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Weak jobs market forced Fed to act despite high inflation, but fast cuts could threaten price stability – Fed Minutes 

Oct 10 (Reuters) - Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller on Friday said his interview with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to be the next U.S. central bank chief went well and was not at all political.Waller, seen as top contender to succeed Chair Jerome Powell next year, told CNBC the interview was "all serious economics."CNBC reported earlier that Waller was among five remaining candidates under consideration to succeed Powell when the current chair's term expires in May. "I don't know if I am a finalist or not," Waller said. "I thought the interview went well. I didn't get hit by a pitch."Bessent, who is doing the main job of vetting candidates for President Donald Trump to nominate for the job, has had preliminary interviews with as many as 11 candidates.But citing unnamed senior Treasury officials CNBC reported that list had been winnowed down to five: Waller, Fed Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman, White House National Economic Council Chair Kevin Hassett, former Fed Governor Kevin Warsh and investment firm BlackRock's chief investment officer for fixed income, Rick Rieder.Hassett remains the favorite on betting markets Kalshi and Polymarket, with Waller holding the second spot in contracts on both platforms wagering on who Trump will nominate.The Republican president has demanded the Fed slash interest rates and routinely rails against Powell, whom Trump installed as Fed chair during his first term in the White House but quickly soured on."Was actually a great interview," said Waller, who was appointed to the Fed by Trump in 2020. "I mean, it was a lot of discussion about various aspects of talking about various speeches I've given my points of view, they've kind of wanted to follow up on tales of it. I just thought it was great. I mean, it was really there was nothing political about it. There was nothing. It was all serious economic discussion. So that's why I thought it was brilliant."The question of political interference with the Fed - and its status as an independent body - is a central issue now that Trump has taken the unprecedented step of attempting to fire a sitting Fed governor, opens new tab, Lisa Cook, over allegations of fraudulent applications for a home mortgage.Cook denies the allegation, no charges have yet been filed, and her legal challenge to his attempt to dismiss her will be argued at the Supreme Court in January.Reporting by Dan Burns and Howard Schneider Editing by Mark Potter and Nick Zieminski

Waller says interview for Fed chair went 'great', not political

OTTAWA, Oct 10 (Reuters) - The specific deals that Canada is negotiating with the U.S. in key sectors such as steel, aluminum and autos are likely to persist even if the United States-Canada-Mexico trade deal is reviewed next year, Prime Minister Mark Carney said Friday.Carney told reporters it was unlikely that "one simple trade deal" could resolve all the issues between the two countries. The sectors involved are the ones that Washington deems to be strategic, he said. "We are negotiating specific sectoral deals with them, which would likely persist with a revised USMCA," Carney said.Earlier this week, Carney said he had a "meeting of minds" with U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House on the future of the steel and aluminum sectors, which are currently facing U.S. tariffs.He cited the "huge advantage" that Canada compared to the rest of the world, noting that 85% of goods exported to the U.S. are tariff-free. Still, damaging tariffs remain on imports of Canadian steel, aluminum and autos."Negotiations are tough, but we've come a long way in the last year," Carney said. "We're looking for things that other countries have not received."Reporting by Maria Cheng; Editing by Mark Porter and Nick Zieminski

Canada-US sectoral deals likely to persist even if USMCA is revised, Carney says

WASHINGTON, Oct 10 (Reuters) - The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics said on Friday it would publish September's consumer inflation report on October 24 to assist the Social Security Administration determine the annual cost-of-living adjustment for 2026.But the collection, processing and publishing of other official economic data remained suspended until the government resumed regular operations, the BLS said. The government shut down on October 1 after funding lapsed, delaying the release of September's closely watched employment report due last Friday. "This release allows the Social Security Administration to meet statutory deadlines necessary to ensure the accurate and timely payment of benefits," the BLS said in a statement posted on its website.The Consumer Price Index report was originally scheduled for release on October 15. The Social Security Administration uses the CPI for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers data from the third quarter of 2024 to the third quarter of 2025 to determine the annual cost-of-living adjustment for Social Security and Supplemental Security Income benefits for 2026.The programs benefit older Americans who have retired as well as the disabled and certain widows, widowers and children. The COLA announcement - a widely anticipated event each October among the households relying on those payments - is typically made shortly after the September's CPI report is released.In 2025, more than 72.5 million Social Security and SSI beneficiaries received a 2.5% COLA increase.The Senior Citizens League, one of the nation's biggest seniors groups, last month projected a 2.7% COLA raise in 2026, which would lift the average monthly benefit for retirees by $54 to $2,062 from $2,008.Reporting by Lucia Mutikani, additional reporting by Bhargav Acharya and Katharine Jackson; editing by Susan Heavey and Alistair Bell

