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Markets were mixed Thursday, with Japan’s Nikkei down as bitcoin hit a new high and investors braced for talks between the US and Russian presidents in Alaska.Bitcoin hit a new peak during early Asian trading, with the cryptocurrency briefly exceeding $124,500 before retreating, driven by favourable US legislation and a rise in US equities.”The crypto market is enjoying a period of highly favorable fundamentals,” said Samer Hasn, senior market analyst at XS.com.Hopes of a US interest rate cut after soft inflation data pushed Tokyo’s Nikkei to its second record close in as many days on Wednesday, but on Thursday the index closed down 1.45 percent.Hong Kong and Taipei also fell while Seoul edged up. London, Frankfurt and Paris were all higher in early trade. With US President Donald Trump calling on the US Federal Reserve to cut rates, his Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent pressured the Bank of Japan governor to lift borrowing costs.Despite inflation being above its target, the BoJ has been holding off raising borrowing costs, seeing price rises as caused by temporary factors and not by strong demand or wage growth.”The Japanese have an inflation problem…   They are behind the curve so they are going to be hiking,” Bessent told Bloomberg TV.Investors were also eyeing talks on Friday between Trump and Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on ending the more than three-year war in Ukraine.- Key figures at around 0715 GMT -Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 1.5 percent at 42,649.26Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.5 percent at 25,489.59Shanghai – Composite: DOWN 0.5 percent at 3,666.44London – FTSE 100: UP 0.1 percent at 9,165.23Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.1679 from $1.1704 on WednesdayPound/dollar: UP at $1.3581 from $1.3577 Dollar/yen: DOWN at 146.46 yen from 147.40 yenEuro/pound: DOWN at 85.99 pence from 86.21 penceWest Texas Intermediate: UP 0.7 percent at $63.07 per barrelBrent North Sea Crude: UP 0.6 percent at $66.04 per barrelNew York – Dow: UP 1.0 percent at 44,922.27 (close)

Bitcoin hit a new peak during early Asian trading on Thursday, as the yen surged after the US Treasury Secretary said he expects Japan to hike interest rates.The cryptocurrency rose above its previous July record, briefly exceeding $124,500 before retreating.Bitcoin’s value has recently soared, fuelled by US regulatory changes under US President Donald Trump, a strong backer of the crypto sector.”The crypto market is enjoying a period of highly favorable fundamentals,” said Samer Hasn, senior market analyst at XS.com.Japan’s currency rose significantly against the dollar, climbing to its highest level since late July after US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said he had told the Bank of Japan (BoJ) governor that it was “behind the curve” in its fight against inflation. “So they’re going to be hiking and they need to get their inflation problem under control,” Bessent told Bloomberg TV.The Bank of Japan, which has long maintained a negative interest rate policy, began monetary tightening in 2024. However, it left rates unchanged at the end of July and is expected by observers to maintain the status quo at its next monetary policy meeting in September. Bessent “may be trying to weaken the dollar through his comments,” according to Hideo Kumano of Dai-Ichi Life Research Institute, as cited by Bloomberg.Bessent and President Donald Trump are pushing Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell to lower rates as quickly as possible.Hopes of rate cuts following soft inflation data released Tuesday had boosted stock markets, with the broad-based S&P 500 index and the tech-heavy Nasdaq reaching new summits this week. Tokyo’s Nikkei hit a record as it closed 1.3 percent higher on Wednesday.- Key figures at around 0400 GMT -Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 1.3 percent at 42,698.81Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.1 percent at 25,597.85 Shanghai – Composite: UP 0.2 percent at 3,690.88Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1706 from $1.1704 on WednesdayPound/dollar: FLAT at $1.3577 from $1.3577 Dollar/yen: DOWN at 146.43 yen from 147.40 yenEuro/pound: UP at 86.22 pence from 86.21 penceWest Texas Intermediate: UP 0.3 percent at $62.86 per barrelBrent North Sea Crude: UP 0.4 percent at $65.86 per barrelNew York – Dow: UP 1.0 percent at 44,922.27 (close)London – FTSE 100: UP 0.2 percent at 9,165.23 (close)

