Tonight’s Highlights | White House Officials Urge Rate Cut, U.S. Stock Futures Rise Slightly
U.S. stock futures for the three major indices edged higher in pre-market trading on Wednesday, extending their record-breaking rally, as expectations for a Federal Reserve rate cut continued to heat up, boosting risk appetite across the board while U.S. Treasury yields declined in tandem.
As of press time, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures rose 0.35%, Nasdaq 100 futures gained 0.37%, and S&P 500 futures increased by 0.28%.
Despite U.S. President Trump’s tariffs impacting prices of some consumer goods, U.S. inflation remained stable in July, suggesting the Federal Reserve may still cut rates next month.
Data showed the U.S. Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 2.7% year-over-year in July, unchanged from June and below expectations.
Optimism about a dovish stance was further supported by easing global trade tensions and U.S. corporate earnings significantly exceeding forecasts.
The CME FedWatch tool indicates traders now see a near 94% probability of a rate cut at the Fed’s September meeting.
Michael Brown, senior research strategist at Pepperstone, commented: “The bullish logic remains compelling—robust corporate earnings growth, easing trade frictions, and dovish monetary policy expectations provide a buffer, even if the economy may be slowing beneath the surface.”
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, in an interview on the same day, stated that the Fed’s interest rates should be 150-175 basis points lower than current levels.
If the data is accurate, the Fed might have cut rates earlier, and he suggested a potential 50-basis-point cut, with a series of cuts possibly starting with a 50-basis-point reduction in September.
Cava plummeted 24% in pre-market trading after reporting second-quarter revenue below expectations and lowering its full-year same-store sales growth forecast.
CoreWeave fell about 9%, despite strong revenue growth, as its second-quarter performance showed mixed results.
Company News
General Electric Commits Over $3 Billion to Expand U.S. Manufacturing
On August 13, General Electric announced it will invest more than $3 billion over the next five years in its U.S. business, employees, and communities, expected to create over 1,000 jobs.
The company will expand its air conditioner and water heater product lines, boost capacity across all product categories, and modernize its 11 manufacturing plants in the U.S.
Morgan Stanley Q2 Holdings: Continues to Overweight Tech Giants, Significantly Increases Nvidia and Microsoft Stakes
According to a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Morgan Stanley submitted its Q2 2025 holdings report (13F) as of June 30. Tech giants dominate its top 10 holdings, with Microsoft leading the top five at 157 million shares, valued at $78.123 billion (5.11% of the portfolio), up 10.6% from the previous quarter.
Nvidia ranks second with 462 million shares, valued at $73.085 billion (4.78% of the portfolio), up 9.85% quarter-over-quarter.
Tencent Holdings: Q2 Revenue Reaches 184.5 Billion Yuan, Up 15%
Tencent Holdings announced on Wednesday Q2 revenue of 184.5 billion yuan, up 15% year-over-year (estimate: 178.94 billion yuan), with profit attributable to equity holders at 55.63 billion yuan, up 17% (estimate: 50.83 billion yuan). Non-IFRS net profit was 63.052 billion yuan, up 10%.
Domestic game revenue in Q2 was 40.4 billion yuan, up 17%, driven by the recent release of *Delta Action* and growth in evergreen titles like *Honor of Kings*, *Valorant*, and *Peacekeeper Elite*. Over the six months ended June 30, the company repurchased 81,867,000 shares for approximately 36.5 billion HKD (excluding expenses), with the shares subsequently canceled.
Microsoft Allegedly Targets Meta Teams in Fierce AI Talent War
Microsoft is reportedly eyeing AI talent at Meta, compiling a list of top Meta engineers and researchers for recruitment. The software giant is launching a new process to boost salary competitiveness, matching Meta’s hefty offers, some reaching nine figures, including up to $250 million compensation packages for top AI researchers.
White House: Nvidia, AMD to Hand Over 15% of China Revenue, May Expand to More Firms
Citing CNBC and reported by the Global Times, the White House confirmed on August 12 that U.S. chipmakers Nvidia and AMD have agreed to a special deal, remitting 15% of their China chip sales revenue to the U.S. government in exchange for export licenses.
The White House indicated this could extend to more companies, with the U.S. Department of Commerce studying legal and operational details, to be clarified later.