Newsquawk Daily US Equity Opening News - NVDA raises AI server prices; BABA prices HKD 80bln share placement

• US INDEX FUTURES: ES -0.2%, NQ -0.6%, YM -0.1%, RUT -0.2%
• BROKER MOVES: ALGT upgraded at Raymond James; NXGL downgraded at Maxim. For the full list, click here.
• US DAILY CONFERENCE CALENDAR: For the full list, click here.

DAY AHEAD:

• EVENTS: US Treasury Secretary Bessent holds a press conference on Iranian economic sanctions. The Coalition of the Willing meeting takes place in Ukraine; Witkoff and Kushner are reportedly no longer expected to attend.
• SUPPLY: US Treasury announces 5yr and 7yr liquidity support buybacks.
• WEEK AHEAD: Treasury Secretary Bessent will announce a new fiscal consolidation initiative, last week indicating that the announcement could be late last week/early this week; he also signalled a readiness to expand liquidity bond buybacks at the long-end of the curve beyond the planned USD 4bln per operation. Elsewhere this week, US PCE, BLS revisions, Bessent on Iran, and Jackson Hole are on the docket. On the earnings front, highlights include NVDA, MRVL, CRWD, CRM.

US EQUITY NEWS:

TECH:

• Nvidia (NVDA) - Nvidia customers have been notified of price increases of more than 15% on AI servers, effective on systems shipped early next year, covering flagship Vera Rubin and Grace Blackwell chip configurations, Bloomberg reports. The hikes reflect soaring memory chip costs from Samsung (SSNLF), SK Hynix (SKHY) and Micron (MU), which hold near-total control of DRAM production amid surging demand. Server manufacturers have begun passing the increases on to major data centre operators including Microsoft (MSFT), Alphabet (GOOG) and Oracle (ORCL). Separately, Nvidia plans to use its USD 6bln Poolside licensing deal to build a powerful open-weight AI model intended to compete with Chinese systems such as DeepSeek and Kimi K3, WSJ reports. Nvidia will also invest USD 1bln in Poolside, while more than 100 employees will join its Nemotron project.
• SoftBank (SFTBY) - Plans a record JPY 1tln 7yr retail bond sale to fund OpenAI investment commitments, Bloomberg reports. The bonds carry an indicative 4.3-4.9% coupon, and is expected to price on 4th September. SoftBank has committed more than USD 60bln to OpenAI, and may still face a funding shortfall exceeding USD 20bln, the report notes.
• Yangtze Memory Technologies Corp - YMTC plans to raise USD 4.9bln in a Shanghai IPO to expand production and develop next-gen storage products, WSJ reports. Q1 revenue reached CNY 47.04bln, and net profit CNY 33.38bln, as AI demand lifted NAND prices and factory utilisation. The expectation is for YMTC to list in 2027.
• DeepSeek - Will charge off-peak API rates throughout weekends from 23rd August. The company introduced variable pricing earlier this month, with peak rates twice off-peak levels.
• Hugging Face - Has been working with a bank to evaluate acquisition interest, at a valuation of USD 13bln+, Business Insider reports. No deal has yet been reached. The startup, last valued at USD 4.5bln in 2023, provides a platform for developers to discover, share and build AI models. The reported interest follows Stripe’s recent agreement to acquire AI model marketplace OpenRouter for approximately USD 8bln.
• IBM (IBM) - Unveils next generation dual architecture professor for IBM Z and LinuxOne.
• Strategy (MSTR) - Reports a USD 5.10bln US dollar reserve and USD 1.59bln in cash as of August 23, while holding 840,447 Bitcoin acquired for an aggregate USD 75.39bln, according to an SEC filing

COMMUNICATIONS:

• Paramount Skydance (PSKY), Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) - Paramount is preparing settlement talks with California officials on Monday over an antitrust lawsuit blocking its USD 81bln Warner Bros. Discovery acquisition, WSJ reports. California AG Bonta said discussions require robust structural remedies, and is expected to seek cable-channel divestitures and require Paramount to keep its movie studio separate from Warner Bros. before approving their merger. Comes as Paramount faces potential quarterly USD 650mln ticking fees from October, and has threatened to leave California if no deal is reached. California Governor Newsom said he would prefer a settlement of the state attorney general’s lawsuit challenging the acquisition, if an agreement is favourable.
• ByteDance - TikTok and parent ByteDance agreed to pay USD 400mln to settle DoJ allegations over children’s privacy violations, Reuters reports. TikTok will pay USD 300mln immediately and another USD 100mln if a prior FTC consent decree is vacated.
• Rumble (RUM) - Affiliate enters into a USD 13.76bln, 6-year GPU services agreement with a US cloud customer; grants warrant for up to 50.8mln shares at USD 0.01/shr

CONSUMER STAPLES:

• Walmart (WMT) - Will launch a new women’s clothing and accessories brand named Scenario, aimed at younger shoppers, with most items under USD 25, WSJ reports. The move extends Walmart’s fashion push as apparel sales have grown for seven consecutive quarters; WSJ notes however that Amazon (AMZN) is increasing its overall share of apparel sales more quickly. Separately, Walmart Chief Communications Officer Allyson Park will leave the company on 1st February 2027, and will move into an advisory role from 1st September.
• Brown-Forman (BF.B) - Controlling-family members W. L. Lyons Brown III and Stuart Brown criticised the board over deteriorating performance, executive pay and failed Pernod Ricard (PRNDY) talks, Bloomberg reports. They questioned management accountability, called for a strategic plan and greater shareholder engagement, and said a combination with Sazerac could merit consideration.
• Philip Morris International (PM) - Announces contract manufacturing collaboration with Altria (MO).

CONSUMER DISCRETIONARY:

• Alibaba (BABA) - Priced a HKD 80bln placement of 710mln new shares at HKD 112.70 each. The transaction is expected to close on 26th August, subject to customary conditions. Alibaba plans to use the proceeds to expand its full-stack AI capabilities and infrastructure.
• Alibaba (BABA), JD.com (JD) - Michael Burry said he sold Alibaba, calling the shares overvalued, and built a large position in JD.com instead. He criticised Alibaba’s planned HKD 80bln share issuance and expects returns on invested capital to keep declining, stating that Alibaba would need to fall by half before he became interested again.
• Amazon (AMZN) - Amazon’s Zoox has begun charging for driverless robotaxi rides in Las Vegas and operating in San Francisco, WSJ reports. Regulators have allowed up to 5K vehicles over two years, subject to weather and speed restrictions. Zoox has about 100 vehicles, with plans to expand testing and service to Austin and Miami.
• Xpeng (XPEV) Q2 2026 (CNY): Revenue 19.74bln (prev. 18.27bln Y/Y), Vehicle Sales 17.05bln (prev. 16.88bln Y/Y), Adj. Operating Income -1.04bln (prev. -0.84bln Y/Y), Q3 guidance: deliveries 115,000-121,000, revenue 21.7-23.4bln.

FINANCIALS:

• BNP Paribas (BNPQY) - Said it is confident the trial court fundamentally misconstrued Swiss law in the Sudan litigation; it also alleged numerous legal errors, and said relevant evidence showing the transactions were authorised under Swiss and European law had been sidelined.
• Partners Group (PGHN) - Agreed to exit its investment in Taiwanese bubble tea maker Gong cha following Bain Capital’s acquisition, Reuters reports. Partners Group provided USD 200mln in funding for TA Associates’ 2019 purchase of Gong cha and also invested in its equity. Bain acquired Gong cha in August for an undisclosed amount.

