2025-08-10 13:00

CPI for July due on Tuesday after June data showed some tariff impact Rate-cut bets rise in wake of weak employment data earlier in month S&P 500 up over 8% in 2025, hovering around record highs NEW YORK, Aug 8 (Reuters) - A fresh look at inflation trends will test the U.S. stock market's rally in the coming week, with some investors saying equities are primed for a potential pullback after rocketing to records. The benchmark S&P 500 (.SPX) , opens new tab ended on Friday up more than 8% on the year and on the cusp of all-time high levels, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC) , opens new tab was at a record, as stocks rebounded from declines following a weak employment report earlier this month. Sign up here. Strategists at firms including Deutsche Bank and Morgan Stanley have recently said the market could be poised for some level of pullback after a largely unabated climb over the past four months, which has pushed valuations to historically expensive levels as a seasonally treacherous period for stocks begins. The monthly U.S. consumer price index report, due on Tuesday, could cause volatility. Data showing higher-than-expected inflation could undermine the growing expectation for impending interest rate cuts. "I do think the market is set up for a bit of a pullback," said Dominic Pappalardo, chief multi-asset strategist at Morningstar Wealth. "There's a lot of concern bubbling underneath." The S&P 500 has surged 28% since its low for the year in April, as investor fears about a tariff-induced recession calmed after President Donald Trump's "Liberation Day" announcement earlier that month had set off extreme asset volatility. The index is trading at over 22 times its earnings estimates for the next year, well above its long-term average P/E ratio of 15.8 after recently reaching its highest valuation in over four years, according to LSEG Datastream. Investors are also wary of risks posed by the calendar. Over the past 35 years, August and September have ranked as the worst-performing months for the S&P 500, according to the Stock Trader's Almanac. The index has declined an average of 0.6% in August and 0.8% in September -- the only months of negative average performance for the index during that time period. "The combination of a softer payroll number with concerns of tariff-related inflation could be the recipe for ... a correction, especially in the seasonally weak third quarter," Morgan Stanley equity strategist Michael Wilson said in a note this week. Still, Wilson said his 12-month outlook was bullish, adding "we’re buyers of pullbacks." The CPI for July is expected to have climbed 2.8% on an annual basis, according to a Reuters poll of economists. Investors will be watching to see if Trump's tariffs on imports are translating into higher prices after the June CPI report suggested levies were impacting the prices of some goods. Market bets on Fed rate cuts rose following the recent weak jobs data as investors expect the central bank will ease monetary policy to help shore up the labor market. Fed funds futures indicate an over 90% chance the Fed will cut at its next meeting in September, with at least two cuts priced in for this year, LSEG data showed. That narrative could be at risk if CPI rises more than expected, making the Fed more hesitant to cut rates, investors said. "If the CPI suggests that the market got a little ahead of itself, that can create volatility," said Angelo Kourkafas, senior investment strategist at Edward Jones. "But if it's not worse than feared ... that can further reinforce that we are now in an inflection point for the Fed." The prospect of higher tariffs and the economic fallout from those levies already instituted by the Trump administration has been a persistent theme clouding markets, but stocks have managed to rise to records despite the uncertainty. Higher tariffs on imports from dozens of countries took effect on Thursday, raising the average U.S. import duty to its highest in a century, while the president also this week announced plans for levies on semiconductor chips and pharmaceutical imports. China could face a potential tariff increase on Tuesday unless Trump approves an extension of a prior truce. The impact of higher tariffs on the economy could take a while to show up, and "the market has kind of ignored the potential negative impact of this friction to the economy," said Matt Rowe, senior portfolio manager at Man Group. "The market has gotten comfortable with tariffs being kind of a non-event, which I don't think is correct," Rowe said. https://www.reuters.com/business/wall-st-week-ahead-inflation-data-test-stocks-some-investors-brace-rally-pause-2025-08-08/

2025-08-10 09:22

Aug 10 (Reuters) - Contemporary Amperex Technology (CATL) (300750.SZ) , opens new tab has suspended production at its lithium mine Jianxiawo, in China's Jiangxi province for at least three months, Bloomberg News reported on Sunday, citing people familiar with the matter. The Chinese battery manufacturer announced internally that the Jianxiawo mine would be halting operations temporarily, the report said, adding that affiliated refineries in nearby Yichun had been informed. Sign up here. CATL did not respond immediately to an emailed request for comment on Sunday and Reuters was unable to obtain immediate verification of the report. Reuters reported in February that CATL resumed operations at its lithium lepidolite mine in China's Jiangxi province. CATL's mine in the southern Chinese province of Jiangxi has been a major contributor to rapidly growing supplies of lithium in China, the world's top processor of the battery material. Reports of its closure in September caused lithium stocks to rally sharply. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/catl-suspends-production-china-lithium-mine-bloomberg-news-reports-2025-08-10/

