US stocks were bid amid optimism regarding US-Russia talks, while Apple (AAPL) also announced to invest USD 600bln in the US - Newsquawk Asia-Pac Market Open

• US stocks were bid with a focus on US earnings this week and as the upside today was led by the heavy-cap stocks, with Consumer Discretionary heavily outperforming and Health Care lagging. Tech saw gains too despite a weak AMD report after-hours on Tuesday, while there was no key data released on Wednesday, but several Fed speakers were on the wires including Kashkari who said two rate cuts this year still seem appropriate, but if inflation rises due to tariffs, the Fed could pause, or even hike. Furthermore, Cook said the July jobs data was concerning, and big revisions can happen at economic turning points, while attention was also on geopolitics with 'great progress' said to be made after US Special Envoy Witkoff's meeting with Russian President Putin which paved the way for a potential Trump-Putin meeting as soon as next week.
• USD weakened despite newsflow having little bearing on USD moves, while key updates were on topics of trade, geopolitics, and the Fed, with US President Trump doubling tariffs on India to 50%, citing the direct and indirect imports of Russian oil. Furthermore, reports emerged that Trump advisers are to push for a temporary Fed governor to fill Kugler's seat which would allow Trump more time to decide on a Fed Chair.
• Looking ahead, highlights include Australian Building Approvals & Trade Data, New Zealand Inflation Expectations, Philippines GDP, Chinese Trade Data, Supply from Japan.

More Newsquawk in 2 steps:

1. Subscribe to the free premarket movers reports

2. Trial Newsquawk’s premium real-time audio news squawk box for 7 days

LOOKING AHEAD

• Highlights include Australian Building Approvals & Trade Data, New Zealand Inflation Expectations, Philippines GDP, Chinese Trade Data, Supply from Japan.
• Click for the Newsquawk Week Ahead.

US TRADE

• US stocks were bid with a focus on US earnings this week and as the upside today was led by the heavy-cap stocks, with Consumer Discretionary heavily outperforming and Health Care lagging. Tech saw gains too despite a weak AMD report after-hours on Tuesday, while there was no key data released on Wednesday, but several Fed speakers were on the wires including Kashkari who said two rate cuts this year still seem appropriate, but if inflation rises due to tariffs, the Fed could pause, or even hike. Furthermore, Cook said the July jobs data was concerning, and big revisions can happen at economic turning points, while attention was also on geopolitics with 'great progress' said to be made after US Special Envoy Witkoff's meeting with Russian President Putin which paved the way for a potential Trump-Putin meeting as soon as next week.
• SPX +0.73% at, 6,345, NDX +1.29% at 23,315, DJI +0.19% at 44,194, RUT -0.20% at 2,221.
• Click here for a detailed summary.

TARIFFS/TRADE

• US President Trump issued an executive order to impose an additional 25% tariff on India over its purchases of Russian oil, which would raise the total tariff on Indian imports to the US to 50% effective in 21 days.
• US NEC Director Hassett stated that US President Trump said Russia sees India as a release valve where they can sell their stuff. Hassett said India is the focus when asked about other nations assisting Russia, while he stated we will see how it goes regarding Switzerland.
• Swiss President said she had a "good meeting" with US Secretary of State Rubio and had a good and friendly conversation, following a meeting to discuss tariffs. However, it was also reported that she was set to leave DC without reaching a tariff deal, according to Bloomberg.
• German Economy Minister said the EU tariffs agreement with the US needs some touching up, as well as noted that calmness and reliability are important.
• Brazilian President Lula said he has not called the White House because US President Trump shows no interest in negotiating on trade, while Lula commented "I'm not going to humiliate myself" and that Brazil is not announcing a new tariff against US goods.
• Brazil’s Finance Minister Haddad said he has a call scheduled with US Treasury Secretary Bessent next week and will today submit a contingency plan to help firms affected by tariffs, while a formal announcement depends on President Lula's office.
• Mexican President Sheinbaum said they will soon host Canadian PM Carney in Mexico.
• China's MOFCOM said it will maintain communication with all parties to foster a healthy and stable international trade environment.
• Indonesia said it is still discussing with the US the timing to implement 0% tariffs for the import of US goods, according to a senior economic minister.

NOTABLE HEADLINES

• Fed's Cook (voter) said July jobs data was concerning and that big revisions can happen at economic turning points, while she added they must be cautious and humble when looking at data. Furthermore, she said policymakers must understand that uncertainty has a financial stability component.
• Fed's Collins (2025 voter) said it is key to understand how uncertainty impacts the economy and that uncertainty is notable in areas where long-term investment is happening, while she added they must look at data holistically to measure uncertainty levels and noted that uncertainty can even speed up some types of economic activity.
• Fed's Kashkari (2026 voter) said the economy is slowing and it is not clear regarding the impact of tariffs on inflation, but it still may be appropriate in the near term to begin adjusting the policy rate, via CNBC. Kashkari said the Fed needs to respond to the slowing economy and noted that two rate cuts this year still seem appropriate, but added that if inflation rises due to tariffs, the Fed could pause or even hike. Furthermore, he said it is better to cut then hike, than sit on hands in the face of slowing economic data.
• US President Trump’s advisers are to push for a temporary Fed governor to fill the seat of resigned Fed Kugler", while a short-term Fed pick would give President Trump additional time on the Chair decision, who will likely already work in the government and be previously vetted by the Senate.
• White House said Apple (AAPL) is to boost US investment commitment by USD 100bln with President Trump to make this announcement today, while NEC director Hassett said they are likely to hear about a new factory from Apple (AAPL). Furthermore, it was reported that Apple CEO Tim Cook will appear at the US President Trump announcement.

