Good morning. Nvidia’s sales surge, but forecasts point to a slowdown. Moldova gets a helping hand. And American Eagle turns to Travis Kelce in a well-timed partnership. Listen to the day’s top stories.
— Lily Nonomiya
Nvidia, the world’s AI darling, said quarterly sales surged 56%, but shares fell in after-market trading as investors zeroed in on a tepid revenue forecast, signaling that growth is decelerating. The company also said an unconventional plan by the Trump administration to charge a 15% commission on its AI chip sales to China hasn’t progressed beyond the early stages and could pose legal risks.
Markets:Equity-index futures retreated after Nvidia’s results. US stocks dipped in late hours after the S&P 500 benchmark hit a record high during regular trading. Check out our Markets Today live blog for all the latest news and analysis relevant to UK assets.
France latest: Prime Minister Francois Bayrou said he will negotiate directly with lawmakers next week and warned against new elections as he battles to stop parliament from forcing him to resign. Carrefour’s CEO said the political turmoil risks pushing the country into recession.
The US State Department sought to distance itself from reports that at least three Americans with links to President Donald Trump traveled to Greenland in a bid to get the territory to secede from Denmark. Read our explainer about why the president is obsessed with taking over Greenland.
Germany, France and Poland sought to bolster Moldova’s leadership amid mounting concerns that next month’s parliamentary elections might produce a strong result for pro-Russian parties, hindering the eastern European nation’s efforts to pivot to the West. Read how proxies for Vladimir Putin may be thwarting that mission.
US companies are planning to buy back shares at a historic pace, a sign of Corporate America’s confidence in the economy.
Announced buybacks surpassed $1 trillion on Aug. 20, marking the shortest amount of time needed to reach that level, according to data compiled by Birinyi Associates.
Back in May, Apple announced it would buy back $100 billion in stock. Alphabet, JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs, Wells Fargo and Bank of America have also announced buybacks of at least $40 billion.
Jeffrey Yale Rubin, president of Birinyi Associates, expects the momentum to continue through to the end of the year, forecasting announced buybacks to reach $1.3 trillion and completed repurchases to reach a record.
Nvidia can’t hide the fact that the US is behaving erratically with its demand for a cut of sales, writes Dave Lee. CEO Jensen Huang did not say it directly, but his clear message is if Trump wants to support America’s hottest company, the most helpful thing to do would be to get out of the way.
AE x Tru Kolors by Travis Kelce Source: American Eagle
A well-timed tap. American Eagle Outfitters announced a collaboration with Travis Kelce the day after the Kansas City Chiefs star and Taylor Swift revealed their engagement. The retailer’s shares jumped on news of the partnership, which includes t-shirts and sweatpants.
