This report is from today's CNBC Daily Open, our new, international markets newsletter. CNBC Daily Open brings investors up to speed on everything they need to know, no matter where they are. Like what you see? You can subscribe here.
What you need to know today
Muted markets
Major U.S. indexes inched up fractionally Monday, in a quiet start to the second half of the year. European markets mostly traded lower. Asia-Pacific markets traded mixed Tuesday. South Korea's Kospi Index retreated 0.3% even though inflation slowed. Prices in June rose only 2.7% year over year, less than economists had expected.
Chip wars heat up
China is restricting the export of gallium and germanium, two metals crucial to semiconductor manufacturing, because of national security concerns, the country's Ministry of Commerce said in a statement Monday. The move comes as the U.S. curbed the export of key semiconductor technologies to China, and urged its allies to do so as well.
Inflation down (under)
Australia's central bank left the country's interest rate unchanged at 4.1%, describing inflation as having "passed its peak." Economists surveyed were divided as to whether the bank would hike rates by 25 basis points or keep them steady. The comments and decision were a pleasant surprise for markets. The S&P/ASX 200 added 0.5% in response.
Electrifying growth
Tesla shares popped 6.9% yesterday after the company reported a staggering 83% year-over-year growth in deliveries during the second quarter. Other electric vehicle makers are delivering the goods too, literally. Rivian, Xpeng and BYD all saw their deliveries increase compared with a year ago; those upbeat figures turbocharged their shares.
[PRO] Weight loss, stock gain
A new class of weight loss drugs will be hitting the U.S. soon. With more than two-thirds of adults in the U.S. having obesity, that's a potentially large market for pharmaceutical companies. Indeed, firms developing obesity drugs have attracted investors' attention — one's risen 18% year to date; another an even more impressive 26%.
The bottom line
Markets in the U.S. closed early ahead of the Fourth of July holiday.
Just 32.8 million shares of the SPDR S&P 500, an ETF that tracks the S&P index, were traded — far below its 30-day average of 85.3 million and its lowest volume since November. That was reflected in the marginal moves indexes made. The S&P 500 advanced 0.12%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was flat and the Nasdaq Composite added 0.21%.
Still, one stock set off fireworks on a quiet day. Tesla shares popped 6.9% and helped drive forward other electric vehicle stocks, such as Rivian, Fisker and Lucid.
"It was a jaw dropper," Wedbush Securities' Dan Ives said, referring to Tesla's blockbuster report on its second-quarter deliveries. "Those price cuts, that was the poker move that they needed to make to put an iron fence around their install base."
But Bernstein's Toni Sacconaghi Jr., a longtime bear on the stock, expressed concerns over those price cuts. "The key question for investors is what might margins be?" Sacconaghi said. "We worry that Tesla will have to further lower prices in 2023 and/or 2024 to meet unit expectations."
U.S. markets will be closed today as traders celebrate Independence Day. On the agenda: barbecues. And while not literally on the grill, broader indexes should have a sizzling July, if history is any guide: CNBC's Robert Hum noted that since 2009, the month has been the best of the year for the S&P and Nasdaq, and the second best for the Dow.