FX

• USD weakened despite newsflow having little bearing on USD moves, while key updates were on topics of trade, geopolitics, and the Fed, with US President Trump doubling tariffs on India to 50%, citing the direct and indirect imports of Russian oil. Furthermore, reports emerged that Trump advisers are to push for a temporary Fed governor to fill Kugler's seat which would allow Trump more time to decide on a Fed Chair.
• EUR benefited from the demise of the dollar and with data showing a rebound in Eurozone Retail Sales.
• GBP gained a firmer footing in 1.3300 territory but with further upside capped ahead of an expected BoE rate cut on Thursday.
• JPY was choppy with the downside cushioned by support at the 147.00 level and amid widening US-Japan yield differentials.

FIXED INCOME

• T-notes were choppy and the curve steepened with focus on Kugler's replacement and supply this week, while a long-end fat finger hit the curve although the moves pared by settlement.

COMMODITIES

• Oil prices ultimately settled lower on Russia/Ukraine optimism following talks between US Special Envoy Witkoff and Russian President Putin, while President Trump intends to meet in person with Putin as soon as next week.
• US EIA Weekly Crude Stocks w/e -3.029M vs. Exp. -0.591M (Prev. 7.698M)
• Saudi Arabia set September Arab Light Crude Oil OSP to Asia at plus USD 3.20/bbl vs Oman/Dubai average, compared to plus USD 2.20/bbl for August, according to Reuters citing a document. Furthermore, it set September Arab light crude oil OSP to the US at plus USD 4.20/bbl vs ASCI (prev. plus USD 3.90) and OSP to NW Europe at plus USD 3.35/bbl (prev. plus 4.65) to ICE Brent settlement.
• Qatar set September Marine Crude OSP at Oman/Dubai USD +2.3/bbl; land crude at USD +2.3/bbl.
• Iraqi Oil Minister said oil exports through Turkey's Ceyhan pipeline are to resume on Wednesday or Thursday. However, a separate report noted there was no sign of an imminent restart of oil exports through Turkey's Ceyhan pipeline, according to Reuters citing industry sources.
• Iraqi Oil Minister said BP (BP/ LN) will begin developing the Kirkuk oil fields in less than a month.
• Indian refiners wait for government order on Russian oil purchases, while an official at a private refining company said "So far, we have not been told anything by the government, so we will not stop Russian oil imports".
• Russia plans to increase Western oil exports to nearly 2mln bpd in August after drone strike on refineries, which is about 200k bpd more than the previous estimate, according to Reuters citing sources.
• Nigeria's Dangote oil refinery (650k bpd) is planning a 15-day maintenance on its gasoline-making RFCC unit from August 10th.

GEOPOLITICAL

MIDDLE EAST

• Israeli PM Netanyahu faced pushback from the head of the military over his proposal to seize remaining areas of Gaza, according to Reuters citing sources.

RUSSIA-UKRAINE

• US President Trump told European leaders he intends to meet with Russia's President Putin and Ukraine's PM Zelensky, with Trump intending to meet in person with Putin as soon as next week, according to NYT.
• US President Trump said Special Envoy Witkoff had a highly productive meeting with Russian President Putin and "great progress was made!", while Trump updated European allies and stated that "Everyone agrees this War must come to a close, and we will work towards that in the days and weeks to come.”
• White House said the meeting with Russia and Special Envoy Witkoff went well, while it added that Russia is eager to continue engaging with the US and secondary sanctions on Russia are expected to be implemented on Friday.
• US Secretary of State Rubio said he will have more to say later on Wednesday when asked if sanctions against Russia will still go into effect this week, while he added that there will hopefully be some announcements soon, maybe positive, maybe not.
• Kremlin aide Ushakov said talks with US Special Envoy Witkoff were useful and constructive, while he added Russia sent "signals" and have "received some signals" from US President Trump. Furthermore, they discussed the Ukraine crisis and the prospect for development of a Russia-US partnership.
• Ukrainian President Zelensky said he discussed Witkoff's visit to Moscow in a call with Trump and said that Russia should end this war, while he also commented that pressure on Russia is working and it's crucial they do not deceive them, as well as commented that it looks like Russia is more inclined to a ceasefire.
• Russian Defence Ministry said forces hit Ukraine's gas transportation system supplying military facilities, according to IFAX.

ASIA-PAC

NOTABLE HEADLINES

• Indian PM Modi is to visit China on August 31st, according to Indian press.
• Two Chinese nationals have been arrested and charged with illegally shipping millions of dollars' worth of AI chips to China, while the court documents allege the shipments included NVIDIA's (NVDA) H100 GPD.

EU/UK

NOTABLE HEADLINES

• Germany reportedly readies a EUR 100bln fund to invest in strategic assets in a bid to secure sectors such as defence, critical raw materials, and energy, according to Bloomberg.
• ECB Economic Bulletin pre-release stated that recent developments in consumer confidence, especially for households in the top 20% income bracket, point towards muted consumption growth overall in 2025.

DATA RECAP

• UK S&P Global Construction PMI (Jul) 44.3 vs. Exp. 48.8 (Prev. 48.8)
• UK S&P Global PMI MSC Composite (Jul) 50.8 (Prev. 51.7)
• German Industrial Orders MM (Jun) -1.0% vs. Exp. 1.0% (Prev. -1.4%)
• German HCOB Construction PMI (Jul) 46.3 (Prev. 44.8)
• French HCOB Construction PMI (Jul) 39.7 (Prev. 41.6)
• EU HCOB Construction PMI (Jul) 44.7 (Prev. 45.2)
• EU Retail Sales MM (Jun) 0.3% vs. Exp. 0.4% (Prev. -0.7%, Rev. -0.3%)
• EU Retail Sales YY (Jun) 3.1% vs. Exp. 2.6% (Prev. 1.8%, Rev. 1.9%)