Fewer than 20 ships transited key Strait of Hormuz over weekend
Only four commodity vessels crossed the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday, following 13 transits a day earlier, as disruptions continue to restrict traffi...
On Monday, Wall Street stocks closed with modest gains as investors largely shrugged off U.S. President Donald Trump’s latest tariff threats, focusing instead on an eventful week ahead with key economic reports and the start of earnings season.
Trump escalated trade tensions over the weekend by announcing plans to impose a 30% tariff on most imports from the European Union and Mexico starting 1 August, setting a deadline for last-minute trade deals. The EU has extended its pause on retaliatory measures until early August, hoping for a negotiated settlement, while talks between the US, EU, Canada, and Mexico continue.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.20% to 44,459, the S&P 500 gained 0.14% to 6,268, and the Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.27% to 20,640. Trading volume was below the 20-day average.
Despite ongoing tariff threats, markets have remained buoyant, with the Nasdaq hitting its seventh record high since late June.
Investment strategist Jason Pride noted that the economy’s growth outlook is improving as the effects of tariffs are largely offset by recent economic legislation.
This week will bring important updates on the U.S. economy, including second-quarter earnings reports starting Tuesday, and consumer price data expected to show inflation picking up in June.
Oil prices fell 2.2% following Trump’s threat of tariffs on Russian imports, dragging the energy sector down by 1.2%, the largest decline among S&P sectors.
Meanwhile, the communication services sector rose 0.7%, helped by gains in Netflix and Warner Bros. Discovery ahead of their earnings releases.
Cryptocurrency-related stocks also advanced after Bitcoin surpassed $120,000 for the first time.
Laboratory equipment maker Waters Corp dropped 13.8% after announcing a $17.5 billion merger with Becton, Dickinson and Company’s Biosciences division, marking the largest loss of the day.
Iran on Saturday denounced U.S. plans to announce new sanctions that could put further strain on the Islamic Republic's economy and have an impact on its most important trading partners including China.
A large-scale drone attack has hit Russia's Samara region, damaging facilities and disrupting operations at an Ozon logistics complex, according to regional authorities and the company.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has rejected calls for a wartime election, arguing that holding a vote while Russia's full-scale invasion continues would divide the country and undermine national unity.
Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan have elevated bilateral ties with a Treaty on Eternal Friendship signed by Presidents Ilham Aliyev and Shavkat Mirziyoyev in Tashkent on 23 August. The leaders also agreed to expand trade, investment, transport, and regional cooperation.
Start your day informed with AnewZ Morning Brief. Here are the top news stories for the 22nd of August, covering the latest developments.
New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said on Monday that his party will introduce a bill to ban children under 16 from using social media. The proposal would allow fines of up to 10 per cent of a platform’s global revenue for non-compliance.
Russia reported a major fire at an Ozon logistics hub in Krasnodar after a drone attack on Monday, while Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy denied Kyiv’s official involvement in the Nord Stream 2 pipeline blasts.
Icelanders will vote on Saturday, 29 August, on whether to begin negotiations with the European Union, in a referendum that could reopen the country’s long-debated membership question.
At least 30 people have been killed after a massive landfill collapsed onto homes in Guinea's capital, Conakry, following heavy overnight rainfall that triggered a deadly landslide of waste in one of the city's densely populated districts.
Canada has rejected a proposed trade agreement with the United States after negotiations broke down over what Ottawa described as a series of last-minute demands that would have disproportionately favoured Washington and undermined Canadian economic interests.
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