Asia FX steady
Malaysia's ringgit and the Taiwan dollar shed 0.2% and 0.1%, respectively, while other currencies in the region were largely subdued.
The dollar index edged higher, recovering from last week's decline as traders scaled back bets on a jumbo Fed rate cut next month.
The Kansas City Federal Reserve's Jackson Hole symposium through August 21-23 is the week's main event, where Chair Jerome Powell is set to outline the Fed's economic outlook and policy framework.
Markets are now pricing in an 84.2% chance of a quarter-point Fed rate cut next month, and are priced for more easing by December.
ANZ strategists said Powell is unlikely to be as candid as last year when he made the case for imminent rate cuts.
'Our base case remains that the Fed will cut rates at its September meeting,' they said in a note.
Market focus for the day is on the Trump-Zelenskiy meeting as Washington presses Kyiv for a swift peace deal to end the Ukraine war.
Equities in Southeast Asia traded mixed, with Singapore down 0.8%. Thailand shed 0.4%, while Taiwan advanced 0.6% to a record high.
South Korean shares slumped 1.3%, with chip stocks leading the decline following reports US President Donald Trump would unveil tariffs on semiconductor imports in coming weeks.
'While broader sentiments remain supportive on expectations that the Fed may cut rate at its next meeting, there are concerns on sectoral tariffs – pharmaceuticals, semiconductors and even metals,' said Christopher Wong, currency strategist at OCBC.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Business Recorder
2 hours ago
- Business Recorder
Trump says will patrol streets of US capital with troops Thursday
WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump will patrol the streets of Washington Thursday with police and National Guard troops he has deployed to the US capital, the Republican said in an interview. Trump ordered hundreds of National Guard to deploy in Washington last week as part of what he has called a crackdown on crime in the Democrat-run city, despite statistics showing violence offenses are down. 'I'm going to be going out tonight I think with the police and with the military of course… We're going to be doing a job,' Trump told Todd Starnes, a host for right-wing media outlet Newsmax. Trump hails 'total victory' as US court quashes $464mn civil penalty He spoke one day after his vice president, JD Vance, was greeted by boos and shouts of 'Free DC' – referring to the District of Columbia, the federal district which includes Washington – on his own meet-and-greet with troops deployed in the city. The DC National Guard has mobilized 800 troops for the mission, while Republican states Ohio, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Tennessee and West Virginia are sending a total of around 1,200 more. The overwhelmingly Democratic US capital faces allegations from Republican politicians that it is overrun by crime, plagued by homelessness and financially mismanaged. But data from Washington police showed significant drops in violent crime between 2023 and 2024, though that was coming off the back of a post-pandemic surge. In addition to sending troops onto the streets, Trump has also sought to take full control of the local Washington police department, attempting at one point to sideline its leadership. The deployment of troops in Washington comes after Trump dispatched the National Guard and Marines to quell unrest in Los Angeles, California, that was sparked by immigration enforcement raids.
Business Recorder
2 hours ago
- Business Recorder
Trump hails ‘total victory' as US court quashes $464mn civil penalty
NEW YORK: A US court threw out Thursday a $464 million civil penalty against President Donald Trump imposed by a judge who found he fraudulently inflated his personal worth, calling the sum 'excessive' but upholding the judgment against him. Judge Arthur Engoron ruled against Trump in February 2024 at the height of his campaign to retake the White House, which coincided with several active criminal prosecutions that the Republican slammed as 'lawfare.' 'It was a Political Witch Hunt, in a business sense, the likes of which no one has ever seen before,' Trump said on his Truth Social platform Thursday, adding that 'everything I did was absolutely CORRECT and, even, PERFECT.' When Engoron originally ruled against Trump, he ordered the mogul-turned-politician to pay $464 million, including interest, while his sons Eric and Don Jr. were told to hand over more than $4 million each. The judge found that Trump and his company had unlawfully inflated his wealth and manipulated the value of properties to obtain favorable bank loans or insurance terms. Alongside the financial hit to Trump, the judge also banned him from running businesses for three years, which the president repeatedly referred to as a 'corporate death penalty.' On Thursday, five judges of the Appellate Division of the New York Supreme Court upheld the verdict, but ruled that the size of the fine was 'excessive' and that it 'violates the Eighth Amendment of the United States Constitution.' The Eighth Amendment prohibits excessive or cruel punishments and penalties. 'Massive win! State Attorney General Letitia James, who brought the initial case, could now appeal to the state's highest court, the New York Court of Appeals. Following the initial verdict, Trump subsequently sought to challenge the civil ruling as well as the scale and terms of the penalty, which has continued to accrue interest while he appeals. He repeatedly condemned the case and the penalty as politically motivated. His son Don Jr. termed the appellate court ruling a 'massive win!!!' 'New York Appeals Court has just THROWN OUT President Trump's $500+ Million civil fraud penalty! It was always a witch hunt, election interference, and a total miscarriage of justice… and even a left leaning NY appeals court agrees! NO MORE LAWFARE!' he wrote on X. During hearings, conducted without a jury under state law, Trump accused then-president Joe Biden of driving the case, calling it 'weaponization against a political opponent who's up a lot in the polls.' As the case was civil, not criminal, there was no threat of imprisonment. Trump's economic advisor Peter Navarro said at the White House Thursday that 'James is another one that belongs in jail,' referring to the New York attorney general. 'The Democrats really overplayed their hand on this because they thought they could take Donald Trump out,' he said.
Business Recorder
5 hours ago
- Business Recorder
US stocks down as markets digest retail earnings
NEW YORK: Wall Street stocks pulled back Thursday despite additional clarity on a US-EU tariff deal, as investors assessed retailer Walmart's quarterly earnings while jobless claims picked up. Around 10 minutes into trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average retreated 0.5 percent to 44,710.59, while the broad-based S&P 500 Index dipped 0.3 percent to 6,378.32. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index slid 0.2 percent to 21,141.60. Among individual companies, Walmart's shares were down 4.5 percent after it missed earnings expectations even as it beat sales estimates. But the company lifted its outlook while tariffs added to import costs of many goods in the United States. US stocks mostly down as markets digest earnings ahead of Fed minutes Walmart is the latest among major American retailers to report earnings this week, with markets keeping watch on consumer pattern shifts to lower-priced products – or signs of cost increases after new tariffs. While Washington and Brussels released a joint statement detailing their trade pact for 15-percent US tariffs on many European Union goods – making clear cars will also be subject to the lower level – this was not enough to dispel concerns elsewhere. Initial jobless claims picked up more than analysts expected, while continued jobless claims also jumped to their highest level since November 2021, Patrick O'Hare of said in a note. He noted that the economic data 'tipped in a stagflation direction,' referring to a situation of elevated inflation alongside stagnant growth and higher unemployment. Investors are also awaiting Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's speech at a central bankers gathering early Friday, and are set to parse it for clues on how interest rates might be adjusted later this year. Minutes of the Fed's most recent policy meeting in July signaled that officials were concerned about employment and inflation risks – although worries over inflation outweighed those surrounding jobs at the time. But analysts warn that weakening in the jobs market could tip the odds in favor of an earlier rate cut.
