Wall Street Live: S&P 500, Nasdaq, Dow Jones edge up on US-Japan trade deal
At the open, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 158.7 points, or 0.36%, to 44661.12. The S&P 500 rose 17.3 points, or 0.27%, to 6326.9, while the Nasdaq Composite rose 73.8 points, or 0.35%, to 20966.467.
Gold prices fell on Wednesday after the US-Japan trade deal.
As of 1351 GMT, spot gold was down 0.6% at $3,412.03 per ounce. US gold futures also slipped 0.7% to $3,421.50.
Among other metals, spot silver rose to nearly 14-year high, gaining 0.2% to $39.35 per ounce.
Platinum fell 1.4% to $1,420.92 and palladium was down 0.4% at $1,269.60.
Oil prices continued its decline on Wednesday, as investors assessed global trade development.
As of 1246 GMT, Brent crude futures were down 35 cents, or 0.5%, at $68.24 a barrel.
US West Texas Intermediate crude futures fell 33 cents, or 0.5%, at $64.98 per barrel.
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Hindustan Times
28 minutes ago
- Hindustan Times
New US visa rule to include $15,000 bond: What it means, who's affected
The United States will soon begin requiring some foreign nationals to pay visa bonds of up to $15,000 as part of a pilot program aimed at reducing visa overstays, the State Department announced on Monday. A new US visa rule will require some tourist visa applicants to post bonds of up to $15,000 to discourage overstays. The move is part of US President Donald Trump's continued push to tighten immigration controls since returning to office in January. The 12-month program, which starts August 20, will apply to certain applicants for B-1 business and B-2 tourist visas from countries deemed high-risk for visa overstays, reported news agency AFP. What is the new US Visa program? According to a US state department notice set to be published in the Federal Register on Tuesday, 'consular officers may require covered nonimmigrant visa applicants to post a bond of up to $15,000 as a condition of visa issuance.' The minimum bond amount is $5,000, and the money will be returned if the traveler adheres to visa terms. Those who remain in the US beyond the permitted duration will forfeit the full bond. The program also restricts entry and exit to a list of pre-selected airports in the United States for those required to pay the bond. Who all will be affected? The country's state department said the measure targets nationals from countries with "high visa overstay rates" as identified in a 2023 Department of Homeland Security (DHS) report. Additionally, applicants from countries 'where screening and vetting information is deemed deficient' or where citizenship can be acquired by investment without a residency requirement may also be required to post a bond. 'Countries will be identified based on high overstay rates, screening and vetting deficiencies, concerns regarding acquisition of citizenship by investment without a residency requirement, and foreign policy considerations,' a State Department spokesperson said in response to an AFP query. However, neither the spokesperson nor the notice listed the countries that will be immediately affected. According to DHS and US Customs and Border Protection data cited by news agency Reuters, nations such as Chad, Eritrea, Haiti, Myanmar, Yemen, Burundi, Djibouti and Togo have shown high overstay rates. How will it work? The bonds are intended as a financial deterrent. If visa holders leave the country on time, the amount will be refunded in full. If they overstay, the money will be retained by the government. The pilot will apply only to B-1 and B-2 visa applicants and will require them to travel in and out of designated airports. The state department said it cannot estimate how many people will be affected, but a spokesperson noted the criteria and country list may be updated over time. What is the Trump administeration saying? "The pilot reinforces the Trump administration's commitment to enforcing US immigration laws and safeguarding US national security," a state department spokesperson said. The notice describes the program as 'a key pillar of the Trump Administration's foreign policy to protect the United States from the clear national security threat posed by visa overstays.' A similar pilot was introduced in November 2020 during Trump's first term but was never fully implemented due to the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on global travel. New program may have narrow effect The US Travel Association estimated the scope of the program to be relatively narrow, likely affecting only about 2,000 applicants from countries with low travel volume, according to Reuters. However, the group raised concerns that the new requirement could hurt inbound tourism. "If implemented, the US will have one of, if not the highest, visitor visa fees in the world," the association said. The association also pointed to signs of waning international interest in US travel, noting that transatlantic airfares had dropped to pre-pandemic levels, and that travel from Canada and Mexico had declined by 20% year-on-year. (With AFP, Reuters inputs)
Hans India
29 minutes ago
- Hans India
Trump threatens more tariffs on India
