U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping shake hands before a bilateral meeting during the G20 Leaders’ Summit in Osaka, Japan, June 29, 2019.
Kevin Lamarque | Reuters
The prospect of a US-China trade deal alone is enough to send the market higher.
In the US on Monday, S&P500, Dow Jones Industrial Average and Nasdaq Composite The market-wide index breached the 6,800 level for the first time, closing at an all-time high.
And that was before the contract was officially signed.
“A lot of the forecasts around technology don’t benefit from China, so if we can bring China back into the equation, it’s probably going to be pretty optimistic for the market,” Sam Stovall, chief investment strategist at CFRA Research, told CNBC.
NvidiaFor example, the company’s forecast for this quarter excludes shipments to China in the second half of 2020, a reminder of how trade restrictions complicate the outlook for large U.S. tech companies.
A formal agreement between the U.S. and China to clarify and possibly ease trade terms could prompt big tech companies to raise their guidance, sparking a new wave of buying in a market already dominated by them.
Beyond silicon and software, soy is back in action. China may ease its unofficial boycott of U.S. soybeans as part of the deal, according to reports. That will go some way to easing the pain for Scott Bessent, because as he said in a TV interview, he is not only the US Treasury Secretary, but he is also a soybean farmer.
In the broader trade war between China and the United States, Mr. Bessent literally meant that he owned soybean farmland, but trade tensions have made daily life more difficult for most of us, turning us all into reluctant farmers in some way. A ceasefire could bring some peace to everyone.
What you need to know today
President Trump has indicated that a deal with China is imminent. On Monday, President Trump said on Air Force One that he intends to “make a deal” with Chinese President Xi Jinping on a trade deal. The US president also hinted that a deal with TikTok could happen on Thursday.
Amazon is preparing to announce the biggest layoffs in its history. The layoffs, which will affect nearly every department, will begin Tuesday, officials said. According to Reuters, up to 30,000 employees will be affected.
HSBC beat profit expectations. Pretax profit for the third quarter was $7.3 billion, beating the bank’s estimate of $5.98 billion. However, this number was down 14% year over year due to higher operating expenses.
US stocks hit record highs. 3 major US indices and russell 2000 It rose on Monday to close at an all-time high. Asia-Pacific markets fell on Tuesday. Korean Kospi Sales fell even though the country’s economy expanded more than expected in the third quarter.
(PRO) When the Fed cuts rates, it’s time to put your cash elsewhere. The return on money market funds depends on current interest rates. Analysts say investors should start moving money out of cash instruments if the Fed almost certainly cuts interest rates.
And finally…
Amin H. Nasser, President and CEO of Aramco, Saudi Arabia, speaks at the Future Investment Initiative (FII) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, October 29, 2024.
Hamad Mohammed | Reuters
How Saudi Arabia is diversifying away from oil and betting big on AI
According to Saudi Investment Minister Khalid al-Falih, 50.6% of the Saudi economy is now “completely decoupled” from oil.
The country is doubling down on fast-growing sectors such as artificial intelligence for growth. Al-Falih said Saudi Arabia will be a “major investor” in the development of AI applications and large-scale language models, adding that Saudi Arabia will also build data centers “at a scale and competitive cost that cannot be achieved elsewhere.”
— Lim Huijie
