US Orders Review of Aukus Defense Pact
Good morning, it's Ben here in chilly Canberra, here's what's making headlines today.
Today's must-reads:
• US to review Aukus pact in blow to Australia
• Qantas cuts Jetstar Asia with 500 jobs to go
• Morgan Stanley's Australia chief says deals are back
The Pentagon has launched a review of the Biden-era Aukus pact to develop nuclear-powered submarines with Australia and the UK, as the Trump administration looks to shift the burden for collective defense to allies and make sure the US has enough warships of its own.
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Associated Press
25 minutes ago
- Associated Press
Wall Street's rally stalls as US stocks dip for their 1st loss in 4 days
NEW YORK (AP) — Wall Street's rally stalled on Wednesday after U.S. stocks climbed back within 2% of their all-time high. The S&P 500 fell 0.3% for its first loss in four days. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was virtually unchanged after edging down by 1 point, and the Nasdaq composite slipped 0.5%. Several Big Tech stocks led the way lower, and a 1.9% drop for Apple was the heaviest weight on the market. It's been listless this week after unveiling several modest upcoming changes to the software that runs its devices. The action was stronger in the bond market, where Treasury yields eased after a report suggested President Donald Trump's tariffs are not pushing inflation much higher, at least not yet. U.S. consumers had to pay prices for food, gasoline and other costs of living that were 2.4% higher overall in May than a year earlier. That was up from April's 2.3% inflation rate, but it wasn't as bad as the 2.5% that Wall Street was expecting. A fear has been that Trump's wide-ranging tariffs could ignite an acceleration in inflation, just when it had seemed to get nearly all the way back to the Federal Reserve's 2% target from more than 9% three summers ago. It hasn't happened, though economists warn it may take months more to feel the full effect of Trump's tariffs. 'Another month goes by with little evidence of tariffs, but the longer-term inflation challenge they pose remain,' according to Ellen Zentner, chief economic strategist for Morgan Stanley Wealth Management. Financial markets also had only modest reactions to the conclusion of two days of trade talks between the United States and China in London. Trump said Wednesday that China will supply rare-earth minerals and magnets to the United States, while his government will allow Chinese students into U.S. universities in a deal that still needs an agreement by him and by China's leader. Trump also said that 'President XI and I are going to work closely together to open up China to American Trade. This would be a great WIN for both countries!!!' Investors are still hoping for a more sweeping trade deal that would ease tensions between the world's two largest economies. Hopes for such deals between the United States and countries around the world have been one of the main reasons the S&P 500 has charged nearly all the way back to its all-time high after dropping roughly 20% below a couple months ago. Without them, the fear is that Trump's high tariffs could drive the economy into a recession while pushing inflation higher. The S&P 500 is now sitting 2% below its record. On Wall Street, Chewy dropped 11% after the seller of pet supplies reported a weaker profit for the latest quarter than analysts had forecast. Expectations were high after its stock had already rallied nearly 37% coming into the day for the year so far. Tesla swung between gains and losses before finishing with a rise of 0.1% to continue its shaky run. It's been recovering much of its big losses taken last week after Elon Musk's relationship with Trump imploded, which in turn raised fears about a loss of business for the electric-vehicle company. Musk on Wednesday backed away from some of his earlier comments and said they went 'too far.' All told, the S&P 500 fell 16.57 points to 6,022.24. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 1.10 to 42,865.77, and the Nasdaq composite sank 99.11 to 19,615.88. In the bond market, the yield on the 10-year Treasury eased to 4.41% from 4.47% late Tuesday. Shorter-term yields, which more closely track expectations for what the Fed will do with overnight interest rates, fell more. Wednesday's better-than-expected reading on inflation raised expectations along Wall Street that the Fed could cut its main interest rate at least twice by the end of the year. The Fed has been keeping interest rates steady so far this year, going on pause after cutting rates at the end of last year. It has been waiting to see how much Trump's tariffs raise inflation because cutting interest rates could push inflation up even more, in addition to giving the economy a boost. 'The Fed could be justified in doing some preemptive rate cuts,' said Brian Jacobsen, chief economist at Annex Wealth Management. 'They were afraid that inflation would rise before growth would slow, but the script has been flipped and they will likely change their tune.' In stock markets abroad, indexes fell across much of Europe after rising in Asia. South Korea's Kospi was one of the best performers and jumped 1.2%. ___ AP Business Writer Yuri Kageyama contributed.
New York Post
36 minutes ago
- New York Post
Trump admin terminates legal status of more than half a million migrants enrolled in Biden-era ‘parole' program
The Trump administration on Thursday began notifying roughly 530,000 Cuban, Haitian, Nicaraguan, and Venezuelan migrants that their legal status has been revoked and they should self-deport immediately. The termination notices went out via email to migrants enrolled in a controversial Biden-era 'humanitarian parole' program, which granted foreign nationals from the four countries US work permits and deportation protection for up to two years. 'The Biden Administration lied to America,' Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement. 3 Trump has encouraged migrants to self-deport using a new app. Truth Social/realDonaldTrump 'They allowed more than half a million poorly vetted aliens from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela and their immediate family members to enter the United States through these disastrous parole programs; granted them opportunities to compete for American jobs and undercut American workers; forced career civil servants to promote the programs even when fraud was identified; and then blamed Republicans in Congress for the chaos that ensued and the crime that followed.' 'Ending the CHNV parole programs, as well as the paroles of those who exploited it, will be a necessary return to common-sense policies, a return to public safety, and a return to America First,' McLaughlin added. The Biden administration launched the parole program in October 2022, letting in up to 30,000 migrants per month from Latin American countries, starting with Venezuelans. In January 2023, Cubans, Haitians, and Nicaraguans were added to the program. The program, an attempt by the Biden administration to drive down illegal immigration during record surges at the border, was plagued by rampant fraud. 3 About 530,000 migrants received humanitarian parole during the Biden administration. NYPJ It was temporarily paused last July after an internal review found that thousands of sponsors for the migrants were listing fake social security numbers or phone numbers and using the same physical address for thousands of parole applications. 'Some 100 addresses were listed on over 19,000 forms,' a US Citizenship and Immigration Services review found, noting that 'many applications were submitted by the same IP address.' 3 DHS began sending out parole termination notices via email on Thursday. AFP via Getty Images In October 2024, the Biden administration barred migrants enrolled in the program from extending their temporary legal status. President Trump swiftly ended the program on his first day in office, stopping any new applications from being submitted. The Supreme Court upheld Trump's cancellation of the program last month. In its press release, DHS encouraged migrants to self-deport using the Trump administration's CBP Home Mobile App, noting that if they choose to go that route, they'll receive travel assistance and a $1,000 exit bonus upon arrival in their home country.
Bloomberg
an hour ago
- Bloomberg
Asian Stocks Set to Advance as US Inflation Cools: Markets Wrap
Asian equity-index futures were buoyed by gains in stocks and bonds on Wall Street as further signs of cooling US inflation prepared investors for Federal Reserve rate cuts. Contracts for Japanese, Australian and Hong Kong benchmarks climbed early Friday in a sign of robust risk sentiment. The S&P 500 advanced 0.4% Thursday, placing the benchmark within striking distance of its peak and also on pace for its third weekly gain, a run not seen since December. Futures for US equities edged lower in early Asian trading.
