US stocks end higher, shrugging off Powell firing fears
Traders working on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange at the opening bell on July 16.
NEW YORK - Wall Street stocks finished higher on July 16, shrugging off a mid-session swoon after US President Donald Trump denied plans to fire Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell.
Major indices had moved suddenly negative following reports that a dismissal could be imminent. But they recovered quickly once Mr Trump
ruled out firing Mr Powell, for now.
Mr Trump, who has bitterly attacked the Fed chair for months, said such a move was 'highly unlikely' and that 'I'm not talking about that' when asked if he would fire Mr Powell.
The tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index advanced 0.3 per cent to 20,730.49, a third straight closing record.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.5 per cent to 44,254.78, while the broad-based S&P 500 advanced 0.3 per cent to 6,263.70.
'It's very clear that the market wants to go higher,' said Mr Adam Sarhan, of 50 Park Investments, who described investor reaction to Mr Trump's mixed messaging on Mr Powell as typical of a bullish tilt.
'Every time we get bad news thrown at it, the market shrugs it off and continues to rally, including today,' Mr Sarhan said.
Top stories
Swipe. Select. Stay informed.
Singapore Over 600 Telegram groups in Singapore selling, advertising vapes removed by HSA
Singapore 2 weeks' jail for man caught smuggling over 1,800 vapes and pods into Singapore
Singapore Jail for man who fatally hit his daughter, 2, while driving van without licence
Sport 'Like being in a washing machine with 40 deg C water': Open water swimmers brave challenging conditions
Singapore Primary 1 registration: 38 primary schools to conduct ballot in Phase 2A
Singapore ComfortDelGro to introduce new taxi cancellation, waiting fee policy
Business Cathay Cineplexes gets fresh demands to pay up $3.3m debt for Century Square, Causeway Point outlets
Singapore Countering misinformation requires both laws and access to trusted news sources: Josephine Teo
Otherwise, markets absorbed a generally benign wholesale inflation report. The producer price index was unchanged on a month-on-month basis, beating analysts' expectations and cooling from a 0.3 per cent rise in May.
The Fed's 'Beige Book' survey of economic conditions, however, pointed to growing impacts from Mr Trump's myriad tariffs.
Many firms said they passed along 'at least a portion of cost increases' to consumers due to tariffs, while also expressing expectations that costs will remain elevated.
Among individual companies, Goldman Sachs jumped 0.8 per cent after quarterly earnings easily topped analyst estimates. Chief executive officer David Solomon predicted an uptick in dealmaking, pointing to greater 'confidence level on the part of CEOs, that significant scaled industry consolidation is possible.'
Ford slumped 2.9 per cent after disclosing that it would account for US$570 million (S$730 million) in costs connected to fuel injectors in several models from recent years, including Bronco Sport vehicles from 2021 to 2024.
But Johnson & Johnson surged 6.2 per cent as it lifted its full-year forecast after quarterly earnings topped estimates. Analysts noted that the health care company also lowered its estimate for the cost hit from tariffs. AFP
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Straits Times
10 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Pakistani TV channels withdraw reports on Trump visit
Find out what's new on ST website and app. FILE PHOTO: U.S. President Donald Trump speaks, as he meets with Bahrain's Crown Prince and Prime Minister Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa (not pictured), in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., July 16, 2025. REUTERS/Nathan Howard/File Photo ISLAMABAD - Two leading Pakistani television news channels withdrew reports on Thursday that U.S. President Donald Trump planned to visit the South Asian nation, with one of them issuing an apology. Geo and ARY news channels had said earlier on Thursday that Trump was expected to visit Pakistan in September. But both later withdrew their reports. "Geo News apologises to its viewers for airing the news without a verification," it said. A senior management official at ARY told Reuters it backtracked after the foreign office said it had no knowledge of a visit. George W. Bush was the last U.S. president to visit Pakistan in 2006. "We have nothing to announce," a U.S. embassy spokesperson in Islamabad told Reuters, referring further questions on Trump's schedule to the White House. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Driverless bus in Sentosa gets green light to run without safety officer in first for S'pore World US strikes destroyed only one of three Iranian nuclear sites, says new report Business 5 things to know about Kuok Hui Kwong, tycoon Robert Kuok's daughter and Shangri-La Asia head honcho Asia Air India probe of Boeing 787 fuel control switches finds no issues Singapore Man charged over manufacturing DIY Kpods at Yishun home; first such case in Singapore Singapore Sex first, then you can sell my flat: Women property agents fend off indecent proposals and harassment Singapore Two women jailed for submitting fake university certificates to MOM for employment passes Singapore Fatal abuse of Myanmar maid in Bishan: Traffic Police officer sentenced to 10 years' jail U.S.-Pakistan relations saw a major boost when Trump hosted Pakistan's army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir at the White House last month in an unprecedented meeting. REUTERS
Straits Times
10 minutes ago
- Straits Times
$12.7 million Toto jackpot shared among 12 Group 2 winners after no one won top prize
Find out what's new on ST website and app. The prize had snowballed to $12.7 million after the past three draws saw no winners. SINGAPORE - Twelve lucky punters with winning Group 2 tickets will each get a share of about $1.2 million after there were no Group 1 winners in the $12.7 million Toto jackpot on July 17. The winning numbers were 7, 8, 17, 29, 32, 42. The additional number was 1. The prize had snowballed to $12.7 million after the past three draws saw no winners. The Group 1 prize amount will be rolled over only up to the fourth draw. Thereafter, the amount will be shared among the winners in Group 2. The 12 tickets were bought at locations such as a trading store in Tampines Street 21, a provision shop in Race Course Road and a Singapore Pools outlet in Toa Payoh Lorong 1. It is not known if each ticket belonged to an individual or was shared among several people. Meanwhile, 609 tickets won the Group 3 prize, which had a share amount of $1,658. Earlier, the Singapore Pools' website showed that the prize money for the Group 1 category had snowballed from almost $1.2 million on July 7 to about $2.9 million on July 10. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Driverless bus in Sentosa gets green light to run without safety officer in first for S'pore World US strikes destroyed only one of three Iranian nuclear sites, says new report Business 5 things to know about Kuok Hui Kwong, tycoon Robert Kuok's daughter and Shangri-La Asia head honcho Asia Air India probe of Boeing 787 fuel control switches finds no issues Singapore Man charged over manufacturing DIY Kpods at Yishun home; first such case in Singapore Singapore Sex first, then you can sell my flat: Women property agents fend off indecent proposals and harassment Singapore Two women jailed for submitting fake university certificates to MOM for employment passes Singapore Fatal abuse of Myanmar maid in Bishan: Traffic Police officer sentenced to 10 years' jail The last draw on July 14, which had a prize money of about $5.8 million, had again yielded no winner. The last Toto draw that had a prize sum of over $10 million was on June 19, when a single ticket won the $12.3 million Toto jackpot . The latest draw results are available on the Singapore Pools website.