INDUSTRIALS:

• Boeing (BA) - Boeing’s SPEEA engineers union rejected a proposed contract and authorised strike action, Bloomberg reports. The strike could affect certification of the 737 Max 10 and 777X. Boeing said the earliest a strike could begin is 7th October. No further talks with the union are currently planned.
• RTX (RTX) - The US Navy is testing RTX subsidiary Raytheon’s AIM-424 Malice air-to-air missile, which can strike targets more than 290 miles away, Bloomberg reports. The missile is sized to fit F-35 and F-22 internal weapons bays. The Navy has not said when it will become operational.
• Deere & Company (DE) - UAW members rejected Deere’s offer to extend their contract by two years, setting up negotiations in 2027, WSJ reports. Deere offered two years of 4% wage increases and USD 3K bonuses. UAW President Fain criticised the proposal for not addressing outsourcing or recalling 1.6K laid-off workers.
• Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CP) - Canadian Pacific Kansas City and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers union agreed to binding arbitration, ending a strike that began on 31st May. The union represents about 300 Signals & Communications employees across Canada, who will return to work from 24th August.
• QXO (QXO) - Hiring former Honeywell (HON) executive Ken West as Chief Operating Officer, Bloomberg reports. West was previously considered a potential successor to Honeywell CEO Vimal Kapur. He will join in September.
• UPS (UPS) - Investing more than USD 2bln into its international, healthcare, and supply chain solutions businesses, a strategy initiated in 2024 that is set to continue through 2028.

MATERIALS:

• Copper, Zijin Mining (ZIJMY) - Zijin Mining said its FY26 copper production target faces pressure after flooding at the Kamoa-Kakula mine in Congo, Bloomberg reports. Its attributable output from the project may fall by up to 57K tonnes this year. Zijin was targeting total 2026 mined copper production of 1.2mln tonnes.
• H B Fuller (FUL) - Reportedly reject Ancora bid for adhesives unit.

ENERGY:

• Shell (SHEL) - Has drawn interest from ExxonMobil (XOM), LyondellBasell (LYB), Apollo (APO) and Kuwait Petroleum Corporation for US chemicals assets that could fetch up to USD 8bln, FT reports. Indicative bids cover the whole business or parts, including the Monaca complex, and comes as Shell reduces its chemicals exposure to refocus on core oil and gas operations.
• ExxonMobil (XOM) - ExxonMobil temporarily suspended operations at Guyana’s Liza Unity FPSO (produces around 250K BPD from the Stabroek Block) after a small laundry-room fire, Bloomberg reports. The fire was quickly extinguished, all personnel were safe and crude offloading was affected. Operations will resume after safety checks.
• Iranian Gas - Iran announced a natural gas discovery exceeding 7.5tln cubic feet in Fars province, with about 5.7tln recoverable, Bloomberg reports. Oil Minister Paknejad said the find also includes gas condensates worth tens of billions of dollars. Development is planned as soon as possible, though production would likely take years, Bloomberg adds.
• Russian Gasoline - Russian Deputy Prime Minister Novak said Russia is facing gasoline supply constraints while domestic diesel and jet-fuel stocks remain sufficient, Interfax reported. Russia has restricted most fuel exports amid continued Ukrainian attacks on energy infrastructure. Moscow has not decided whether to lift the diesel export ban, currently running through 1st September.
• Italian Energy - Italy extended its diesel tax cut through Wednesday as PM Meloni faces pressure from elevated fuel prices linked to the Middle East war. The government had reduced diesel prices by EUR 0.17/litre in July, while the opposition is calling for broader support and a windfall tax on energy companies.

HEALTHCARE:

• Hims & Hers (HIMS) - Was placed in Visa’s (V) monitoring programme after increased credit-card disputes tied largely to its weight-loss subscriptions, Bloomberg reports. Each dispute carries a USD 8.00 surcharge, with September charges nearing USD 75K. Hims must keep disputes below 1.5% for three consecutive months.
• GSK (GSK) - FDA accepted GSK’s priority review for Jemperli in dMMR/MSI-H locally advanced rectal cancer, with a PDUFA date in February 2027; separately, Japan approved Hibsago for chronic hepatitis B, marking its first global approval.
• Bayer (BAYRY) - Bayer’s sevabertinib received approval within Japan for those with Her-2 Mutant non-Small Cell Lung Cancer.
• Gilead (GILD) - Announced that the European Commission (EC) has granted marketing authorization for Trodelvy (sacituzumab govitecan-hziy) in combination with Keytruda for treatment of triple-negative breast cancer.
• Regenxbio (RGNX) - Reports FDA placed clinical hold on RGX-121.

