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New Zealand Shares Fall; AFT Pharmaceuticals Chair to Retire

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New Zealand shares ended lower on Friday while most Asian markets saw gains, helped by Thursday's Wall Street rally, and South Korean shares recovered after a steep fall.

The S&P/NZX 50 Index fell 0.46% or 63.50 points to close at 13,699.28.

On Thursday, the Nasdaq Composite added 2.8%, the S&P 500 gained 1.7% while the Dow Jones lifted 1.2%.

Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump said Thursday's Cairo talks between mediators and Hamas produced a phased disarmament agreement in Gaza, though a Hamas official called it a draft proposal and US officials said Israel doubted the militant group would give up its weapons, according to a Thursday Reuters report.

On the domestic front, consumer confidence in New Zealand rose 8 points to 99.3 in July amid unstable oil prices and an interest rate hike, still 8 points below its January peak but well above the April low, ANZ Research said.

Also, New Zealand's lending from registered banks and non-bank lending institutions increased in June, driven by growth in housing, business, and agricultural lending, while personal consumer lending edged lower compared with the previous month, according to data from the Reserve Bank of New Zealand.

In corporate news, Meridian Energy (ASX:MEZ, NZE:MEL) received a key remaining resource consent from Palmerston North City Council allowing for the 172-megawatt (MW) repowering of its Te Rere Hau wind farm in Manawatū, New Zealand.

AFT Pharmaceuticals (ASX:AFP, NZE:AFT) said Chair David Flacks intends to retire within the next 12 months after a successor is appointed.

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Update: US Equity Indexes Surge as Microsoft Triggers Rebound in Chipmakers While Inflation Rate Falls in June

(Updates with index/price moves, macroeconomic data, and company/geopolitical news from the first paragraph.)US equity indexes soared Thursday as semiconductors rebounded after Microsoft's (MSFT) quarterly results revealed evidence of AI monetization and a closely watched inflation gauge showed a decline for June.The Nasdaq Composite catapulted 2.8% to 25,122.18, the S&P 500 jumped 1.7% to 7,437.63, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 1.2% to 52,208.06.Technology was the standout gainer, up 5.2%, followed by consumer discretionary. Communication services, consumer staples, and health care led the decliners.Microsoft's intelligent cloud segment revenue surged 32% to $39.31 billion, buoyed by an astounding 43% growth in Azure and other cloud services. Analysts expected a 40% year-over-year advance in Azure sales. Shares of Microsoft shot up 16%, one of the top gainers in the S&P 500, Nasdaq, and the Dow."This was another standout quarter by Nadella & Co. with triple-digit AI [annual recurring revenue] growth and accelerating Azure trajectory into the end of FY26, reinforcing that any knee-jerk reactions to the elevated capex framework represent strong buying opportunities as Redmond's structural AI moat only widens from here," Dan Ives, global head of technology at Wedbush Securities, said in a note.Arm (ARM) shares rose 6.2% after the semiconductor group reported a fiscal Q1 beat for adjusted earnings and revenue.A consortium of banks led by Morgan Stanley (MS) is in talks to lend $15 billion to a data-center developer to build a campus and power plant for Anthropic in Texas, The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter. Alphabet's (GOOG, GOOGL) Google would provide financial guarantees and chips for the project. The deal could be announced as soon as today, the report said.VanEck Semiconductor ETF (SMH), with net assets of $77.2 billion, advanced 6.9%, as chipmakers are major beneficiaries of AI-related spending. Among companies with a market capitalization of more than $200 billion, six of the top 10 gainers on Thursday were from the semiconductors and semiconductor equipment and materials industries, according to data compiled by Finviz.In economic news, the personal consumption expenditures, or PCE, price index fell 0.1% in June, as expected, cutting the year-over-year rate to 3.7% from 4.1%. The price index rose by 0.5% in May. The core PCE price index climbed 0.1% in June, below the 0.2% gain expected and following a 0.3% growth in May. The year-over-year rate dropped to 3.3% from 3.4%, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis.An advance BEA reading of gross domestic product showed 1.5% growth in Q2, after a 2.1% increase in Q1 and missing the 2.0% gain forecast in a Bloomberg-compiled survey.US Treasury yields traded mixed, with the 10-year up 5.3 basis points to 4.68%.In precious metals markets, gold futures jumped 1.9% to $4,173.5, and silver futures advanced 2.5% to $59.53.The front-month US West Texas Intermediate was down 0.9% at $83.70 a barrel, while global benchmark North Sea Brent declined 1.8% to $89.15 a barrel.Late Wednesday, US forces completed a "heavy wave" of strikes against Iran in response to Tuesday's attempted missile attacks on US forces, according to CENTCOM. Meanwhile, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps targeted US bases in Kuwait and Jordan following Washington's strikes on Iran, Al Jazeera, a Middle East broadcaster, reported, citing the IRGC.

