Wall Street gains as Trump's interim Fed choice stokes dovish bets
At 9:34 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI), opens new tab rose 134.42 points, or 0.31%, to 44,103.06, the S&P 500 (.SPX), opens new tab gained 17.22 points, or 0.27%, to 6,357.22 and the Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC), opens new tab advanced 44.83 points, or 0.21%, to 21,287.53.
Trump moved to reshape the Fed on Thursday, nominating Council of Economic Advisers' chair Stephen Miran for a short-term board seat after Adriana Kugler's abrupt exit—and narrowing his shortlist to replace Jerome Powell, whose term ends May 15.
On the same day, Bloomberg News reported that Fed Governor Christopher Waller was emerging as a leading contender for the chair.
Investors were being whipsawed by mixed signals over the Fed's future, as Trump's pressure stirs worries about the central bank's independence and a potential leadership reshuffle that could skew policy looser.
"The reality is the president can't force a chair to step down or put any additional pressure to make the governors to force rates lower. This is about him putting in folks who are going to be more dovish and ultimately (lead) to deeper rate cuts, whether they're justified or not," said Phil Blancato, CEO, Ladenburg Thalmann Asset Management.
In earnings-related moves, Expedia (EXPE.O), opens new tab leapt 9.7% after raising its annual forecast for gross bookings and revenue growth.
Monster Beverage (MNST.O), opens new tab gained 9% as the company beat estimates for its second-quarter results.
Gilead Sciences (GILD.O), opens new tab jumped 8.9% following its raising of the full-year financial outlook.
Trade Desk (TTD.O), opens new tab sank 38% in after the ad-tech firm reported a sharp slowdown in second-quarter revenue growth.
Pinterest (PINS.N), opens new tab tumbled 11.5% as the social media platform missed analysts' estimates for second-quarter profit.
Sector-wise, consumer discretionary (.SPLRCD), opens new tab could top the leaderboard this week, while healthcare (.SPXHC), opens new tab lags, weighed down mainly by Eli Lilly. The drugmaker fell 14.1% in the previous session after results from a late-stage study on its experimental GLP-1 pill fell behind that of Novo Nordisk's (NOVOb.CO), opens new tab.
On the day, all sectors were trading in the green.
Meanwhile, both the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq were on track for their best week in over a month, while the Dow was on track to log modest gains. Equities have ridden a dramatic reset in rate expectations and a flurry of upbeat earnings.
Traders now peg a 90% chance of the first rate cut hitting next month, according CME's Fedwatch tool, with futures pointing to at least two cuts by year-end.
U.S. tariffs on a bunch of trading partners took effect at midnight on Thursday. Tokyo's trade negotiator said Washington will amend a presidential executive order to remove overlapping tariffs on Japanese goods, terming it as oversight.
In a rebuke to Washington, New Delhi shelved fresh U.S. arms and aircraft purchases, according to three Indian officials, after Trump-era tariffs pushed relations to their lowest point in years.
St. Louis Fed President Alberto Musalem is scheduled to speak later at 10:20 a.m. ET.
Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 2.33-to-1 ratio on the NYSE and by a 1.63-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.
The S&P 500 posted 11 new 52-week highs and two new lows, while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 38 new highs and 32 new lows.