Stock markets rose Wednesday, with Wall Street building on the previous day’s record highs after steady US inflation data fueled hopes that the US Federal Reserve will cut interest rates.The broad-based S&P 500 index and the tech-heavy Nasdaq extended gains after reaching new summits on Tuesday. Both indices again finished at fresh records.Tokyo’s Nikkei index followed suit on Wednesday, hitting a record as it closed 1.3 percent higher.European stock markets also finished in the green.Investors have worried about the impact that US President Donald Trump’s tariffs will have on inflation and growth in the world’s biggest economy.But official figures showed Tuesday that the US consumer price index remained steady at 2.7 percent in July, unchanged from June. Investors shrugged off data showing that core CPI — a measure of inflation that strips out volatile food and energy prices — accelerated in July to the fastest pace in six months to 3.1 percent.”Even as core CPI was accelerating, markets were reassured because the tariff impact on inflation didn’t look so obvious this time,” Deutsche Bank analysts said in a note.Markets could have reacted negatively as core inflation is usually the data point favored by the Fed to make decisions on interest rates, said Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior analyst at Swissquote Bank.”Investors instead increased September cut expectations, thinking that imported goods inflation remained lower than feared as companies continued to absorb tariff costs,” she said.Trump has repeatedly demanded that the independent Fed cut rates and lambasted its chief, Jerome Powell, over the issue. The central bank, which will make its next interest rate decision in September, has kept borrowing costs unchanged for now.The dollar slumped against other major currencies as the prospect of lower interest rates reduced its appeal to foreign investors.Investor focus was also on a summit in Alaska on Friday between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin on the three-year-old Ukraine war.And oil prices retreated as the International Energy Agency raised its forecast for supply growth in 2025 and 2026 — leaving the world with a surplus — after OPEC+ decided to raise production.- Key figures at around 2030 GMT -New York – Dow: UP 1.0 percent at 44,922.27 (close)New York – S&P 500: UP 0.3 percent at 6,466.58 (close)New York – Nasdaq: UP 0.1 percent at 21,713.14 (close)London – FTSE 100: UP 0.2 percent at 9,165.23 (close)Paris – CAC 40: UP 0.7 percent at 7,804.97 (close)Frankfurt – DAX: UP 0.7 percent at 24,185.59 (close)Tokyo – Nikkei 225: UP 1.3 percent at 43,274.67 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: UP 2.6 percent at 25,613.67 (close)Shanghai – Composite: UP 0.5 percent at 3,683.46 (close)Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1704 from $1.1675 on TuesdayPound/dollar: UP at $1.3577 from $1.3500Dollar/yen: DOWN at 147.40 yen from 147.84 yenEuro/pound: DOWN at 86.21 pence from 86.47 penceWest Texas Intermediate: DOWN 0.8 percent at $62.65 per barrelBrent North Sea Crude: DOWN 0.7 percent at $65.63 per barrel

Stock markets rose Wednesday, with Wall Street building on the previous day’s record highs after steady US inflation data fuelled hopes that the US Federal Reserve will cut interest rates.The broad-based S&P 500 index and the tech-heavy Nasdaq extended gains after reaching new summits on Tuesday.Tokyo’s Nikkei index followed suit on Wednesday, hitting a record as it closed 1.3 percent higher.European stock markets also finished in the green.Investors have worried about the impact that US President Donald Trump’s tariffs will have on US inflation and growth in the world’s biggest economy.But official figures showed Tuesday that the US consumer price index (CPI) remained steady at 2.7 percent in July, unchanged from June. Investors shrugged off data showing that core CPI — a measure of inflation that strips out volatile food and energy prices — accelerated in July to the fastest pace in six months to 3.1 percent.”Even as core CPI was accelerating, markets were reassured because the tariff impact on inflation didn’t look so obvious this time,” Deutsche Bank analysts said in a note.Markets could have reacted negatively as core inflation is usually the data point favoured by the Fed to make decisions on interest rates, said Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior analyst at Swissquote Bank.”Investors instead increased September cut expectations, thinking that imported goods inflation remained lower than feared as companies continued to absorb tariff costs,” she said.Trump has repeatedly demanded that the independent Fed cut rates and lambasted its chief, Jerome Powell, over the issue. The central bank, which will make its next interest-rate decision in September, has kept borrowing costs unchanged for now.The dollar slumped against other major currencies as the prospect of lower interest rates reduced its appeal to foreign investors.Investor focus was also on a summit in Alaska on Friday between Trump and Russian leader Vladimir Putin on the three-year-old Ukraine war.And oil prices fell more than one percent as the International Energy Agency raised its forecast for supply growth in 2025 and 2026 — leaving the world with a surplus — after OPEC+ decided to raise production.