Washington/New Delhi: In a fresh trade threat against India, President Donald Trump on Monday said he will "substantially" raise US tariffs on New Delhi, accusing it of buying massive amounts of Russian oil and selling it for big profits. Last week, the Trump administration slapped a 25 per cent duty on all Indian goods. The US President also announced a penalty for buying "vast majority" of Russian military equipment and crude oil, but no mention was made in the notification. "India is not only buying massive amounts of Russian Oil, they are then, for much of the Oil purchased, selling it on the Open Market for big profits," Trump said in a social media post on Monday. "They don't care how many people in Ukraine are being killed by the Russian War Machine. Because of this, I will be substantially raising the Tariff paid by India to the USA," he added. In its reaction, India said it will take all necessary steps to safeguard and promote national interest and that the implications of the tariffs are being examined. India's import of crude oil from Russia has risen from 0.2 per cent of total purchases before the Russia-Ukraine war to 35-40 per cent. New Delhi is the largest buyer of Russian oil after China. On August 1, Trump signed an Executive Order titled 'Further Modifying The Reciprocal Tariff Rates', raising tariffs for over five dozen countries, including a steep 25 per cent for India. The executive order, however, did not mention the 'penalty' that Trump had said India will have to pay because of its purchases of Russian military equipment and energy. White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller, in an interview to Fox News Sunday, stated that President Trump has said very clearly that 'it is not acceptable for India to continue financing" the Ukraine war by purchasing oil from Russia. Last week, Trump mounted a sharp attack on India and Russia for their close ties and said the two countries can take their "dead economies down together", a remark which prompted New Delhi to say that India is the world's fastest-growing major economy. Declaring that the US has a massive trade deficit with India, Trump had said that while 'India is our friend, we have, over the years, done relatively little business with them because their tariffs are far too high, among the highest in the world, and they have the most strenuous and obnoxious non-monetary Trade Barriers of any country.
Indian Express
29 minutes ago
- Indian Express
Express View: In the wake of Trump's latest moves, Delhi must push ahead with the trade deal
Days after US President Donald Trump announced a 25 per cent tariff on Indian imports, and an unspecified penalty for defence and energy imports from Russia, the Indian government has initiated an exercise to thrash out concessions across sectors that can be put forth in trade talks between the two countries. As reported in this paper, key ministries have been directed to examine what can be offered to make the deal more attractive to Trump, with the US said to be pushing for greater market access than what has been on the table so far, bringing down tariff walls and doing away with non-tariff barriers. Another round of talks is slated to be held in the last week of August. There will be red lines, of course. The government, for instance, is reluctant to give concessions on some agri items, even as it must negotiate to increase market access to the world's largest economy — in 2024-25, India exported goods worth roughly $87 billion to the US, led by electronics (17.6 per cent of exports), pharma (11.8 per cent) and gems and jewellery (11.5 per cent). The imposition of higher tariffs on the country as compared to those levied on its competitors such as Vietnam and Indonesia will impact export competitiveness and have implications for the broader economic momentum. Assessments by various agencies have provided some sense of the possible impact on the Indian economy — ICRA, for instance, has lowered its GDP growth forecast for the year to 6 per cent from 6.2 per cent earlier, while CareEdge Ratings has estimated the direct export loss to be around 0.3 to 0.4 per cent of GDP. Some of the options before the government reportedly involve increasing purchases of defence equipment and oil, and greater nuclear engagement, among others. Indian refiners have already cut down on oil imports from Russia to 1.6 million barrels per day in July, down 24 per cent from the month before. This decline has been offset by higher imports from countries such as Saudi Arabia, the UAE, the US and Nigeria. Concessions to the US could also be granted in areas of public procurement — in line with the India-UK trade agreement. Delhi's sober response, in the face of Trump's broadside — the US President has called India a 'dead economy' — reflects pragmatism when faced with pressure tactics designed to extract concessions. But, in a changed global order, where Trump is undoing the rules that underpinned the global trading system, a business-as-usual approach is unlikely to work. India should continue to sidestep the loose rhetoric, while moving ahead with negotiations to conclude a deal that delivers benefits to both sides. Alongside, it should press forward the domestic reform agenda to boost competitiveness, improve ease of doing business, and increase the attractiveness of the country as an investment destination.
