By Lorcan Roche Kelly
Deal done
President Donald Trump announced a bipartisan agreement to suspend the debt ceiling and boost spending for the next two years, averting the risk of a payments default in September. The House has to approve the deal this week before members leave for a six-week recess. Both Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi welcomed the deal. New spending and limited savings in the plan will likely push the annual budget deficit over $1 trillion next year.
New leader
Barring a massive upset, Boris Johnson will be announced as the new leader of Britain’s Conservative Party at around 6:45 a.m. Eastern Time this morning. Prime Minister Theresa May is due to step down tomorrow, with the winner today taking up the position of prime minister. The new leader will assume the leadership with no clear parliamentary majority, an economy which may already be in recession and their own party in almost open revolt over the Brexit issue.
Tech news
Facebook Inc. and Amazon.com Inc. set records for lobbying in the second quarter as scrutiny over their practices increased. Facebook has sought to influence blockchain policy as the company seeks to launch its own cryptocurrency. The Trump administration met with the CEOs of many of the U.S.’s biggest tech companies yesterday as they sought an easing of the ban on doing businesswith Huawei Technologies Co. In earnings today, Snap Inc. will let stock bulls know whether they have been right to push the company’s share price more than 150% higher this year.
Markets rise
Overnight the MSCI Asia Pacific Index added 0.2% while Japan’s Topix index closed 0.8% higher as a rally in U.S. tech stocks boosted electronics makers on the gauge. China’s new Star market was unable to reproduce its first-day performance. In Europe the Stoxx 600 Index had gained 0.6% by 5:50 a.m. Eastern Time amid positive earnings and reduced macro risks. S&P futures pointed to green at the open, the 10-year Treasury yield was at 2.057% and gold slipped.
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