Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.

Economy update A spate of mixed Chinese economic data is probably somewhat negative on balance. Its economy expanded by a forecast-beating 5.2% in 2Q. Industrial output was up 6.8% in June from the previous year but retail sales only grew by 4.8%, down from 6.4% in May. US 2Q banks’ earning will be released later…

Economy Update The Hang Seng outperforms and is up 0.5% as China increased monthly exports to 5.6% against a 5% call, although slightly tempered with a 1.1% increase in imports versus their 1.3% estimate. However, US futures and EURO bourses have slipped, reacting to Trump announcing 30% tariff on EU and Mexico over the weekend.…

Economy update Canada is once again in the crosshairs of the US President as Mr Trump feel inclined to impose 35% tariffs on goods coming from the north of the US border. It comes after he threatened Brazil with punitive excise duties of 50% despite its trade surplus with the country. Other trading partners face…

The US tariff assault on the world continues. President Trump announced 50% on copper and 50% on Brazil imports starting Aug 1. This comes on top of yesterday’s earlier announced 20-30% on Philippines, Algeria, Iraq, Brunei, Moldova, Sri Lanka and Libya. Trump stated he was ready to announce the EU levy rate within in the…

Economy update Donald Trump’s threat to impose 50% tariff on copper sends the commodity to record highs. He also pledged to press ahead with a 200% tariff on pharmaceuticals. Uncertainty is the soundbite, investors, companies, producers and end-users are quite simply in the dark of what to expect. Prices at Chinese factory gates fell at…

A slight recovery in bourses after the fall inspired by Trumps sending tariff letters to countries including Japan, South Korea, Thailand, South Africa and others threatening 25-40% tariffs but extended deadline to Aug 1. APAC also caught by RBA decision to hold pat on interest rate when a 25bps cut was widely predicted. As Q2…

Trade tension keeps simmering ahead of the Jul 9 deadline which has been reportedly extended to August 1. The US President threatened BRICS countries with an additional 10% punitive duty for ‘Anti-American’ policies. On the bright side, investors are the most upbeat for three years in the euro zone due to economic recovery. Industrial output…

Economy Update It took a VP Vance casting vote to get the Big, Beautiful Bill across the line but oddly, there was little reaction from markets and none today. Chat centres around better JOLTs jobs and what it could mean for FED cuts. This links with the USD, its continued weakness and how it was…

Asian and European factory activities were in the centre of attention this morning. The manufacturing sector stabilized on the old Continent last month and also showed signs of revival in the UK. China’s PMI of smaller companies expanded, but the sector is still sluggish in Japan and South Korea. The US budget bill is debated…

The strong Wall St finish on Friday extends into an APAC and European session helped by a new dialogue between US/Canada over trade and an extension of the tariff deadline. Europeans latterly drift as reciprocal tariffs begin to breed fear. Many bourse indices are in striking distance of all-time highs. The sweeping ‘big, beautiful bill’…