CNBC Daily Open: Wall Street is tuning out the noise and catching rays
Markets this week? Totally unbothered — like they're on a beach somewhere, sipping a cold drink and ignoring the headlines.
Geopolitical tensions flared (again), oil prices plunged, and defense stocks couldn't make up their mind — but the broader market? Barely blinked. The S&P 500 flirted with record highs, the Nasdaq kept cruising thanks to its AI darlings, and even small caps got in on the action. It's almost as if investors looked at the chaos and said, "Meh, we're good."
What's driving this chilled-out mood? Part of it is rate-cut optimism creeping back in. Oil's sudden drop took some inflation pressure off the table, and dovish murmurs from the Fed gave traders just enough hope that September could be in play for a cut. Bond yields eased, and risk appetite returned.
Sure, there are risks everywhere — from Middle East tensions to stretched valuations in some corners of the market — but right now, Wall Street seems to be in full summer mode. Cool, calm, and slightly detached.
Will it last? Hard to say. Markets have a habit of waking up just when you least expect it. But for now, they're tuning out the noise and catching rays.
Futures tied to S&P 500 hit a high on Friday. S&P 500 futures climbed 0.11% to hit 6,202.00 at 12:55 a.m. Eastern Time, breaking the intraday all-time high of 6,147.43 in late February. Asia-Pacific markets traded mixed. Japan's Nikkei 225 rose to break the 40,000 level, the first time it's done so since Jan. 7.
Tariff pause "could be extended.'' Trump's "reciprocal" tariffs are set to resume early July, but White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters on Thursday the deadlines are "not critical" and will depend on the U.S. President's decision.
China's industrial profits plunge in May. The figure was 9.1% lower from a year earlier and the steepest fall since October, data from the country's statistics bureau showed. Separately, Hong Kong-listed shares of Xiaomi surged to hit a record high during the Friday trading session.
Tesla's vice president of manufacturing and operations is out. Omead Afshar was fired by CEO Elon Musk amid declining sales in key markets. Chinese technology company Xiaomi on Thursday priced a new electric SUV lower than Tesla's Model Y.
[PRO] Defense stocks are attracting attention. The sector has seen robust gains this year, with one related ETF closing at an all-time high Thursday. Fund managers have not only been piling in — they also think defense stocks still have a long runway ahead. Here's why.British cars are being stolen and shipped within a day, fueling a multi-billion-pound crime bill
Organized criminal gangs are driving a surge in car thefts in the U.K., the Royal United Services Institute defense and security think tank said in a report published Thursday. Such crimes have risen by 75% in the past decade to about 130,000 vehicles a year.
Aside from the personal costs of stolen cars for owners, vehicle thefts are having a significant impact on U.K. drivers and the wider economy.
"Vehicle theft now costs the U.K. economy about £1.77 billion [$2.43 billion] a year and has driven an 82% increase in car insurance premium quotes since 2021," according to the RUSI report.
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