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August 6, 2025 – 07:57

(Bloomberg) — Asian shares were set for a third day of gains after Japanese carmakers gained on optimism the country will be able to secure lower auto tariffs in negotiations with the US. Chip stocks declined.

A gauge of Asian equities rose as much as 0.4% with Japan’s Topix Index gaining 1%. Toyota Motor Corp., which reports earnings Thursday, jumped 2%. Futures for the S&P 500 rose 0.4%, indicating that pessimism after the US services data may be short-lived. Contracts for European stocks rose by 0.5%.

Oil rose for the first time in five days, while a gauge of the dollar dipped. Treasuries edged lower with the yield on the 10-year rising one basis point to 4.22%. Asian chip-related stocks and some pharmaceutical companies fell after President Donald Trump said he will announce levies on the sectors “within the next week or so.”

Japan’s chief trade negotiator Ryosei Akazawa is heading to Washington as Tokyo aims to urge the US to proceed with a cut to car tariffs as promised in last month’s trade deal. Tariff headlines are once again dominating with Trump saying he was “getting very close to a deal” with China, while India is bracing for pain from the president’s threats.

“With Akazawa in the US, there’s hope of progress toward lower auto tariffs,” which is fueling gains in carmaker stocks, said Yutaka Miura, senior technical analyst at Mizuho Securities.

US stocks wiped out gains Tuesday after data showed weakening US services amid sticky price pressures, raising concern about the Federal Reserve’s policy challenges. After a soft jobs data Friday, the latest economic indicators have since complicated the Federal Reserve’s balancing act between taming inflation and supporting growth.

The US services sector effectively stagnated in July as firms — faced with tepid demand and rising costs — reduced headcount. The data, released Tuesday, painted a picture of a sluggish service economy wrestling with the fallout of higher tariffs, cautious consumers and uncertainty stemming from Trump’s policies.

“Caution is the default for Asian markets,” said Vishnu Varathan, head of macro research for Asia ex-Japan at Mizuho Bank Ltd. Weaker US economic data “has the silver-lining of latent Fed dovishness to provide rates relief. And there are some parts of markets that appreciate that,” he said.

In European news, Swiss President Karin Keller-Sutter arrived in Washington to make a last-minute bid for a deal to lower the 39% tariff imposed last week by Trump.

Also, European Central Bank shouldn’t lower borrowing costs again, according to outgoing Governing Council member Robert Holzmann.

Meanwhile, Asian chip-related stocks declined after a stream of negative news, including a Taiwanese probe into an alleged theft of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.’s trade secrets. Shares of the chipmaker fell 2.2% Wednesday.

Also, Advanced Micro Devices Inc. warned that its access to the crucial China market remains uncertain. Super Micro Computer Inc. tumbled after its results missed expectations.

Meanwhile, Trump suggested he would impose increased tariffs on additional countries buying energy from Russia — including China — after saying earlier Tuesday that he would raise levies on Indian exports within 24 hours.

India is racing to contain the economic fallout from the threatened tariffs, which has left officials in New Delhi feeling unsure of how to respond. India’s central bank on Wednesday left its benchmark interest rate unchanged despite a benign inflation outlook, as policymakers opted for a wait-and-watch approach amid Trump’s threats of additional tariffs.

Corporate News:

Commerzbank AG unveiled a buyback of as much as €1 billion ($1.2 billion) and slightly lifted its profit outlook. ABN Amro Bank NV reported second-quarter profit that beat analyst expectations and unveiled a fresh buyback plan. Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd. shares fell after earnings. The airline is poised to place an order for new aircraft from Boeing Co. for the first time in 12 years. OpenAI is in early talks about a potential secondary sale of stock for current and former employees at a valuation of about $500 billion. Some of the main moves in markets:

Stocks

S&P 500 futures rose 0.4% as of 6:53 a.m. London time Nasdaq 100 futures rose 0.2% The MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose 0.2% Japan’s Topix rose 1% Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.8% Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was little changed The Shanghai Composite rose 0.4% Euro Stoxx 50 futures rose 0.5% Currencies

The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed The euro was little changed at $1.1581 The Japanese yen was little changed at 147.52 per dollar The offshore yuan was little changed at 7.1943 per dollar The British pound was little changed at $1.3306 Cryptocurrencies

Bitcoin rose 0.4% to $114,174.56 Ether rose 1.7% to $3,635.83 Bonds

The yield on 10-year Treasuries advanced one basis point to 4.22% Japan’s 10-year yield advanced 2.5 basis points to 1.490% Australia’s 10-year yield advanced two basis points to 4.25% Commodities

Spot gold fell 0.2% to $3,372.66 an ounce West Texas Intermediate crude rose 0.5% to $65.46 a barrel This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.

–With assistance from Winnie Hsu and Alice French.

(An earlier version was corrected for wrong labels in chart.)

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