- Key figures at around 1540 GMT -New York – Dow: UP 0.8 percent at 44,790.31 pointsNew York – S&P 500: UP 0.2 percent at 6,456.15New York – Nasdaq: UP 0.1 percent at 21,700.95London – FTSE 100: UP 0.2 percent at 9,165.23 (close)Paris – CAC 40: UP 0.7 percent at 7,804.97 (close)Frankfurt – DAX: UP 0.7 percent at 24,185.59 (close)Tokyo – Nikkei 225: UP 1.3 percent at 43,274.67 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: UP 2.6 percent at 25,613.67 (close)Shanghai – Composite: UP 0.5 percent at 3,683.46 (close)Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1713 from $1.1677 on TuesdayPound/dollar: UP at $1.3571 from $1.3501Dollar/yen: DOWN at 147.24 yen from 147.77 yenEuro/pound: DOWN at 86.31 pence from 86.45 penceWest Texas Intermediate: DOWN 1.4 percent at $62.28 per barrelBrent North Sea Crude: DOWN 1.2 percent at $65.32 per barrel

Markets rose Wednesday on growing hopes of US interest rate cuts after soft inflation data, with Japan’s Nikkei hitting a second record high in as many days.The S&P 500 and Nasdaq finished at fresh highs Tuesday after US data showed a tamer-than-feared impact on prices from President Donald Trump’s tariff blitz.That boosted hopes among that the US Federal Reserve and its embattled chief Jerome Powell will cut interest rates next month.”Jerome ‘Too Late’ Powell must NOW lower the rate,” Trump said on Truth Social, while also threatening a “major lawsuit” over renovations to Fed buildings.The US consumer price index reading for July showed annualised inflation at 2.7 percent, unchanged from a month earlier.Investors calculated that the benign data was not enough to sway the Fed away from an expected interest rate cut next month.”Stocks… took the (inflation) number as confirmation that September is shaping up to be the long-anticipated ‘insurance cut’ in an economy still treading water above the break-even line,” said Stephen Innes at SPI Asset Management.Katy Stoves, investment manager at Mattioli Woods, warned however: “This gentle cooling of the economy will certainly not justify a cut of interest rates to one percent as President Donald Trump is calling for.”Tokyo climbed 1.3 percent to a record high and Hong Kong rose 2.6 percent while Seoul, Shanghai, Taipei, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok and Jakarta also saw healthy gains.Europe followed suit, with London, Frankfurt and Paris all higher in early trade.Oil prices edged lower after OPEC raised its demand forecast for 2026, signalling it expected stronger global activity next year.Investor focus was also on a summit in Alaska on Friday between Trump and Russian leader Vladimir Putin on the three-year-old Ukraine war.In corporate news, AI firm Perplexity offered Google $34.5 billion for its Chrome web browser, which it may have to sell as part of antitrust proceedings.Intel rose 5.5 percent on Wall Street after CEO Lip-Bu Tan met with Trump, who praised the executive after previously calling for him to step down.- Key figures at around 0820 GMT -Tokyo – Nikkei 225: UP 1.3 percent at 43,274.67 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: UP 2.6 percent at 25,613.67 (close)Shanghai – Composite: UP 0.5 percent at 3,683.46 (close)London – FTSE 100: UP 0.3 percent at 9,172.20 Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1718 from $1.1677 on TuesdayPound/dollar: UP at $1.3561 from $1.3501Dollar/yen: DOWN at 147.39 yen from  147.77 yenEuro/pound: DOWN at 86.41 pence from 86.45 penceBrent North Sea Crude: DOWN 0.2 percent at $65.92 per barrelWest Texas Intermediate: DOWN 0.3 percent at $62.90 per barrelNew York – Dow: UP 1.1 percent at 44,458.61 (close)

