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European shares were trading lower on Friday following a mixed session in Asia as investors awaited a key U.S. inflation report.Economists expect the U.S. personal consumption expenditures index, due later in the day, to show inflation remained at about 2.6% in July.The futures for the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average were down 0.3%. Oil prices were also lower.In early European trading, Germany’s DAX shed 0.6% to 23,901.77 as the latest figures showed unemployment remained at 6.3% in July, for a sixth straight month. Adjusted for seasonal factors, it topped 3 million for the first time in a decade.Britain’s FTSE 100 lost 0.3% to 9,191.08 while the CAC 40 in Paris fell 0.7% to 7,712.11.During Asian trading, Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 fell 0.3% to 42,718.47 after a slew of data released Friday showed Japan’s factory output slumped in July as higher tariffs hit on exports to the United States. Inflation in Tokyo also slowed to 2.6% year-on-year, while the jobless rate fell to 2.3% in July from 2.5% in June.“Today’s Japanese data was mixed, with disappointing industrial production threatening third-quarter growth, while a tight labor market points to increased wages and underlying inflation remaining firm,” ING Economics said in a commentary. “We still think October is the most likely timing for a Bank of Japan rate hike.”Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index rose 0.3% to 25,077.62, while the Shanghai Composite index added 0.4% to 3,857.93. Shares in computer chipmaker Cambricon Technologies shed 6% after soaring 15.7% on Thursday, closing at 1,492.49 yuan (about $209) a share. But it remained the priciest stock on Shanghai’s exchange after displacing Kweichou Moutai, whose shares gained 2.3% to 1,480 yuan ($207.50).Chinese computer chipmakers have seen their share prices surge as the government provides heavy support to encourage wider manufacturing and use of chips made in China.“Hyper-growth in China’s tech landscape is starting to feel like a zero-sum cage fight rather than a clean runway. Even Cambricon’s AI chip story, this week’s darling, is now flashing red lights, warning of trading risks after an 8% skid,” Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management said in a commentary.South Korea’s KOSPI shed 0.3% to 3,186.01, while Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 edged 0.1% lower to 8,973.10.Taiwan’s TAIEX shed earlier gains and was down less than 0.1%, while India’s BSE Sensex slipped 0.1%.On Thursday, the S&P 500 rose 0.3%, lifting the benchmark index to its second record high in a row. The Dow Jones Industrial Average reversed an early slide and gained 0.2%, enough to move past its record high set last Friday.The Nasdaq composite closed 0.5% higher, finishing just short of its all-time high set two weeks ago.Gains in the technology and communication services sectors offset losses elsewhere in the market.Tech giant Nvidia fell 0.8% a day after reporting quarterly earnings and revenue that beat Wall Street analysts’ forecasts, though the company noted that sales of its artificial intelligence chipsets rose at a slower pace than analysts anticipated.Traders also had their eye on new government reports on the job market and economy.The Labor Department reported that applications for unemployment benefits fell last week, the latest sign that employers are holding onto their workers even as the economy has slowed.The most recent government data suggests hiring has slowed sharply since this spring.Meanwhile, the Commerce Department reported that U.S. gross domestic product the nation’s output of goods and services grew at a 3.3% annual pace in the April-June quarter after shrinking 0.5% in the first three months of this year due to the fallout from the Trump administration’s trade wars.Still, the sluggishness in the job market is a key reason that Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell signaled last week that the central bank may cut its key interest rate at its meeting next month.In other dealings on Friday, U.S. benchmark crude lost 42 cents to $64.18 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, slid 41 cents to $67.57 per barrel.The U.S. dollar rose to 147.00 Japanese yen from 146.95 yen. The euro fell to $1.1675 from $1.1684. Teresa Cerojano, Associated Press
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E-Commerce
On Friday, August 29, the United States officially removed its tariff exemption on goods valued at less than $800, a decision that will impact customers and retailers worldwide. It previously ended for packages from China and Hong Kong in May of this year. Here’s what to know: What is the de minimus exemption? The loophole, known as the de minimis exemption, allowed for $64.6 billion worth of goods to enter the United States duty free in 2024, according to data from the U.S. Customs and Border Patrol Agency. The only exception still allowed is for letters or actual gifts sent directly from one person to another that are valued at under $100. How will the change impact package delivery from other countries? Uncertainty around liability for the new tariffs has led many foreign post offices to suspend some, if not all, mail to the United States. Such is the case for a majority of European nations, with countries such as Germany, Sweden, and Italy suspending most services to the U.S. over the weekend. France followed suit on Monday, with the UK cutting off package delivery on Tuesday. These national postal services aimed to deliver any existing packages before the exemption ended on Friday. In some cases, those that arrive after the rule change could be returned to sender as a way to avoid fees. Certain countries, like New Zealand, have issued warnings that the receiver will be responsible for any tariffs incurred. Countries from Japan and South Korea to Canada and Mexico have also added restrictions or new stipulations. Canada Post, for instance, is only accepting U.S.-bound shipments with proof that the customer has either prepaid the duty or set up automatic billing. How are retail businesses responding to the changes? Companies have been taking steps to adjust shipments to the United States. For example, on August 25, Etsy suspended postage purchases for packages to the U.S. through Australia Post, Canada Post, Evri, and Royal Mail in the UK. Given the complexities, legal requirements, and poor experience, many postal providers will be suspending DDU service or changing delivery options to the US, the company stated. We are in close contact with these carriers and will reactivate label offerings on Etsy when they are able to support orders into the US with DDP options. Some small businesses that ship to the U.S. also ran sales in recent weeks, hoping to give customers a chance before the companies are forced to raise their prices. Brands are also using their email marketing to announce necessary price hikes, even in cases where theyre absorbing part of the additional costs.