GEOPOLITICS:

• US-Iran - President Trump said the US is observing developments in the Iran conflict, and reiterated warnings against any country providing Tehran with a lifeline. Trump added that Iran would like to make a deal but is not, in his view, prepared to agree to the right terms. Treasury Secretary Bessent warned that “economic D-Day” is coming for Iran, and countries that see appeasing the regime to be the safer option should reconsider. Bessent is due to unveil economic measures against Iran later today. Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Baghaei criticised the imminent US sanctions announcement, calling it an assertion of extraterritorial sovereignty over independent UN member states, and claimed that secondary sanctions have no basis in international law.
• Russia-Ukraine - Ukrainian President Zelensky said Russia rejected a Black Sea shipping truce because Moscow wanted guarantees against attacks on its energy infrastructure. Zelenskyy said Ukraine could discuss a reciprocal energy ceasefire, ruled out wartime elections, and highlighted a USD 27bln military funding shortfall while seeking 300 Patriot missiles for winter defence.

TRADE:

• US-Canada - Canada PM Carney said trade negotiations with the US have been suspended after last-minute US terms were deemed unfair and unreliable. The US plans a 50% tariff on roughly CAD 28bln of Canadian goods, and Carney added that Canada will match the tariffs dollar-for-dollar, while introducing additional support for workers and businesses. USTR Greer said Canada declined to finalise a trade deal after making new demands and reversing commitments. The proposed agreement included aerospace supply-chain coordination, critical-minerals cooperation, stronger forced-labour enforcement and formal USMCA negotiations. Greer called Canada’s decision a missed opportunity.

MACRO:

• Fedspeak - Fed’s Kashkari (voter) said the US Treasury market is functioning as it should, and that recent yield rises are unlikely to affect monetary policy deliberations. Kashkari said he is not confident inflation is heading back to target in the near-term, but did not want to prejudge the outcome of the FOMC’s September confab. Kashkari was one of three dissenters in July who backed a rate hike.
• Fed Chair Warsh - WSJ Fedwatcher Timiroas writes Fed Chair Warsh’s historical forecasting record suggests he views inflation as rooted more in supply-side and government policy factors, rather than in demand-side indicators like unemployment. As a Fed governor during 2007-11, Warsh consistently forecast higher inflation than his colleagues, believing the financial crisis had structurally raised unemployment and left the economy more vulnerable to price shocks. Warsh has declined to submit rate or economic projections since becoming chairman, calling the dot plot forecasts “abysmal.” Warsh will deliver keynote remarks at Jackson Hole on Friday.
• Bonds - Pimco sees bonds as attractive at current yield levels, saying it will look to add if yields rise further. The firm expects the term premium to remain elevated absent an unexpected economic downturn, noting that today’s yields only appear elevated relative to the artificially suppressed post-financial crisis era. Pimco flagged additional fiscal stimulus and worsening debt supply expectations as key risks that could push yields into a higher range.
• RBNZ - New Zealand’s Labour Party pledged to restore the RBNZ’s dual mandate of price stability and maximum sustainable employment if it wins the 7th November election. It also targets a fiscal surplus by 2029/30, and net debt at 20% of GDP.
• European Water Levels - Hungary plans to restore its Paks nuclear plant to full 2,000-megawatt output by Wednesday after Danube levels improved, Bloomberg reports. Two of three shut reactors restarted over the weekend, lifting output above half capacity. The government also plans a comprehensive climate law and water-management reforms after drought disrupted reactor cooling and strained electricity supplies.
• Brazil Elections - Brazilian President Lula leads Flavio Bolsonaro 47-43 in a potential runoff, according to a Datafolha poll. The margin is little changed from the previous survey, and within the poll’s error range. Brazil’s first-round presidential election is scheduled for 4th October, with a likely runoff three weeks later.