Straits Times
40 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Evolution of the UK electorate from landowners to suffragettes to 16-year-old voters
Find out what's new on ST website and app. FILE PHOTO: People walk past a polling station sign outside a church as voting gets underway in the Runcorn and Helsby parliamentary by-election in Runcorn, Britain, May 1, 2025. REUTERS/Phil Noble/File Photo LONDON - Britain on Thursday set out plans to lower the voting age to 16 in a landmark reform to the process that underpins one of the world's oldest parliaments. Who can currently vote? At present, anyone aged 18 or over can vote in UK general elections if they are a British citizen, a qualifying citizen from the Commonwealth group of former British colonies, or a citizen of Ireland, and are registered to vote. Members of the upper house of parliament and convicted prisoners serving a sentence are excluded from the franchise. When did parliament get elected representatives? In 1295, the English parliament, then made up of nobles and bishops, was extended to include elected representatives, setting the model for future parliaments. How was the electorate restricted? Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Driverless bus in Sentosa gets green light to run without safety officer in first for S'pore World US strikes destroyed only one of three Iranian nuclear sites, says new report Business 5 things to know about Kuok Hui Kwong, tycoon Robert Kuok's daughter and Shangri-La Asia head honcho Asia Air India probe of Boeing 787 fuel control switches finds no issues Singapore Man charged over manufacturing DIY Kpods at Yishun home; first such case in Singapore Singapore Sex first, then you can sell my flat: Women property agents fend off indecent proposals and harassment Singapore Two women jailed for submitting fake university certificates to MOM for employment passes Singapore Fatal abuse of Myanmar maid in Bishan: Traffic Police officer sentenced to 10 years' jail In the 15th century, the vote in England was restricted to men who owned freehold land worth at least 40 shillings, narrowing the electorate to wealthy landowners. The English and Scottish parliaments passed a law in 1707 uniting the two countries into one sovereign state called Great Britain. At this time, the right to vote was still severely restricted. About a century later, Ireland merged into Great Britain to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. When was the first UK election? The first ever UK general elections ran from July 5 until August 14 in 1802. In 1832, the vote was extended to more men by a broadening of the property qualification, while parliamentary seats were redistributed to better represent rapidly growing towns and cities. But the legislation defined a voter as a male person, formally excluding women from voting in elections. Before that, there were occasional instances of women voting. When did women get the vote? Women were granted the right to vote in stages, starting in 1918 when women over the age of 30 who owned a property or were married to a property owner were given the right. All men over the age of 21 were also given the vote at this stage. Ten years later, the vote was finally extended to all women over the age of 21, before the age was lowered to 18 for both men and women in 1969. What earlier efforts were made to move the age under 18? A bill to reduce the voting age to 16 failed to pass due insufficient parliamentary support in 2008. Proposed legislation giving 16- and 17-year-olds the right to vote in Scottish parliamentary and local elections was passed by the Scottish Parliament in 2015, broadening the electorate in Scotland's devolved administration. Four years later, the Welsh Parliament followed with a similar bill, marking the largest franchise extension in Wales since 1969. Which countries have lowered the age below 18? If the plan to lower the age to 16 is passed, Britain would be on par with Austria, Nicaragua, Argentina and Malta, according to U.S.-based research group World Population Review. The age is still 18 to vote in a national election in most major economies, from the United States and Germany in the west to China and India in the east. What were other notable reforms to the UK system? The state began cracking down on illegal practices, such as bribing, in the voting system as early as 1872, through the Secret Ballot Act, enabling people to vote in private without being intimidated into voting for a particular party. Before the turn of the century, attempts to bribe voters were criminalised, with more severe fines and in some cases imprisonment set as punishment. In 2022, Boris Johnson's government introduced a requirement for voters to show photo ID while voting to crack down on possible voter fraud. REUTERS