An Australian court has found Apple and Google misused their market power in a dispute with the maker of wildly popular video game Fortnite.Both Apple and Google kicked Fortnite off their respective app platforms in 2020, after the game designed an in-app payments system that cut the tech giants out of the loop.Developer Epic Games retaliated by launching legal action against the tech giants in a string of courtrooms around the world.Australia’s Federal Court this week found the tech firms’ app-store dominance reduced competition, likely forcing game developers to pay higher commission fees.”This is a WIN for developers and consumers in Australia!” Epic Games said in a statement Tuesday.Justice Jonathan Beach however rejected Epic Games’ claims that Apple and Google engaged in unconscionable conduct.A Google spokesperson said the company disagreed with some of the court’s findings and would “review the full decision when we receive it and assess our next steps”.Australian lawyers have lodged a class action suit seeking compensation from Apple and Google on behalf of game users and developers.”The judgement is a turning point,” said Kimi Nishimura from Maurice Blackburn Lawyers. “It sends a clear message that even the most powerful corporations must play by the rules and respect the rights of consumers and developers alike.”Fortnite is one of the most popular video games in the world, laying claim to hundreds of millions of registered players.

Japan’s Nikkei hit a second record high in as many days Wednesday, as hopes of US interest rate cuts following soft inflation data cheered equity investors across Asia.The S&P 500 and Nasdaq finished at fresh highs Tuesday after US data showed a tamer-than-feared impact on prices from President Donald Trump’s tariff blitz.That boosted hopes among some investors that the US Federal Reserve and its embattled chief Jerome Powell will cut interest rates next month.”Jerome ‘Too Late’ Powell must NOW lower the rate,” Trump said on Truth Social, while also threatening a “major lawsuit” over renovations to Fed buildings.”Stocks… took the (inflation) number as confirmation that September is shaping up to be the long-anticipated ‘insurance cut’ in an economy still treading water above the break-even line,” said Stephen Innes at SPI Asset Management.Katy Stoves, investment manager at Mattioli Woods, warned however: “This gentle cooling of the economy will certainly not justify a cut of interest rates to one percent as President Donald Trump is calling for.”Early afternoon, the Nikkei 225 index was at 43,359.03, up 1.5 percent, having already hit a new intraday record high of 42,999.71 the previous day.Oil prices edged lower after OPEC raised its demand forecast for 2026, signalling it expected stronger global activity next year.Investor focus was also on a summit in Alaska on Friday between Trump and Russian leader Vladimir Putin on the three-year-old Ukraine war.In corporate news, AI firm Perplexity offered Google $34.5 billion for its Chrome web browser, which it may have to sell as part of antitrust proceedings.Intel rose 5.5 percent on Wall Street after CEO Lip-Bu Tan met with Trump, who praised the executive after previously calling for him to step down.- Key figures at around 0300 GMT -Tokyo – Nikkei 225: UP 1.5 percent at 43,359.03Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: UP 1.4 percent at 25,234.90Shanghai – Composite: UP 0.5 percent at 3,683.79Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1684 from $1.1677 on TuesdayPound/dollar: UP at $1.3505 from $1.3501Dollar/yen: UP at 148.04 yen from  147.77 yenEuro/pound: UP at 86.52 pence from 86.45 penceBrent North Sea Crude: DOWN 0.2 percent at $66.01 per barrelWest Texas Intermediate: DOWN 0.2 percent at $63.02 per barrelNew York – Dow: UP 1.1 percent at 44,458.61 (close)London – FTSE 100: UP 0.2 percent at 9,147.81 (close)

Global stocks mostly rose on Tuesday, with Wall Street indices ending at fresh records as US inflation data showed a still-subdued impact from US President Donald Trump’s tariffs.That, combined with Trump extending by 90 days a trade truce with China, cheered investors.New York jumped after the US consumer price index (CPI) reading for July showed annualized inflation at 2.7 percent, unchanged from a month earlier.Both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq finished at fresh records.European markets were likewise boosted by the US inflation numbers, with all but Frankfurt rising.While the headline CPI figure was lower than expected, underlying price increases indicated that Trump’s tariffs were nevertheless starting to ripple through the US economy.Core inflation, which strips out volatile costs such as food and energy, accelerated in July to the fastest pace in six months.”Inflation from tariffs is beginning to feed into the core figure but not yet at the stage that is a major concern for markets,” said Lindsay James, investment strategist at Quilter, a wealth management firm.The dollar slipped against