The Overnight News Roundup - July 22
Your Daily Edge: Overnight Headlines for Traders, Analysts, and Market Observers
PiQ and Zack Eiseman provide you with a consolidated roundup of the overnight news that matters most to markets.
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TRADE:
Japan's government said tariff negotiator Akazawa and US Commerce Secretary Lutnick met for over two hours in Washington on Monday and held frank talks to seek agreement benefiting both Japan and the US. Japan's government said Japan will continue to seek common ground on tariff issues with the US. (RTRS)
India and US mini trade deal is ruled out before August 1st, according to CNBC TV18 citing sources. (Newsquawk)
Indonesian sovereign wealth fund Danantara plans to sign an $8 billion engineering, procurement and construction contract with U.S. engineering firm KBR Inc to build 17 modular refineries. The contract is part of last week's trade pact between Indonesia and the US. (RTRS)
South Korea will hold high-level trade talks with the US on July 25, accelerating efforts to head off sweeping tariffs by weighing politically sensitive concessions that could reshape ties between the two allies. (BBG)
MACRO:
U.S. Treasury Secretary Bessent called for deeper reforms of what he called an antiquated financial regulatory system and said regulators should consider scrapping a "flawed," Biden-era proposal for a dual capital requirement structure for banks. (RTRS)
The potential ouster of Fed Chair Powell by Trump would drive the 30-year Treasury yield higher by more than half a percentage point, according to Deutsche Bank AG strategists. (BBG)
The biggest US grid has no spare supply for new data centers, meaning project developers will need to build their own power plants, according to the system’s independent watchdog. (BBG)
Bloomberg BoJ sources note the Bank is likely to keep rates unchanged at the next meeting (as expected). The BoJ reportedly believes that the recent election will have minimal impact on its rate policy stance, but is said to recognize a risk of upward pressure on prices if there is significant fiscal loosening. The BoJ plans to monitor the effects of trade talks before considering any rate hikes. (BBG)
Moody's Ratings said on Tuesday the potential impact of a cut to Japan's consumption taxes on the country's sovereign debt rating will depend on the "scope, magnitude and permanence." (RTRS)
A Chinese government subsidy scheme for purchase of electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids ended at the end of June in three districts in the city of Xian, the capital of China's Shaanxi province. (Shaanxi Daily)
Smartphone shipments in China were down 2.4% for the second quarter compared with a year ago, Counterpoint Research said. Apple's sales in China fell 1.6% year-on-year while Chinese mobile maker Huawei's sales rose 17.6%. (RTRS)
A distortion in China’s money market has vanished after persisting throughout this year, a nascent sign that investors expect the latest stimulus efforts to reflate the economy. (BBG)
The UK government borrowed £20.7bn in June, more than expected, as chancellor Rachel Reeves struggles with the country’s weak economic growth and her own fiscal rules. The shortfall between government income and spending was £6.6bn more than in June 2024 and higher than the £17.1bn forecast for June this year by the UK’s fiscal watchdog. (FT)
The UK made a final investment decision on the Sizewell C nuclear power plant, a £38 billion ($51 billion) project that’s critical to the country’s energy and climate goals. The British government will retain a minority stake of around 45%. (BBG)
BoE officials are mulling whether to set aside plans to create a digital pound for households amid growing skepticism over the project’s benefits, the latest sign of dwindling support for state-backed digital currencies globally. (BBG)
UK retailers are renewing efforts to persuade Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves to bring back tax-free shopping for tourists, as the government prepares to set out its plan to boost the so-called visitor economy. (BBG)
The RBA's monetary policy board kept rates on hold earlier this month, according to the minutes, deciding that a more gradual pace of cuts was needed, and that there was time to wait for the release of crucial second-quarter inflation data. (RTRS)
New Zealand posted its first quarterly decline in exports in almost two years, adding to signs that the momentum apparent in the economy at the start of the year has faded. (BBG)
Brazil's finance minister said in an interview released on Monday that if the government complies with its fiscal target, the central bank will "feel more empowered" to justify cutting interest rates. (RTRS)
The South Korean president’s push to cancel listed companies’ treasury stock purchases will strengthen corporate governance but should be phased in to prevent market disruption, a senior aide said. (BBG)
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GEOPOLITICAL:
China is making a concerted effort to expand its influence throughout the UN, taking advantage of Donald Trump's disdain for multilateralism. (FT)
Argentina said on Monday that Chinese citizens with valid U.S. entry visas would not need Argentine visas to enter the country for tourism or business, a loosening of requirements that comes amid warming ties between Beijing and Buenos Aires. (RTRS)
Ukraine’s new prime minister said she’s likely to seek more financing from the International Monetary Fund as she sets out to shore up the nation’s fiscal needs with no end in sight to Russia’s war. (BBG)
EQUITIES:
SoftBank and OpenAI’s $500 Billion AI Project Struggles to Get Off Ground' WSJ article notes the Stargate venture, introduced at White House event, is now setting the more modest goal of building a small data center by year-end. (WSJ)
TSMC would have a hard time manufacturing Nvidia H20 or AMD MI308 chips for the China market now as its advanced production capacity is nearly full. (CTEE)
NXP Semiconductors expects revenue to continue to decline in its third quarter, though at a slower clip, as profit dropped in its latest period. (WSJ)
Nvidia and MediaTek delay AI PC launch to 2026 due to Microsoft OS hurdles and market headwinds. (DigiTimes)
Arm is reportedly considering re-entry into the application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) market, potentially positioning itself as a competitor to some of its key customers. (DigiTimes)
JPMorgan explores lending against clients’ cryptocurrency. (FT)
Crown Holdings raised its full-year guidance, with the manufacturer saying it had strong first half performance as it continues to monitor the potential impacts of tariffs. (WSJ)
AstraZeneca said it plans to invest $50 billion in the U.S. by 2030, marking the latest drugmaker to commit to American manufacturing as looming tariffs threaten to raise costs across the industry. (WSJ)
Sanofi said it agreed to buy U.K. vaccine developer Vicebio for up to $1.6 billion, adding vaccine candidates for respiratory syncytial virus and human metapneumovirus to its pipeline. (WSJ)
Universal Music Group filed for a public offering in the U.S. (WSJ)
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That's all for today's digest. Happy trading, and keep it tight!
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