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The Independent
a few seconds ago
- The Independent
As hurricane season collides with immigration agenda, fears increase for those without legal status
If a major hurricane approaches Central Florida this season, Maria knows it's dangerous to stay inside her wooden, trailer-like home. In past storms, she evacuated to her sister's sturdier house. If she couldn't get there, a shelter set up at the local high school served as a refuge if needed. But with aggressively accelerating detentions and deportations of immigrants across her community of Apopka, 20 miles (32 kilometers) northwest of Orlando, Maria, an agricultural worker from Mexico without permanent U.S. legal status, doesn't know if those options are safe. All risk encountering immigration enforcement agents. 'They can go where they want,' said Maria, 50, who insisted The Associated Press not use her last name for fear of detention. 'There is no limit.' Natural disasters have long posed singular risks for people in the United States without permanent legal status. But with the arrival of peak Atlantic hurricane season, immigrants and their advocates say President Donald Trump's militaristic immigration enforcement agenda has increased the danger. Places considered neutral spaces by immigrants such as schools, hospitals and emergency management agencies are now suspect, and agreements by local law enforcement to collaborate with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement make them more vulnerable, choosing between physical safety or avoiding detention. 'Am I going to risk the storm or risk endangering my family at the shelter?' said Dominique O'Connor, an organizer at the Farmworker Association of Florida. 'You're going to meet enforcement either way.' For O'Connor and for many immigrants, it's about storms. But people without permanent legal status could face these decisions anywhere that extreme heat, wildfires or other severe weather could necessitate evacuating, getting supplies or even seeking medical care. Federal and state agencies have said little on whether immigration enforcement would be suspended in a disaster. It wouldn't make much difference to Maria: 'With all we've lived, we've lost trust.' New policies deepen concerns Efforts by Trump's Republican administration to exponentially expand immigration enforcement capacity mean many of the agencies active in disaster response are increasingly entangled in immigration enforcement. Since January, hundreds of law enforcement agencies have signed 287(g) agreements, allowing them to perform certain immigration enforcement actions. Most of the agreements are in hurricane-prone Florida and Texas. Florida's Division of Emergency Management oversees building the state's new detention facilities, like the one called 'Alligator Alcatraz' in the Everglades. Federal Emergency Management Agency funds are being used to build additional detention centers around the country, and the Department of Homeland Security temporarily reassigned some FEMA staff to assist ICE. The National Guard, often seen passing out food and water after disasters, has been activated to support U.S. Customs and Border Protection operations and help at detention centers. These dual roles can make for an intimidating scene during a disaster. After floods in July, more than 2,100 personnel from 20 state agencies aided the far-reaching response effort in Central Texas, along with CBP officers. Police controlled entry into hard-hit areas. Texas Department of Public Safety and private security officers staffed entrances to disaster recovery centers set up by FEMA. That unsettled even families with permanent legal status, said Rae Cardenas, executive director of Doyle Community Center in Kerrville, Texas. Cardenas helped coordinate with the Mexican Consulate in San Antonio to replace documents for people who lived behind police checkpoints. 'Some families are afraid to go get their mail because their legal documents were washed away,' Cardenas said. In Florida, these policies could make people unwilling to drive evacuation roads. Traffic stops are a frequent tool of detention, and Florida passed a law in February criminalizing entry into the state by those without legal status, though a judge temporarily blocked it. There may be fewer places to evacuate now that public shelters, often guarded by police or requiring ID to enter, are no longer considered 'protected areas' by DHS. The agency in January rescinded a policy of President Joe Biden, a Democrat, to avoid enforcement in places like schools, medical facilities and emergency response sites. The fears extend even into disaster recovery. On top of meeting law enforcement at FEMA recovery centers, mixed-status households that qualify for help from the agency might hesitate to apply for fear of their information being accessed by other agencies, said Esmeralda Ledezma, communications associate with the Houston-based nonprofit Woori Juntos. 'Even if you have the right to federal aid, you're afraid to be punished for it,' Ledezma said. In past emergencies, DHS has put out messaging stating it would suspend immigration enforcement. The agency's policy now is unclear. DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in an email that CBP had not issued any guidance 'because there have been no natural disasters affecting border enforcement.' She did not address what directions were given during CBP's activation in the Texas floods or whether ICE would be active during a disaster. Florida's Division of Emergency Management did not respond to questions related to its policies toward people without legal status. Texas' Division of Emergency Management referred The Associated Press to Republican Gov. Greg Abbott's office, which did not respond. Building local resilience is a priority In spite of the crackdown, local officials in some hurricane-prone areas are expanding outreach to immigrant populations. 'We are trying to move forward with business as usual,' said Gracia Fernandez, language access coordinator for Alachua County in Central Florida. The county launched a program last year to translate and distribute emergency communications in Spanish, Haitian Creole and other languages. Now staffers want to spread the word that county shelters won't require IDs, but since they're public spaces, Fernandez acknowledged there's not much they can do if ICE comes. 