Category:
E-Commerce
A case that could provide the Trump administration with new and expansive power over the traditionally independent Federal Reserve will get its first court hearing Friday.Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook has requested an emergency injunction to block President Donald Trump’s attempt to fire her over allegations that she committed mortgage fraud when she purchased a home and condo in 2021. She was appointed to the Fed’s board by former president Joe Biden in 2022.If her firing is allowed to stand, it would likely erode the Fed’s longstanding independence from day-to-day politics. No president has ever fired a Fed governor in the agency’s 112-year history. Economists broadly support Fed independence because it makes it easier for the central bank to take unpopular steps such as raising interest rates to combat inflation.Cook has asked the court to issue an emergency order that would block Trump’s firing of her and enable her to remain on the seven-member board of governors while her lawsuit seeking to overturn the firing makes its way through the courts. Many observers expect her case will end up at the U.S. Supreme Court.The law governing the Fed says the president can’t fire a governor just because they disagree over interest rate policy. Trump has repeatedly demanded that the Fed, led by Chair Jerome Powell, reduce its key interest rate, which is currently 4.3%. Yet the Fed has kept it unchanged for the last five meetings.But the president may be able to fire a Fed governor “for cause,” which has traditionally been interpreted to mean inefficiency, neglect of duty, or malfeasance. Cook’s lawyers argue that it also refers only to conduct while in office. They also say that she was entitled to a hearing and an opportunity to rebut the charges.“The unsubstantiated and unproven allegation that Governor Cook ‘potentially’ erred in filling out a mortgage form prior to her Senate confirmationdoes not amount to ’cause,'” the lawsuit says.Trump has moved to fire a number of leaders from a host of independent federal regulatory agencies, including at the National Transportation Safety Board, Surface Transportation Board, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and Nuclear Regulatory Commission, as well as the Fed.The Supreme Court declined to temporarily block the president from firing directors of some independent agencies earlier this year while those cases move through the courts. Legal experts say the high court this year has shown more deference to the president’s removal powers than it has in the past.Still, in a case in May, the Supreme Court appeared to single out the Fed as deserving of greater independence than other agencies, describing it as “a uniquely structured, quasi-private entity.” As a result, it’s harder to gauge how the Supreme Court could rule if this case lands in its lap.As a governor, Cook votes on all the Fed’s interest rate decisions and helps oversee bank regulation. The Fed has substantial power over the economy by raising or cutting its key interest rate, which can then influence a broad range of other borrowing costs, including mortgages, car loans, and business loans.Bill Pulte, Trump’s appointee to the agency that regulates mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, first leveled the accusation against Cook that she has committed mortgage fraud.It’s a charge he has also made against two of Trump’s biggest political enemies, California Democratic Senator Adam Schiff and New York Attorney General Letitia James, who has prosecuted Trump. Pulte has ignored a similar case involving Ken Paxton, the Texas attorney general who is friendly with Trump and is running for Senate in his state’s Republican primary.Cook’s lawsuit responds by arguing that the claims are just a pretext “in order to effectuate her prompt removal and vacate a seat for President Trump to fill and forward his agenda to undermine the independence of the Federal Reserve.”If Trump can replace Cook, he may be able to gain a four to three majority on the Fed’s governing board. Trump appointed two board members during his first term and has nominated a key White House economic adviser, Stephen Miran, to replace Adriana Kugler, another Fed governor who stepped down unexpectedly August 1. Trump has said he will only appoint people to the Fed who will support lower rates. Christopher Rugaber, AP Economics Writer
Category:
E-Commerce
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