Dow JonesNasdaq CompositeS&P 500$ARM$GOOG$GOOGL$MS$MSFT$SMH
Asia Markets

Update: US Equity Indexes Surge as Rebound in Chipmakers Boosts Technology

(Updates with index/price moves, macroeconomic data, and company/geopolitical news from the first paragraph.)US equity indexes rose amid a bounce in semiconductors as investors anchored to Microsoft's (MSFT) quarterly results showing AI monetization and a closely watched inflation gauge fell in June.The Nasdaq Composite jumped 2.6% to 25,069.1, the S&P 500 was up 1.5% to 7,424.5, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 1.1% to 52,152.7 after midday Thursday. Technology was the standout gainer, up 5%, while communication services led the decliners.The Microsoft intelligent cloud segment's revenue increased 32% to $39.31 billion, buoyed by 43% growth in Azure and other cloud services, according to the company. Analysts expected a 40% year-over-year advance in Azure sales."This year, Azure revenue surpassed $100 billion for the first time, and Microsoft 365 Copilot reached over 30 million paid seats, reflecting the confidence customers are placing in us to power their (artificial intelligence) transformation," Chief Executive Satya Nadella said in a statement. Shares of Microsoft soared 17%, one of the top gainers on the S&P 500, Nasdaq, and the Dow.Arm (ARM) jumped 6.2% after the semiconductor group reported a fiscal Q1 beat for adjusted earnings and revenue.Meta Platforms (META) slumped 9%, one of the worst performers on the Nasdaq. The firm provided a soft Q3 revenue outlook following an unexpected decline in quarterly earnings, while it raised the lower end of its capital expenditure guidance.VanEck Semiconductor ETF (SMH), with net assets of $77.2 billion, soared 6.8%, as chipmakers are major beneficiaries of AI-related spend. Among companies with a market capitalization of more than $200 billion, seven of the top 10 gainers after midday Thursday were from the semiconductors and semiconductor equipment and materials industries, according to data compiled by Finviz.In economic news, the personal consumption expenditures, or PCE, price index fell 0.1% in June, as expected, cutting the year-over-year rate to 3.7% from 4.1%. The price index rose by 0.5% in May. The core PCE price index climbed 0.1% in June, below the 0.2% gain expected and following a 0.3% growth in May. The year-over-year rate dropped to 3.3% from 3.4%, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis.An advance BEA reading of gross domestic product showed 1.5% growth in Q2, after a 2.1% increase in Q1 and missing the 2.0% gain forecast in a Bloomberg-compiled survey.US initial jobless claims rose sequentially to 197,000 in the week ended July 25 from an upwardly revised 188,000, versus expectations for an increase to 200,000 in a Bloomberg-compiled poll. The four-week moving average, however, fell 5,000 to 202,750, the US Labor Department reported.US Treasury yields traded mixed, with the 10-year up 3.7 basis points to 4.66%. The two-year fell 1.5 basis points to 4.22%.In precious metal markets, gold futures jumped 1.8% to $4,107.5, and silver futures advanced 1.5% to $58.94.The front-month US West Texas Intermediate was down 0.7% at $83.84 a barrel, while global benchmark North Sea Brent declined 1.5% to $89.38 a barrel.Late Wednesday, the US Central Command forces completed a "heavy wave" of strikes against Iran in response to Tuesday's attempted missile attacks on US forces, according to a CENTCOM statement.Meanwhile, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps targeted US bases in Kuwait and Jordan following Washington's strikes on Iran, Al Jazeera, a Middle East broadcaster, reported, citing the IRGC.A drone strike on gas vessels in Egypt's Mediterranean port of Damietta on Wednesday raised the prospect of threats to navigation through the Suez Canal, one of the last remaining export routes for Saudi oil, Reuters reported.

