US inflation rose in June as Trump’s tariffs hiked prices
US inflation rose again in June to its highest level in four months, as President Donald Trump’s tariffs began driving up consumer prices.
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U.S. stocks opened little changed Aug. 11, near record highs, ahead of inflation data this week.
July’s consumer price index this week is expected to rise. A Reuters poll of economists forecasts the annual rate at 2.8%, up from June’s 2.7%. Investors will be watching to see whether President Donald Trump’s tariffs on imports are translating into higher prices. The June CPI report suggested tariffs were boosting the prices of some goods.
July inflation data could help determine whether the Federal Reserve will lower interest rates soon.
After weaker-than-expected monthly jobs growth, the markets aggressively priced in rate cuts. The CME FedWatch tool that tracks the odds the markets put on a rate move at each Fed policy meeting shows a more than 88% chance of a rate cut at the next meeting in September.
At 9:36 a.m. ET, the blue-chip Dow added 0.21%, or 90.72 points, to 44,266.33; the broad S&P 500 added 0.04%, or 2.56 points, to 6,392.01 and the tech-laden Nasdaq dipped 0.19%, or 41.52 points, to 21,408.51. The benchmark 10-year Treasury yield slipped to 4.281%.
The U.S. government takes a cut
Semiconductor giants Nvidia and AMD will give the U.S. government 15% of their revenue from certain chips sold in China, the Financial Times reported. In return, the companies received export licenses to sell Nvidia’s H20 and AMD’s MI308 chips in China, according to the FT. Such a deal would be unprecedented.
Separately, Nvidia refuted allegations from Chinese state media that its H20 artificial intelligence chips are a national security risk for China.
Nvidia stock was last down almost 1% and AMD shed 1.17%.
Corporate news
- Intel chief executive Lip-Bu Tan will meet with Trump after the president called for his removal last week over ties to Chinese businesses. Intel stock gained 4.89%.
- Nexstar is in advanced talks to acquire rival Tegna, The Wall Street Journal reported. Nextstar stock rose 5.54%.
- Avantor shares added 4.13% after activist investor Engine Capital built a stake in the life-sciences company and plans to push the company to make changes or sell itself.
- AMC Entertainment posted stronger-than-expected quarterly results. The movie theater chain’s stock jumped 7.16%.
- Paramount bought the U.S. rights to TKO Group’s UFC for $7.7 billion over the next seven years, beginning in 2026. TKO shares rose 3.68%.
- C3.ai warned fiscal first-quarter results would be weaker than Street estimates. Shares plunged about 31%.
Oil prices dip
Oil prices fell last week as investors awaited talks between Russian president Vladimir Putin and Trump. The two presidents will discuss what it will take to stop the Ukraine-Russia war.
The meeting raises expectations of a diplomatic end to the war. If the war ends, oil supply could increase on the world market as sanctions on Russian oil are lifted.
Since then, oil prices have steadied. They were last up 0.52% at $64.21 per barrel.
Cryptocurrency
El Salvador passed a law last week allowing financial institutions with over $50 million in capital to becom an investment bank and apply for crypto licenses and offer crypto-related services to investors with over $250,000 in liquid assets.
Bitcoin neared its record high, last up 0.16% at $119,490.10. The gains also pulled up Ether over the weekend, rising to the highest level since 2021, before easing back to $4,184.18, down 1.66%.
(This story was updated with new information.)
Medora Lee is a money, markets, and personal finance reporter at USA TODAY. You can reach her at mjlee@usatoday.com and subscribe to our free Daily Money newsletter for personal finance tips and business news every Monday through Friday morning.