'There is still a risk,' she said. 'But we will try our best to help people feel safe.' As immigrant communities are pushed deeper into the shadows, more responsibility falls on nonprofits, and communities themselves, to keep each other safe. Hope Community Center in Apopka has pushed local officials to commit to not requiring IDs at shelters and sandbag distribution points. During an evacuation, the facility becomes an alternative shelter and a command center, from which staffers translate and send out emergency communications in multiple languages. For those who won't leave their homes, staffers do door-to-door wellness checks, delivering food and water. 'It's a very grassroots, underground operation,' said Felipe Sousa Lazaballet, the center's executive director. Preparing the community is challenging when it's consumed by the daily crises wrought by detentions and deportations, Sousa Lazaballet said. 'All of us are in triage mode,' he said. 'Every day there is an emergency, so the community is not necessarily thinking about hurricane season yet. That's why we have to have a plan.' ___ Associated Press coverage of philanthropy and nonprofits receives support through the AP's collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content. For all of the AP's philanthropy coverage, visit
Reuters
a minute ago
- Reuters
India stocks set for modest gains as US tariffs, foreign outflows cloud outlook
BENGALURU, Aug 20 (Reuters) - Pressured by U.S. tariffs and foreign investor outflows, India's stock markets will manage to eke out only modest gains by year-end, according to a Reuters poll of equity analysts who have pushed back their forecast for a new record high to 2026. Foreign investors have sold more than a net $13 billion of Indian stocks this year, including around $2.4 billion in the first half of August after U.S. President Donald Trump raised tariffs on Indian exports to 50% - among the steepest imposed on any U.S. trading partner. The 5.2% rise in the blue-chip Nifty 50 (.NSEI), opens new tab index so far this year lags broader Asian (.MIAPJ0000PUS), opens new tab and emerging markets (.MIEF00000PUS), opens new tab, which have gained 17.2% and 18.2%, respectively. If the trend continues it would be the first time in five years that the Nifty underperformed those indices. The Nifty 50 is forecast to rise about 3.9% to 25,834 by the end of this year, before reaching 26,500 by mid-2026 and 27,950 by end-2026, according to an August 8-20 poll of 20 equity analysts. Those forecasts are lower than in the previous quarterly survey, with a new record high now not seen until 2026. The BSE Sensex is seen climbing to 85,100 this year, 86,875 by mid-2026 and 91,370 by end-2026. "Until foreign investors are confident in the Indian economy and earnings...I don't think we'll see a substantial rise from here. The danger is they will use every rise to dump their stocks," said Yogesh Kalinge, associate director of research at A.K. Capital Services. "Trump keeps firing tariff volleys, the wind changes every week and honestly it's just hope and speculation keeping this market afloat." Around a third of analysts who usually take part in the poll did not provide forecasts this quarter, with some saying the market has become increasingly difficult to predict. Rajat Agarwal, Asia equity strategist at Societe Generale, who did participate, said weak economic data, tariff uncertainty and tepid earnings meant foreign inflows may take time to return. While India is the world's fastest-growing major economy, expected to expand 6.4% this fiscal year, its listed companies have reported only single-digit profit growth for five straight quarters. That is a sharp slowdown from the 15-25% expansion recorded between 2020-21 and 2023-24, a period over which the Nifty 50 rose around 160%. No major improvement is expected over the coming quarters. A majority of analysts, 16 of 21, said corporate earnings in the Indian stock market would edge up only marginally in the second half of 2025 from the first half, while two expected a significant increase. An expected cut to the goods and services tax (GST) in October to boost household consumption may also help shore up earnings, although analysts say the full impact will take time to filter through the economy. Valuations remain a concern. India's Sensex trades at 23 times forward earnings, among the world's highest, nearly matching Wall Street's S&P 500, LSEG data showed. HDFC Securities senior derivative analyst Subash Gangadharan said the GST cut was a positive step but would have limited impact given already sky-high valuations, and predicted the Nifty 50 to fall to 22,000 by end-2025. (Other stories from the Reuters Q3 global stock markets poll package)
Reuters
a minute ago
- Reuters
Switzerland moves to strengthen its competitiveness after US tariffs
ZURICH, Aug 20 (Reuters) - Switzerland is intensifying efforts to strengthen its attractiveness as a business location, its government said on Wednesday, after being hit with some of the highest U.S. tariffs worldwide. Efforts will focus on regulatory relief for Swiss companies, and new rules incurring high costs for businesses could be pushed back, the government said in a statement. U.S. President Donald Trump this month imposed U.S. import tariffs of 39% on Swiss goods, though pharmaceuticals and some other sectors have so far been spared the duties. "(The government) wants to decisively press ahead with its economic policy agenda and is focusing on reducing the regulatory burden on companies," the government said. Geographical diversification and Swiss companies' access to alternative international markets should also be strengthened, the statement said. The new U.S. levies currently affect around 10% of Swiss goods exports, and could have potentially severe consequences for some companies, the government said. Switzerland does not anticipate a recession akin to the global financial crisis or the pandemic, it added.
