$TRUMP
TradingTypes101 Trump-Xi call, trade deals in focus
Germany’s new chancellor, Friedrich Merz, will hold face-to-face talks with U.S. President Donald Trump later Thursday, looking to stave off looming U.S. tariffs and sustain U.S. backing for Ukraine.
But the focus this week is on an expected call between Trump and Xi, which markets hope will help revitalize U.S.-China trade talks after Washington admitted they had stalled in recent weeks.
Trump called Xi “very tough” and a good negotiator, although no dialogue between the two had taken place.
Trump earlier this week made good on his threat to double steel and aluminum import tariffs to 50% from 25%, stoking concerns that he will also deliver on his threat of retaliatory tariffs on major U.S. trading partners.
Broadcom to headline earnings slate
The number of major companies still to report quarterly earnings is rapid;y dwindling, but Broadcom (NASDAQ:AVGO) will headline Thursday’s slate of corporate results.
These numbers will be followed closely, with the semiconductor group potentially set to provide a fresh glimpse into the state of demand for cutting-edge artificial intelligence chips.
Some investors have flagged worries that businesses could be reining in spending on AI as they face up to a murky economic outlook, while others have raised questions over the necessity of the expenditures following the emergence of a low-cost model from China’s DeepSeek earlier this year. However, major tech companies have recently backed their plans to pour heavy investments into the nascent technology.
Elsewhere, Five Below (NASDAQ:FIVE) stock rose premarket after the chain of specialty discount stores reported better-than-expected first-quarter results and issued a solid second-quarter guidance, helped by broad-based strength across most merchandising categories.
MongoDB (NASDAQ:MDB) stock surged after the database software company gave an upbeat annual forecast and reported quarterly results above estimates, while expanding its share repurchase plan.