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CNBC
28 minutes ago
- CNBC
Asia-Pacific stocks set for lower open as investors recent weigh trade developments
Asia-Pacific markets are set for a lower open as investors weigh recent trade developments. Good morning from Singapore. Asia markets were set for a muted open Friday. Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 was set to start the trading day lower, with the futures contract in Chicago at 41,740 and its counterpart in Osaka at 41,640, against the index's last close at 41,826.34. Futures for Hong Kong's Hang Seng index stood at 25,505, pointing to a weaker open compared with the HSI's last close of 25,667.18. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 was also on track to start the day lower with futures tied to the benchmark at 8,637, compared with its last close of 8,709.4. — Lee Ying Shan The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite ended Thursday's session with fresh record closes after scoring new all-time intraday highs earlier in the trading day. The broad market index closed 0.07% higher to end at 6,363.35, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq inched up 0.18% to finish at 21,057.96. However, the blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average pulled back 316.38 points, or 0.7%, to settle at 44,693.91. — Sean Conlon
CNBC
28 minutes ago
- CNBC
India expects 'preferential' tariffs in a trade deal with U.S., says India's commerce minister
India expects to secure "preferential" tariffs from the United States that are better than those achieved by its economic rivals, according to India's commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal. Goyal, who led the negotiations on the U.K.-India trade agreement, signaled a confident approach from New Delhi in ongoing trade talks with Washington. "India will get a preferential tariff compared to our peers and our competitors, because we were amongst the first to get into negotiations and our discussions, our engagement is truly very, very significant," Goyal told CNBC on Thursday. His comments were in response to a question about whether India could hope for better terms than the tariffs currently faced by Japan and Vietnam on some of their U.S. imports. Their exports face 15% and 20% duties, respectively. The minister said the negotiations were "progressing extremely well" towards a deal aimed at achieving the $500 billion bilateral trade target by 2030 , a goal previously set by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. "I have excellent relations with my good friend, [U.S.] Commerce Secretary, Mr Howard Lutnick," Goyal said. "The United States and India share a very special relationship, and I'm very confident we'll do a robust and good deal where both countries benefit and where businesses on both sides are happy." Lutnick is leading the U.S. trade negotiating team. The optimism was echoed by business leaders, who predicted that while a deal would be reached, India would negotiate from a position of strength. Keshav Murugesh, chairman of the Confederation of Indian Industry UK Business Forum, told CNBC that Indian negotiators would handle talks "strictly on merits" and "India will not be a pushover." Murugesh, also the chief executive of business services firm WNS , suggested that both sides are sufficiently motivated, noting that President Trump "and his people want a good deal with India because, let's face it, India is the future." India's Goyal also said the push for a U.S. deal is part of a deliberate policy to partner with "developed nations who complement the India story," a move away from past agreements with countries seen as direct competitors. He cited India's decision to withdraw from the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) as an example of this, describing the pact as something that "would have otherwise been like a China-India FTA." His comments came on the day India and the United Kingdom finalized their free trade agreement. The bilateral deal, first announced in May , will see the U.K. benefit from lower tariffs on key exports such as whisky and cars, which will kick in over several years. Meanwhile, India will gain tariff-free access on 99% of imports from day one of the agreement. While expressing confidence in the U.S. talks, Goyal acknowledged sensitive issues remain. When asked if agriculture was a sticking point , he declined to comment specifically on the trade discussions but added that the sector was sensitive to India. "We are always very sensitive to the interests of our farmers, the interests of our MSMEs, and will ensure that our areas of concern are well protected," Goyal added. The issue is critical for Modi's government, as the vast agricultural sector employs a huge portion of India's population and represents a powerful political constituency. Protecting farmers from foreign competition is a long-standing government priority. Goyal added that the U.S. side understood India's position, saying, "the Trump administration, and my counterparts are equally cognizant and sensitive about our concerns." — CNBC's George Bextor contributed reporting.
CNBC
4 hours ago
- CNBC
The best sector this year is not tech - it's a group of stocks riding Trump's trade deals
Move over, technology stocks. There's a new leading sector in the market. The industrials sector has led the S & P 500 higher this year, climbing more than 16%. After several years when technology companies delivered outsized gains, information technology and communication services have trailed in 2025, with both rising around 12%. The S & P 500 as a whole has risen less than 9% over the same span. XLI .SPX YTD mountain Industrial ETF vs. S & P 500, year to date Industrial companies are benefiting from several tailwinds. First, the economy's continued strength in the face of tariffs bodes well for production and investment. Second, the tariffs are aimed at spurring U.S.-based manufacturing and imposing higher costs on imports. A look under the hood at the industrial leaders also shows how the performance of certain subsectors and specific names has helped the entire group outperform, according to Peter Boockvar, investing chief at One Point BFG Wealth Partners. "It's sort of themed in a way," Boockvar said. "It's not necessarily this broad-based recovery in industrials." Notably, the manufacturing companies that were spun off from General Electric are among those leading the market this year. GE Vernova has surged nearly 90% this year and is the second-best performing stock in the S & P 500. The power turbine's company's exposure to growing electricity demand stemming from artificial intelligence data centers is softening the impact of President Trump's tariff policy. GEV YTD mountain GE Vernova, year to date GE Vernova's gas turbines are in high demand from data center developers and it is a leader in the development of small modular nuclear reactors, an emerging technology that the tech industry is interested in. Power equipment providers are expected to fare well amid the AI buildout, which Trump has championed . That helps explain the strong performances of Johnson Controls International and Quanta Services , both of which traded at all-time highs Thursday. Shares of GE Aerospace , meanwhile, have soared more than 60% on strong demand for new aircraft engines and repairing existing ones. Airbus and Boeing are struggling to keep up with demand for commercial jets, so older planes are running for longer which means high demand for engine replacements and services. Boeing has also rallied this year, surging more than 30%. Trump's trade war might have been expected to create headwinds for the aerospace industry, which has benefited from a tariff-free trade regime for decades. But GE Aerospace CEO Larry Culp said earlier this month that the U.S.-U.K. trade agreement has raised hopes that Trump will spare the industry from tariffs. It's proven a bumpy year for aerospace and defense contractors, many of which tumbled after the president unveiled his tariff plan in April, only to climb to all-time highs as implementation of many proposed levies was delayed.
