US stocks were mixed with a clear divergence seen, and the major indices finished mostly lower, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 the laggard amid broad-based weakness in semiconductor names, although the Mag-7 names notably firmed, with Meta (META +8.8%) the notable outperformer, buoyed by a Bloomberg report that the Co. plans to build a Cloud business to sell excess AI compute capacity. As such, Communications sat atop the sectoral breakdown, with Technology and Utilities at the bottom, while participants also digested data ahead of the key NFP report. Elsewhere, little came out of the US/Iran technical talks, and the crude complex settled in the red as participants awaited further developments in the Middle East.USD remained bid ahead of NFP on Thursday, brought forward a day on account of Independence Day on Friday. Ahead of the report, which is expected to see 110k jobs added to the economy, ADP printed 98k private payroll growth, shy of the expected 110k; Revelio printed 259k overall. Meanwhile, US challenger layoffs eased to 45.85k from 97k, with cuts remaining concentrated in tech; ISM mfg PMI missed expectations but saw a welcome drop in the prices component. The dollar was largely muted through the data releases, though it did see strength trimmed once Fed Chair Warsh spoke at Sintra. No remark(s) in particular drove the pullback, but rather the overall tone failed to prove as hawkish as expected after his inaugural FOMC press conference.Looking ahead, highlights include South Korean CPI, Australian Trade Data, Supply from Japan.More Newsquawk in 2 steps:1. Subscribe to the free premarket movers reports2. Trial Newsquawk’s premium real-time audio news squawk box for 7 daysLOOKING AHEADHighlights include South Korean CPI, Australian Trade Data, Supply from Japan.Click for the Newsquawk Week Ahead.IRAN CONFLICTUS President Trump said meetings with Iran had gone "very good" and that both sides were "getting along very well", adding that Iran's denuclearisation was progressing well.US President Trump said they are winning a war easily and doing well with Iran, like with Venezuela, while he added they won't let China take over the Panama Canal.US VP Vance said commercial transit had remained free for the past three days and that negotiations with Iran were progressing well, while he stated the US would give diplomacy a chance to succeed.White House spokeswoman Kelly said the US and Iran had a good chance of reaching a deal, according to Fox News.US delegation began talks with the Qatari mediator, while the Iranian delegation held discussions with the Pakistani mediator, according to Al Arabiya.US and Iranian negotiators resumed talks in Doha focused on management of the Strait of Hormuz and the terms of a 60-day MoU aimed at a comprehensive nuclear deal, according to Axios' Barak Ravid. While a temporary one-week de-escalation agreement remained in place, US officials warned the administration remained prepared to respond militarily to any further Iranian aggression, noting that President Trump had previously requested briefings on military options.US Ambassador to Israel told the Jerusalem Post that if Iran did not change its ambitions, President Trump had made clear that all options remained on the table. It was separately reported that if talks failed, the option of US military action against Iran would return to the table, with recent discussions also held between the US and Israel on the issue, according to Iran International, citing a source.A preliminary agreement had been reached to release USD 3bln to Iran, although indirect negotiations remained ongoing in Doha, according to Al Hadath sources.Tehran reportedly linked progress in the technical negotiations to receiving the USD 3bln, and discussions also covered the Strait of Hormuz under a new proposal put forward by Oman, while the delegations were expected to return to their capitals to consider the Omani proposal.Iran requested that the memorandum of understanding be implemented in "time phases", according to Al Hadath. Separately, Al Arabiya, citing a senior source, reported Tehran had requested implementation of five points of the MoU before moving to other issues. Furthermore, Iran was prepared to reaffirm its commitment to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, while Pakistan and Qatar pushed for a temporary understanding before delegations returned to Tehran and Washington.Iran lifted its ban on chemical, polymer and petrochemical products, according to Fars.Iranian Foreign Minister Araghchi said the terms of the MoU were "crystal clear" and that President Trump had committed the US to "muzzling its pets in Tel Aviv", while he warned that any threat against the Iranian people would receive an immediate and powerful response.Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Gharibabadi said a communication channel would be established to report and discuss breaches of the Iran-US MoU, according to IRNA. He added that Pakistan and Qatar had pushed for a temporary understanding before delegations returned to Tehran and Washington, while it had been agreed with Qatar that part of Iran's USD 6bln in frozen funds would be used to purchase goods based on Iran's needs.Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Gharibabadi said no meeting had been held between the Iranian and US delegations in Doha, according to ISNA. He added that Iran's meetings had been limited to joint and trilateral discussions with the Qatari and Pakistani delegations to follow up on the implementation of the MoU, particularly regarding Lebanon and the release of frozen assets. Gharibabadi also stated that consultations by the mediators to determine the date and location of negotiations were ongoing, while he added that negotiations on a final agreement had not yet begun, and that while working groups had been formed to oversee implementation of the memorandum of understanding and negotiate a final agreement, talks in those formats had yet to commence.Iran deployed special forces to its western borders following a wave of terrorist attacks, according to Press TV.UKMTO received a report of an incident 76 nautical miles south of Balhaf, Yemen, stating that a suspicious small craft had departed from a vessel but remained active in the area and could pose a risk to other shipping.Israeli drones struck Al-Dir in southern Lebanon, according to Tasnim.US TRADEUS stocks were mixed with a clear divergence seen, and the major indices finished mostly lower, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 the laggard amid broad-based weakness in semiconductor names, although the Mag-7 names notably firmed, with Meta (META +8.8%) the notable outperformer, buoyed by a Bloomberg report that the Co. plans to build a Cloud business to sell excess AI compute capacity. As such, Communications sat atop the sectoral breakdown, with Technology and Utilities at the bottom, while participants also digested data ahead of the key NFP report. Elsewhere, little came out of the US/Iran technical talks, and the crude complex settled in the red as participants awaited further developments in the Middle East.SPX -0.22% at 7,483, NDX -1.54% at 29,809, DJI -0.03% at 52,310, RUT -0.39% at 3,013.Click here for a detailed summary.TARIFFS/TRADEUSTR said the US had not agreed to renew the USMCA in its current form and would continue engaging with Canada and Mexico to address shortcomings in the agreement and bilateral trade deficits, while the agreement remains in force pending resolution of those issues or its termination.US official said President Trump decided not to renew the USMCA and instead intended to pursue separate 10-year trade agreements with Canada and Mexico, according to Fox Business's Lawrence.Mexican Economy Minister Ebrard said USTR Greer had proposed annual reviews of the USMCA over the next 10 years and that the two sides would meet again on July 20th. Mexico’s Economy Minister said he proposed to the US to reduce Section 232 on steel and aluminium and coordinate at a regional level.Apple (AAPL) is reportedly in talks with the Trump admin on chip purchases and in discussions to purchase memory chips from Chinese companies, according to Bloomberg.NOTABLE HEADLINESFed Chair Warsh said the Federal Reserve must rethink the conduct of monetary policy and chart a new course so it could make better decisions, while he said the Fed would not provide forward guidance and wanted healthy debate within the FOMC. Warsh also stated the Fed would remain an independent central bank, and hoped new technology would improve understanding of the economy within the next 9-12 months, as well as noted that dot plots would remain, at least for the short term.Fed Chair Warsh appointed former BoE Governor King to lead a new communications task force, while Warsh was also said to pick a Bessent staffer to serve as an adviser.US President Trump said the US was building many car plants and AI sites and could control 50% of the global chip market by the time he leaves office.Apple (AAPL) reportedly cut production of its iPhone 17 lineup, according to MacRumors.DATA RECAPUS S&P Global Manufacturing PMI Final (Jun) 53.9 vs. Exp. 55.7 (Prev. 55.1)US ISM Manufacturing PMI (Jun) 53.3 vs. Exp. 53.8 (Prev. 54.0)US ISM Manufacturing New Orders (Jun) 56.0 (Prev. 56.8)US ISM Manufacturing Prices (Jun) 73.0 (Prev. 82.1)US ISM Manufacturing Employment (Jun) 49.7 (Prev. 48.6)US Construction Spending (May) M/M 0.1% vs. Prev. 0.4%US ADP Employment Change (Jun) +98K vs. Exp. +110K (Prev. +122K)US Challenger Job Cuts (Jun) 45.849K (Prev. 97.006K), with layoffs remaining concentrated in the technology sector as AI continued to reshape hiring strategies.
US stocks were mixed and most major indices finished lower amid tech weakness, although most Mag-7 stocks were notably higher - Newsquawk Daily Asia-Pac Market Open
Meta (META +8.8%) was the notable outperformer following a report that the Co. plans to build a Cloud business to sell excess AI compute capacity.