2025-08-10 08:59

KUWAIT, Aug 10 (Reuters) - The Kuwait Authority for Partnership Projects (KAPP) signed contracts on Sunday with Saudi's ACWA Power and the Gulf Investment Corporation for phases two and three of the Al-Zour North power plant. The value of these phases of the power plant exceeds 1 billion Kuwaiti dinars ($3.27 billion), the Kuwaiti authority's director general told Reuters. Asmaa Al-Mousa said that the investors, not the government, will bear the cost. Sign up here. The signing ceremony on Sunday sets in motion one of the country's biggest electricity projects as it seeks to address severe electricity shortages. Once completed, the Al-Zour North project will produce 2.7 gigawatts (GW) of power and 120 million gallons of water daily using combined-cycle technology, with construction set to take three years. Kuwait expects a significant improvement in electricity services once several major projects come online, including a large-scale venture with China, Adel Al-Zamel, the undersecretary of the Ministry of Electricity, Water and Renewable Energy said during the signing event. Since last year, the government has resorted to planned power cuts in some areas to reduce the load. "If (the projects) go according to plan, by 2028 our situation will be much better," Al-Zamel told reporters. Kuwait hopes to sign an implementation agreement with China in the first quarter of 2026 for phases three and four of the Shagaya renewable energy project, with a combined capacity of 3.2 gigawatts (GW), Al-Zamel said. ($1 = 0.3054 Kuwaiti dinars) https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/kuwait-signs-contracts-327-billion-power-plant-project-2025-08-10/

2025-08-10 01:08

SANTIAGO, Aug 9 (Reuters) - Copper miner Codelco received authorization from Chile's labor inspector office to begin resuming certain operations at its flagship El Teniente copper mine, it said on Saturday, after more than a week of suspended operations following a deadly collapse that killed six workers. In a statement, Codelco said operations can resume in areas not affected by the July 31 collapse, including Pilar Norte, Panel Esmeralda, Pacifico Superior, Diablo Regimiento, and others, while sections such as Recursos Norte and Andesita remain suspended, pending further inspections. Sign up here. The decision allows Codelco, the world's largest copper producer, to partially restart activities at one of its key divisions, potentially easing operational disruptions. Chile's mining regulator had given the green light for a partial restart on Friday evening, but the company needed the labor inspection office to sign off on the plan before resuming mining activity at a time when the miner grapples with production challenges. The El Teniente division is expected to announce its detailed plan for restarting operations along with safety measures to ensure compliance with labor authority requirements. Inspections in suspended areas will continue before a full restart can be authorized. El Teniente, which is more than a century old, spans more than 4,500 km (2,800 miles) of tunnels and underground galleries deep within the Andes mountains. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/chiles-codelco-gets-approval-labor-inspector-restart-el-teniente-operations-2025-08-10/

2025-08-09 23:56

WASHINGTON, Aug 9 (Reuters) - Bo Hines, who headed Republican President Donald Trump's Council of Advisers on Digital Assets, said on Saturday he was leaving his current role and returning to the private sector. Late last month, a cryptocurrency working group led by Hines and including several administration officials outlined the Trump administration's stance on market-defining crypto legislation and called on the U.S. securities regulator to create new rules specific to digital assets. Sign up here. Shortly after taking office in January, Trump had ordered the creation of the crypto working group and tasked it with proposing new regulations, making good on his campaign promise to overhaul U.S. crypto policy. "Serving in President Trump's administration and working alongside our brilliant AI & Crypto Czar @DavidSacks as Executive Director of the White House Crypto Council has been the honor of a lifetime," Hines said in a post on X on Saturday. Sacks, the White House AI czar, praised Hines in response to the post announcing his departure. Hines has twice unsuccessfully run for Congress in North Carolina. Trump last month signed a law to create a regulatory regime for dollar-pegged cryptocurrencies known as stablecoins, a milestone that could pave the way for the digital assets to become an everyday way to make payments and move money. Hines was a backer of that legislation, dubbed the GENIUS Act. https://www.reuters.com/world/us/white-house-crypto-adviser-bo-hines-announces-departure-2025-08-09/