major currencies.Investors calculated that the CPI data was not enough to sway the US Federal Reserve away from an expected interest rate cut next month.The US central bank, which has an inflation target of two percent, also has to weigh other recent data, including signs in the labor market of slower economic growth.Trump has relentlessly pressured Jerome Powell to ease monetary policy, reiterating his call for the Fed Chairman to cut rates immediately in a sneering post on his Truth Social platform.Trump said he may allow “a major lawsuit” against Powell for his oversight of renovations of Federal Reserve buildings.Katy Stoves, investment manager at Mattioli Woods, warned however: “This gentle cooling of the economy will certainly not justify a cut of interest rates to one percent as President Donald Trump is calling for.”Oil prices were lower, after OPEC’s latest growth projections maintained estimates for 2025. The oil cartel raised its demand forecast for 2026, signalling it expected stronger global activity next year.Trump’s announcement on Monday that he would put off reimposing sky-high levies on China to November, to give more time for talks, buoyed market sentiment.Stock markets in Asia rose on the news, with Tokyo hitting a record.Investors are also awaiting a summit between Trump and Russian leader Vladimir Putin on Friday, with the US president playing down the possibility of a breakthrough in ending the war in Ukraine.In corporate news, China’s real estate giant Evergrande Group said on Tuesday it will delist from Hong Kong Stock Exchange in the wake of its 2021 default. The company is emblematic of a years-long crisis in China’s property market.Intel rose 5.5 percent after CEO Lip-Bu Tan met with Trump, who praised the executive after previously calling for him to step down.- Key figures at around 2050 GMT -New York – Dow: UP 1.1 percent at 44,458.61 (close)New York – S&P 500: UP 1.1 percent at 6,445.76 (close)New York – Nasdaq: UP 1.4 percent at 21,681.90 (close)London – FTSE 100: UP 0.2 percent at 9,147.81 (close)Paris – CAC 40: UP 0.7 percent at 7,753.42 (close)Frankfurt – DAX: DOWN 0.2 percent at 24,024.78 (close)Tokyo – Nikkei 225: UP 2.2 percent at 42,718.17 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: UP 0.3 percent at 24,969.68 (close)Shanghai – Composite: UP 0.5 percent at 3,665.92 (close)Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1677 from $1.1615 on MondayPound/dollar: UP at $1.3501 from $1.3432 Dollar/yen: DOWN at 147.77 yen from 148.15 yenEuro/pound: DOWN at 86.45 pence from 86.48 penceBrent North Sea Crude: DOWN 0.8 percent at $66.12 per barrelWest Texas Intermediate: DOWN 1.2 percent at $63.17 per barrel

South Korean cryptocurrency specialist Do Kwon pleaded guilty to fraud charges in front of a New York judge on Tuesday following his firm’s multi-billion-dollar bankruptcy, court filings showed.Do Kwon, who founded Terraform and nurtured two cryptocurrencies central to the bankruptcy, had faced nine counts in a superseding indictment filed by prosecutors in January 2025 to which he initially pleaded not guilty.The fallen mogul changed his plea in a hearing before Southern District of New York judge Paul Engelmayer, and will be sentenced on December 11, the docket showed.He was extradited last year from Montenegro to the United States for his role in a fraud linked to his company’s failure, which wiped out about $40 billion of investors’ money and shook global crypto markets.The crypto tycoon was arrested in March 2023 at the airport in Podgorica, the Montenegrin capital, while preparing to board a flight to Dubai, in possession of a fake Costa Rican passport.Before his arrest in the tiny Balkan nation, he had been on the run for months, fleeing South Korea and later Singapore, when his company went bankrupt in 2022.Do Kwon’s Terraform Labs created a cryptocurrency called TerraUSD that was marketed as a “stablecoin”, a token that is pegged to stable assets such as the US dollar to prevent drastic fluctuations.Do Kwon successfully marketed them as the next big thing in crypto, attracting billions in investments and global hype.Media reports in South Korea described him as a “genius”.But despite billions in investments, TerraUSD and its sister token Luna went into a death spiral in May 2022.Experts said Kwon had set up a glorified pyramid scheme, in which many investors lost their life savings.He left South Korea before the crash and spent months on the run.Cryptocurrencies have come under increasing scrutiny from regulators after a string of controversies in recent years, including the high-profile collapses of exchanges.

