By Alden Bentley, Americas Finance and Markets Breaking News Editor
Jamie is enjoying some well-deserved time off, but the Reuters markets team will still keep you up to date on what markets were focused on today and why investors shifted their focus from tariffs to a big milestone for AI chip-leader Nvidia. I'd love to hear from you so please feel free to reach out at Alden.Bentley@thomsonreuters.com
U.S. stock indexes were buoyed on Wednesday by AI confidence thanks to Nvidia, which became the first company to reach a market cap of $4 trillion.
Graphics are provided by Reuters.
While most of the Magnificent Seven stocks were up (only Tesla was down in late trade), reaching the milestone for the most-mega of megacaps was the chief distraction from trade headlines. It overshadowed U.S. President Donald Trump delivering on Tuesday's promise to announce 50% tariffs on copper, while again threatening tariffs on imported chips and pharmaceuticals.
Trump issued final tariff notices to seven minor trading partners - 20% on goods from the Philippines, 30% on goods from Sri Lanka, Algeria, Iraq, and Libya, and 25% on Brunei and Moldova - while his administration inched closer to a deal with its biggest trading partner, the European Union.
If traders have become desensitized to Trump's daily pronouncements, they similarly hardly reacted to the minutes from the Fed's June meeting that showed a couple of officials felt interest rates could fall as soon as this month, while most others remained worried about the potential inflation fallout from the tariff war. The only other scheduled event was the Treasury's sale of $39 billion in 10-year notes, which went well and saw the yield on the benchmark US debt instrument fall afterward.
The dollar backed off a two-week high against the Japanese yen. Japan, which depends on exports, stands out among major U.S. trading partners as being the farthest from reaching a trade deal with Washington.
What could move markets tomorrow?
US weekly unemployment claims
Treasury auctions $22 billion of 30-year bonds
Opinions expressed are those of the author. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.
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