Dow JonesNasdaq CompositeS&P 500$ARM$META$MSFT$SMH
Asia Markets

Exchange-Traded Funds Higher as US Equities Advance After Midday

Broad Market IndicatorsBroad-market exchange-traded funds IWM and IVV rose. Actively traded Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) added 2.8%.US equity indexes rose amid a bounce in semiconductors as investors anchored to Microsoft's (MSFT) quarterly results showing AI monetization.EnergyIShares US Energy ETF (IYE) and the State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR (XLE) fell about 0.2% each.TechnologyThe State Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLK) gained 4.9%; iShares US Technology ETF (IYW) added 3.6%, and iShares Expanded Tech Sector ETF (IGM) was up 3.9%.The State Street SPDR S&P Semiconductor (XSD) rose 6.5%, and iShares Semiconductor (SOXX) advanced 8.1%.FinancialThe State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR (XLF) rose 0.3%. Direxion Daily Financial Bull 3X Shares (FAS) advanced 0.8%, and its bearish counterpart, Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares (FAZ), declined 0.8%.CommoditiesCrude oil dropped 0.7%, and the United States Oil Fund (USO) fell 1%. Natural gas rose 1.2%, and the United States Natural Gas Fund (UNG) added 1.1%.Gold on Comex gained 1.8%, and the State Street SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) rose 1.6%. Silver was up 1.5%, and iShares Silver Trust (SLV) added 2.3%.ConsumerThe State Street Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR (XLP) was down 2.4%. The Vanguard Consumer Staples ETF (VDC) slipped 2.2%, and iShares Dow Jones US Consumer Goods (IYK) eased 2.2%.The State Street Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR (XLY) was up 0.6%. VanEck Retail ETF (RTH) dipped 0.9%, and the State Street SPDR S&P Retail (XRT) fell 1.1%.HealthcareThe State Street Health Care Select Sector SPDR (XLV) declined 1.7% and iShares US Healthcare (IYH) fell 1.7%, and Vanguard Health Care ETF (VHT) eased 1.5%. IShares Biotechnology ETF (IBB) was down 0.5%.IndustrialThe State Street Industrial Select Sector SPDR (XLI) rose 0.3%. Vanguard Industrials Index Fund (VIS) and iShares US Industrials (IYJ) were also higher.CryptocurrencyIn midday activity, bitcoin (BTC-USD) added 1.9%. Among cryptocurrency ETFs, ProShares Bitcoin ETF (BITO) rose 1.9%, ProShares Ether ETF (EETH) was up 2%, and ProShares Bitcoin & Ether Market Cap Weight ETF (BETH) was 1.7% higher.

Dow Jones^EEM^EXI^FAS^FAZ^GLD^IBB^IGM^IGV^IPK^IVV^IWMNasdaq Composite^IYE^IYH^IYJ^IYK^IYW^PMR^QQQ^RTH^SOXXS&P 500^SPY^UNG^USO^VDC^VHT^VIS^XLE^XLF^XLI^XLK^XLP^XLV^XRT^XSD$BETH$BITO$EETH