US President Donald Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi shake hands during a joint press conference at the White House on February 13, 2025 in Washington, DC, USA.
Kevin Lamarque | Reuters
The world’s largest economy has signed an agreement with the most populous country.
US President Donald Trump announced on Monday that he would reduce so-called reciprocal tariffs on India from 25% to 18%. As part of the deal, New Delhi will “buy America” at a “much higher level” and stop buying oil from Russia. Trump said India would instead import from the United States and possibly Venezuela.
Even though various countries are working to increase trade and investment with Washington, it appears that at least travelers are still staying away from the United States. disney. International visitor numbers to U.S. theme parks during the fiscal first quarter were “down” and facing headwinds, the media conglomerate reported Monday. Disney’s stock price fell 7.4% following the earnings announcement.
However, major U.S. indexes rose on Monday, shrugging off recent sell-offs in gold and silver. of S&P500 Add 0.54%, Dow Jones Industrial Average It rose by 1.05%. in spite of Nvidia The company lost 2.9% on reports that a planned $100 billion investment in technology-driven OpenAI has stalled. Nasdaq Composite It rose by 0.56%.
The Reserve Bank of Australia is expected to announce its interest rate decision later today, which is expected to buck the trend of central bank monetary easing. Analysts expect the RBA to raise interest rates on the back of better-than-expected inflation and a strong labor market.
What you need to know today
SpaceX will acquire startup xAI, Elon Musk announced in a blog post on Monday. The combined company is gearing up for a major IPO, with its shares expected to be worth $1.25 trillion, Bloomberg reports.
Oracle’s credit default swaps are plummeting, with five-year swaps down 17%. Investor confidence increased after Oracle announced plans to raise $50 billion in debt and equity.
What is happening to Bitcoin? The cryptocurrency has fallen about 12% over the past seven days, dropping below $80,000 at the end of the week. This is the first time the stock has traded at this level since April 2025. One of the reasons for the collapse was forced liquidation.
US stocks rose on Monday. spot gold and silverHowever, losses widened during US trading, and Bitcoin agents strategy It fell 6.7%. pan-european Stocks 600 Added 1.03%, reducing previous loss.
(PRO) Robot topics. Musk announced on Wednesday: tesla is converting a factory in California to make Optimus robots, and rivals in China are ramping up deliveries of humanoid robots. morgan stanley We believe these companies will benefit from industry growth.
And finally…
China’s melancholy: “Is it dead?” app has been terminated, “Nakima” stuffed animals are sold out
Americans are worried about inflation and affordability, while Chinese are worried about deflation and economic decline.
To get an idea of consumer confidence in China today, visit Beijing toy store Gaolan. There, stuffed animals with grimacing faces are sold out for the Year of the Horse. According to state media, a factory worker accidentally sewed the toy’s smiling face upside down, making it a huge hit in China and known as the “crying horse.”
Another indicator of depression is the viral app sensation Are You Dead? “Silem” in Chinese. This app aims to give people who live alone the peace of mind of knowing that someone will notice if they die.
— Eunice Yun
