind, so USDA will continue to assess the farm economy and explore the need for further assistance, however, there is nothing new to share at this time," the spokesperson said. National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett on Monday said the White House had held several meetings on farmer aid in the past two weeks. "We're taking big measures and those big measures are going to be public really, really soon," he said on CNBC. SHUTDOWN COMPLICATES AID PLAN Trump has said repeatedly that the administration will use tariff income to pay for farmer aid. But such direct payments to farmers are statutorily capped at $350 million, a fraction of the sum being discussed, and can only be adjusted by Congress. That adjustment is difficult to achieve while the federal government is shut down, two of the sources said. Another option is to draw down funds from the Commodity Credit Corporation, a financing mechanism at the USDA that is typically refilled each year in autumn, but has not been refilled because of the shutdown, said Jonathan Coppess, associate professor at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. During Trump's first term, he used the CCC to pay farmers more than $23 billion in trade aid, about a $3 billion overpayment, according to the Government Accountability Office. The remaining funds currently in the CCC are likely insufficient to pay for the package being discussed, Coppess said. Farmers are already set to receive near-record government payments of more than $40 billion this year, fueled by disaster and economic aid passed by Congress last year. https://www.reuters.com/world/us/trump-bailout-trade-hit-us-farmers-expected-this-week-2025-10-06/
2025-10-06 21:53
Lula and Trump discuss economic and trade relations Tariffs trigger drop in Brazilian coffee and beef exports to US Trump assigns Rubio to negotiate tariffs with Brazil BRASILIA, Oct 6 (Reuters) - Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and U.S. President Donald Trump agreed to meet in person soon after a friendly video call on Monday, Brazil's government said, boosting prospects for a thaw in bilateral relations that are at their worst in decades. During the leaders' 30-minute call, Lula's office said in a statement that he and Trump discussed their positive impressions of a brief encounter at the United Nations last month and exchanged phone numbers to open a direct line of communication. Sign up here. Trump said on social media that the call was "very good," with a focus on the countries' economic and trade relations. "We will be having further discussions, and will get together in the not-too-distant future, both in Brazil and the United States," he wrote. TARIFFS HIT BRAZIL'S COFFEE AND BEEF EXPORTS TO U.S. Lula suggested a meeting during this month's summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Malaysia and expressed his willingness to travel to the United States, his office said. The two leaders have been at odds for months over the trial and conviction of Brazil's former president Jair Bolsonaro. Trump hiked a tariff on many Brazilian goods from 10% to 50% because of the case, which he called a "witch hunt." Lula's office made no reference to Bolsonaro in its summary of the call, but it noted that the Brazilian president had asked Trump to remove the additional 40% tariff. The tariffs have triggered a drop in Brazilian coffee exports to the U.S. by as much as 70%, while sharply reducing shipments of Brazilian beef. Coffee prices in the U.S., which has traditionally relied on Brazil for one-third of its supply of coffee beans, have risen sharply due in large part to the tariffs, which have forced roasters to buy more expensive coffee elsewhere. Trump designated Secretary of State Marco Rubio to continue tariff negotiations with Brazilian Vice President Geraldo Alckmin, Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira and Finance Minister Fernando Haddad, the Brazilian statement added. A meeting between the two leaders has been closely watched by Brazilian markets after the country's exports suffered one of the highest tariff rates imposed by the United States. The Trump administration also sanctioned Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes, who oversaw Bolsonaro's case, under the Magnitsky Act. It also revoked the visas of six high-ranking officials, including Brazilian Solicitor-General Jorge Messias. Without naming Trump directly, Lula said at the U.N. General Assembly last month that there was no justification for unilateral and arbitrary measures targeting Brazil's institutions and economy. https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/brazils-lula-trump-hold-video-call-says-source-2025-10-06/