Stock markets rose on Tuesday as US inflation data showed a still-subdued impact from US President Donald Trump’s tariffs.That, combined with Trump extending by 90 days a trade truce with China, cheered investors.New York jumped after the US consumer price index (CPI) reading for July showed annualised inflation at 2.7 percent, unchanged from a month earlier.European markets were likewise boosted by the US inflation numbers, with all but Frankfurt rising.While the headline CPI figure was lower than expected, underlying price increases indicated that Trump’s tariffs were nevertheless starting to ripple through the US economy.Core inflation, which strips out volatile costs such as food and energy, accelerated in July to the fastest pace in six months.”Inflation from tariffs is beginning to feed into the core figure but not yet at the stage that is a major concern for markets,” said Lindsay James, investment strategist at Quilter, a wealth management firm.The dollar slipped against major currencies.Investors calculated that the CPI data was not enough to sway the US Federal Reserve away from an expected interest rate cut next month.The US central bank, which has an inflation target of two percent, also has to weigh other recent data, including signs in the labour market of slower economic growth.Trump has been pressuring Fed chief Jerome Powell to cut rates, and on Monday he renewed his attack.The US leader accused Powell of causing “incalculable” damage by keeping interest rates steady. Trump said he may allow “a major lawsuit” against Powell for his oversight of renovations of Federal Reserve buildings.Katy Stoves, investment manager at Mattioli Woods, warned however: “This gentle cooling of the economy will certainly not justify a cut of interest rates to one percent as President Donald Trump is calling for.”Oil prices were lower, after OPEC’s latest growth projections maintained estimates for 2025. The oil cartel raised its demand forecast for 2026, signalling it expected stronger global activity next year.Trump’s announcement on Monday that he would put off reimposing sky-high levies on China to November, to give more time for talks, buoyed market sentiment.Stock markets in Asia rose on the news, with Tokyo hitting a record.Investors are also awaiting a summit between Trump and Russian leader Vladimir Putin on Friday, with the US president playing down the possibility of a breakthrough in ending the war in Ukraine.In corporate news, China’s real estate giant Evergrande Group said on Tuesday it will delist from Hong Kong Stock Exchange in the wake of its 2021 default. The company is emblematic of a years-long crisis in China’s property market.- Key figures at around 1530 GMT -New York – Dow: UP 1.0 percent at 44,412.68 pointsNew York – S&P 500: UP 0.7 percent at 6,420.90New York – Nasdaq: UP 0.8 percent at 21,556.82London – FTSE 100: UP 0.2 percent at 9,149.28 (close)Paris – CAC 40: UP 0.8 percent at 7,757.59 (close)Frankfurt – DAX: DOWN 0.1 percent at 24,050.12 (close)Tokyo – Nikkei 225: UP 2.2 percent at 42,718.17 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: UP 0.3 percent at 24,968.68 (close)Shanghai – Composite: UP 0.5 percent at 3,665.92 (close)Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1680 from $1.1617 on MondayPound/dollar: UP at $1.3507 from $1.3435 Dollar/yen: DOWN at 147.88 yen from 148.12 yenEuro/pound: DOWN at 86.44 pence from 86.47 penceBrent North Sea Crude: DOWN 0.1 percent at $66.57 per barrelWest Texas Intermediate: DOWN 0.3 percent at $63.75 per barrel