News Recap • Week 39 2025

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

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Macro

• Mon Trump’s new Fed board member pick Stephen Miran made his case for lower rates, saying the federal funds rate should be in the low 2% area. (CNBC)
• Tue The OECD lifted its global growth forecast for 2025 from 2.9% to 3.2%, calling it more resilient than expected in the first half. (CNBC)
• Tue Jerome Powell underscored that the Fed is not on a preset path of lowering rates but rather remains data-dependent. He also emphasized the challenging situation with risks on both sides of the central bank’s dual mandate: Employment and inflation. (CNBC)
• Wed New US home sales soared 20% in August to a three-year high. It was also the largest one-month gain in three years. (CNBC)
• Thu Q2 GDP in the US was revised up from 3.3% to 3.8%, delivering a big positive surprise for economists who had expected the number to remain unchanged. The GDP contraction in Q1 was revised down from 0.5% to 0.6%. However, both quarters are highly distorted by wild swings in imports and exports due to Trump’s tariff turmoil during that period. (Reuters)
• Thu Weekly jobless claims in the US came in at 218,000, down 14,000 from last week and much lower than the 235,000 estimate. This was another positive sign for the US economy and labor market. (CNBC)
• Fri The US Personal Consumption Expenditure price index rose 2.7% in August from a year ago and 0.3% for the month. The core inflation rate came in at 2.9% and 0.2%. The annual headline number ticked up slightly from 2.6% in July but all figures were in line with expectations. The data seemed to satisfy investors who closed the week off with a 0.6% gain in the S&P 500. (CNBC)
• Fri Consumer spending in the US rose 0.6% in August. The increase was slightly higher than expected and underscores the resiliency of the US economy. (Reuters)
• Fri US consumer sentiment fell to 55.1 in September from 58.2 in August, its lowest level in four months. (Business Report)

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Other

• Mon Nvidia is planning to invest up to $100 billion in OpenAI. Nvidia jumped almost 4% on Monday, nudging a new all-time high in the process. (CNBC)
• Mon xAI raised $10 billion at a $200 billion valuation in a new funding round. (TFN)
• Tue Crypto stablecoin firm Tether is reportedly looking to raise between $15 and $20 billion at a $500 billion valuation, putting it on par with OpenAI as the world’s most valuable startup. (CNBC)
• Thu Donald Trump signed an executive order that approves a proposed deal that could allow TikTok to continue operating in the US. China has yet to approve the deal but it seems like Oracle, Silver Lake, and investment fund MGX will be the main investors in TikTok’s US business. (CNBC)
• Fri Electronic Arts stock surged almost 15% on reports that the company is nearing a deal to be taken private at a $50 billion valuation. This could become the largest leverage buyout of all time. (CNBC)
• Fri Trump said Microsoft should fire its Global Affairs President Lisa Monaco, calling her a “menace to US national security”. (Reuters)