News Recap • Week 34 2025

Check the news below and make sure to visit my latest Market Recap as well.

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Macro

• Tue Japan’s July exports dropped 2.6% compared to a year earlier, a steeper decline than the 2.1% forecast. Exports to the US plunged more than 10%. Imports fell less than expected though, dropping 7.5% compared with a 10.4% forecast. The Nikkei 225 fell more than 1.5% on Wednesday after the report. (CNBC)
• Wed Eurozone inflation remained stable at 2% in July, the same as the month before. However, inflation in the EU ticked up from 2.3% in June to 2.4% in July. Romania experienced the highest inflation rate at 6.6%. (Yahoo Finance)
• Wed UK’s inflation rate rose to 3.8% in July from 3.6% in June, higher than the 3.7% forecast. Services inflation hit 5% after coming in at 4.7% last month. The hot inflation print makes it unlikely that we’ll see further rate cuts from the BoE this year. (CNBC)
• Wed The minutes from the Federal Reserve’s latest interest rate meeting confirmed the diverging opinions we already learned about back then. It was the first meeting in more than 30 years where multiple governors voted against the final decision. The meeting did take place before some concerning jobs data was released though, and Jerome Powell seemed to be a lot more dovish in his speech on Friday. (CNBC)
• Thu Inflation in Japan declined from 3.3% in June to 3.1% in July, the lowest reading since February. Economists had been looking for an even bigger slowdown to 3% though. (CNBC)
• Thu The US and EU announced some more details of their recent trade deal, including tariffs on autos and pharmaceuticals. (CNBC)
• Thu 661 Copenhagen apartments were sold in July, a jump of around 20% compared to last year and even more than the previous record from 2020. (Euroinvestor)
• Fri Fed Chair Jerome Powell said in his Jackson Hole speech that “… the baseline outlook and the shifting balance of risks may warrant adjusting our policy stance”. Analysts and investors interpreted his speech as dovish, giving a big boost to equities and crypto. The odds of a rate cut in September also jumped from below 60% to above 80%, although that number has been fading during the weekend. (CNBC)
• Fri Germany’s Q2 GDP contraction was revised down to 0.3% from a previously reported 0.1%. (Reuters)
• Fri The EU is reportedly considering launching its digital euro on a public blockchain like Ethereum or Solana. (Financial Times)

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Other

• Mon Intel got a $2 billion investment from SoftBank, equal to around 2% of the chipmaker’s outstanding shares. SoftBank paid $23 per share. (CNBC)
• Mon Novo Nordisk cut the price on Ozempic in half so cash-paying US customers can now get three dose sizes per month for $499. The moves comes after President Trump in July pressured Novo and other drugmakers to lower their medication prices in the US. (CNBC)
• Mon In more Novo Nordisk news, the company’s Wegovy was granted US approval for the treatment of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH) in adults with moderate to advanced liver fibrosis. This is the first GLP-1 class therapy that gets cleared for MASH which affects around 5% of US adults. Shares rallied 6.6% on Monday after this and the news about the Ozempic price cut. (CNBC)
• Tue Robinhood continued its expansion into prediction markets with the launch of NFT and college football markets. (CNBC)
• Wed Analytics company Databricks is reportedly seeking to raise another $1 billion in a funding round that would value the company at $100 billion as it doubles down on AI. The round will be led by existing investors including a16z and Thrive Capital. (Reuters)
• Wed Trump said on Wednesday that the US “… will not approve wind or farmer destroying solar”. (CNBC)
• Thu Google won a six-year $10 billion cloud contract from Meta. Google parent Alphabet closed the week at a new all-time high for the first time since February. (CNBC)
• Thu Meta announced it has paused hiring for its new AI division amid a broader restructuring. The sudden freeze took many by surprise as Meta has arguably been on the most aggressive hiring spree we’ve ever witnessed. The news didn’t really seem to impact the stock though. (CNBC)
• Fri Apple is in early talks to use Google’s Gemini AI to revamp its Siri voice assistant. Both stocks seemed to get a boost from the news on Friday. (Reuters)
• Fri The US government announced a 10% stake in Intel. The move has been rumored for a while. Skeptics are worried about the government inserting itself in the private sector. (CNBC)
• Sun Spotify said it will be raising prices as it invests in new features and targets 1 billion users. (Reuters)

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Earnings

• Tue Home Depot delivered a small miss on both revenue and earnings in Q2 but maintained its full-year guidance. The stock gained more than 3% on Tuesday after the report. (CNBC)
• Tue Chinese toymaker Pop Mart rallied more than 12% on Wednesday after posting a near-400% surge in net profits, primarily driven by a boom in global demand for its Labubu dolls. (CNBC)
• Wed Target reported earnings of $2.05 per share, slightly ahead of the $2.03 forecast. Revenue came in at $25.21 billion, also beating expectations. The company reiterated its full-year outlook for a slight decline in sales. However, the main story was the announcement of long-time insider Michael Fiddelke as new CEO. Investors who have been looking for a shakeup in the struggling retailer didn’t seem thrilled with the pick, sending shares down by 6.33% on Wednesday. (CNBC)
• Thu Walmart’s earnings per share came in below expectations at 68 cents while revenue was a beat at $177.40 billion. The company also raised its full-year sales and earnings guidance. And yet, the stock dropped 4.5% on Thursday after the report and extended its losses on Friday. (CNBC)