2025-08-09 16:51

Iran threatens Caucasus corridor announced on Friday Analysts say unclear how Tehran could block it Diplomat says final peace deal faces just one obstacle Armenia must amend its constitution, he says Armenia PM has called for vote on the change DUBAI/MOSCOW, Aug 9 (Reuters) - Iran threatened on Saturday to block a corridor planned in the Caucasus under a regional deal sponsored by U.S. President Donald Trump, Iranian media reported, raising a new question mark over a peace plan hailed as a strategically important shift. A top Azerbaijani diplomat said earlier that the plan, announced by Trump on Friday, was just one step from a final peace deal between his country and Armenia, which reiterated its support for the plan. Sign up here. The proposed Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity (TRIPP) would run across southern Armenia, giving Azerbaijan a direct route to its exclave of Nakhchivan and in turn to Turkey. The U.S. would have exclusive development rights to the corridor, which the White House said would facilitate greater exports of energy and other resources. It was not immediately clear how Iran, which borders the area, would block it but the statement from Ali Akbar Velayati, top adviser to Iran's supreme leader, raised questions over its security. He said military exercises carried out in northwest Iran demonstrated the Islamic Republic's readiness and determination to prevent any geopolitical changes. "This corridor will not become a passage owned by Trump, but rather a graveyard for Trump's mercenaries," Velayati said. Iran's foreign ministry earlier welcomed the agreement "as an important step toward lasting regional peace", but warned against any foreign intervention near its borders that could "undermine the region's security and lasting stability". Analysts and insiders say that Iran, under mounting US pressure over its disputed nuclear programme and the aftermath of a 12-day war with Israel in June, lacks the military power to block the corridor. MOSCOW SAYS WEST SHOULD STEER CLEAR Trump welcomed Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan in the White House on Friday and witnessed their signing of a joint declaration aimed at drawing a line under their decades-long on-off conflict. Russia, a traditional broker and ally of Armenia in the strategically important South Caucasus region which is crisscrossed with oil and gas pipelines, was not included, despite its border guards being stationed on the border between Armenia and Iran. While Moscow said it supported the summit, it proposed "implementing solutions developed by the countries of the region themselves with the support of their immediate neighbours – Russia, Iran and Turkey" to avoid what it called the "sad experience" of Western efforts to mediate in the Middle East. Azerbaijan's close ally, NATO member Turkey, welcomed the accord. Baku and Yerevan have been at odds since the late 1980s when Nagorno-Karabakh, a mountainous Azerbaijani region mostly populated by ethnic Armenians, broke away from Azerbaijan with support from Armenia. Azerbaijan took back full control of the region in 2023, prompting almost all of the territory's 100,000 ethnic Armenians to flee to Armenia. "The chapter of enmity is closed and now we're moving towards lasting peace," said Elin Suleymanov, Azerbaijan's ambassador to Britain, predicting that the wider region's prosperity and transport links would be transformed for the better. "This is a paradigm shift," said Suleymanov, who as a former envoy to Washington who used to work in President Aliyev's office, is one of his country's most senior diplomats. Suleymanov declined to speculate on when a final peace deal would be signed however, noting that Aliyev had said he wanted it to happen soon. There remained only one obstacle, said Suleymanov, which was for Armenia to amend its constitution to remove a reference to Nagorno-Karabakh. "Azerbaijan is ready to sign any time once Armenia fulfils the very basic commitment of removing its territorial claim against Azerbaijan in its constitution," he said. MANY QUESTIONS UNANSWERED Pashinyan this year called for a referendum to change the constitution, but no date for it has been set yet. Armenia is to hold parliamentary elections in June 2026, and the new constitution is expected to be drafted before the vote. The Armenian leader said on X that the Washington summit had paved the way to end the decades of conflict and open transport connections that would unlock strategic economic opportunities. Asked when the transit rail route would start running, Suleymanov said that would depend on cooperation between the U.S. and Armenia whom he said were already in talks. Joshua Kucera, Senior South Caucasus analyst at International Crisis Group, said Trump may not have got the easy win he had hoped for as the agreements left many questions unanswered. The issue of Armenia's constitution continued to threaten to derail the process, and it was not clear how the new transport corridor would work in practice. "Key details are missing, including about how customs checks and security will work and the nature of Armenia's reciprocal access to Azerbaijani territory. These could be serious stumbling blocks," said Kucera. Suleymanov played down suggestions that Russia, which still has extensive security and economic interests in Armenia, was being disadvantaged. "Anybody and everybody can benefit from this if they choose to," he said. https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/iran-threatens-planned-trump-corridor-envisaged-by-azerbaijan-armenia-peace-deal-2025-08-09/