US to publish September CPI report this month despite government shutdown

Oct 10 (Reuters) - Copper prices are expected to stay in a range of $10,000-$11,000 per metric ton in 2026/2027 due to a market surplus, though the long-term outlook remains positive, Goldman Sachs said in a note on Friday.The bank noted three key factors that could limit copper's upside: First: Chinese buyers could reduce purchases if prices exceed $11,000, as they did in the second quarter of 2024. Second: excess U.S. inventory could quickly rebalance the market if London Metals Exchange spreads tighten. Third: data centre-related demand has likely been overstated. Copper prices fell on Friday after U.S. President Donald Trump said Washington was calculating a massive increase in tariffs on Chinese imports, stoking fears the trade war between the world's two largest economies could escalate.In the nickel market, Goldman noted that Indonesian producer margins need to decline further to limit supply growth and reverse the nagging market surplus. It forecast a 6% decline in nickel prices to $14,500 per metric ton by December 2026.The note added that Goldman expects an aluminium market surplus as Indonesian supply ramps up from mid-2026. The aluminium price was seen at $2,350/t in the fourth quarter of 2026, and was forecast to not return to current levels until 2030.China is expected to shift from being a zinc net importer to a net exporter in 2026 due to rising domestic production, Goldman said."We see rising Chinese domestic production moving the country from deficit into surplus, while the ex-China market moves to deficit. In order to balance the global market, Chinese producers need to be incentivized to export," it noted.In the cobalt market, new export quotas from the Democratic Republic of Congo, which supplies 70% of global cobalt, are likely to create a market deficit in 2026. This will support prices as supply tightens, according to the note.Goldman also expects lithium prices to stay low-for-longer through 2026, averaging $8,900 a metric ton, as persistent oversupply keeps the market in surplus.Reporting by Anjana Anil in Bengaluru; Editing by Nia Williams and David Gregorio

Goldman Sachs expects copper price to remain in $10,000-$11,000/t price range in 2026/2027

NEW YORK, Oct 10 (Reuters) - Stocks fell sharply, with the Nasdaq down more than 2%, while Treasury yields dropped and the U.S. dollar weakened on Friday after President Donald Trump said he was weighing a "massive increase" in tariffs on Chinese goods.Technology-related shares were among the biggest decliners on Wall Street, with an index of semiconductors (.SOX), down 3.7%. U.S.-listed shares of Chinese firms also dropped. E-commerce firm Alibaba Group Holding was down about 7% and JD.com Inc dropped 5.6%.Trump said there was no reason to meet with China's President Xi Jinping in two weeks in South Korea as planned, adding in a Truth Social post that the U.S. is calculating a massive increase in tariffs on Chinese imports.The step could revive a destabilizing tit-for-tat trade war that Washington and Beijing paused amid painstaking diplomacy earlier this year."He's caught the market off guard again and thrown more question marks into a market that is being questioned about a very high degree of enthusiasm and being sort of scrutinized for having too much fluff built into it," said Robert Pavlik, senior portfolio manager at Dakota Wealth in Fairfield, Connecticut.The Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI), fell 461.84 points, or 1.00%, to 45,896.58, the S&amp;P 500 (.SPX), fell 97.67 points, or 1.45%, to 6,637.44 and the Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC), fell 466.51 points, or 2.03%, to 22,558.12."With equities at high valuations, this sell-off, is a sign of jitters. Everything is priced for perfection so the uncertainty increases market jitters," said Gene Goldman, chief investment officer at Cetera investment Management in El Segundo, California. U.S. stock indexes had been hitting record highs this week.MSCI's gauge of stocks across the globe (.MIWD00000PUS), fell 12.63 points, or 1.27%, to 980.84.European shares closed 1.25% lower, erasing weekly gains in the last-minute slide tied to the fresh threats from Trump. The benchmark STOXX 600 (.STOXX), had its worst intraday drop in over a month.Benchmark U.S. yields extended losses from earlier in the session after the Trump comments, with the 10-year Treasury yield hitting its lowest level since mid-September.U.S. sovereign debt had been in a holding pattern in recent days as a U.S. federal government shutdown, which started October 1, halted the production of crucial economic indicators.The yield on benchmark U.S. 10-year notes was last down 7.9 basis points at 4.069% versus 4.148% late on Thursday.The dollar index , which measures the greenback against a basket of currencies including the yen and the euro, fell 0.41% to 98.98, with the euro up 0.41% at $1.161. Against the Japanese yen , the dollar weakened 0.71% to 151.98.The yen was headed for declines for the week against the dollar following Japan's political changes and rate outlook uncertainty.The Japanese currency has dropped on concerns that the Bank of Japan may not hike interest rates again this year after fiscal dove Sanae Takaichi's surprise victory to lead the ruling party.Japanese Finance Minister Katsunobu Kato said on Friday that the government was concerned about excessive volatility in the foreign exchange market.In France, President Emmanuel Macron mainstream political leaders to a crunch meeting at the Elysee ahead of a self-imposed late-Friday deadline to name a new prime minister.French blue chip stocks (.FCHI), dropped 2% this week as markets were rocked on Monday after Sebastien Lecornu tendered his and his government's resignation just hours after announcing the cabinet line-up.Additional reporting by Marc Jones in London, Sinead Carew in New York and Purvi Agarwal; Editing by Susan Fenton and Nick Zieminski

Stocks, US yields, dollar fall as Trump threatens increase in China tariffs

TORONTO, Oct 10 (Reuters) - The Canadian dollar rose against its U.S. counterpart on Friday as stronger-than-expected domestic jobs data reduced bets on another Bank of Canada interest rate cut this month, but the move was limited as oil prices declined.The loonie was trading 0.2% higher at 1.3995 per U.S. dollar, or 71.45 U.S. cents, rebounding after it touched its weakest intraday level since April 10 at 1.4034. For the week, the currency was on track to decline 0.3%, which would be its third straight weekly loss. Canada's economy added 60,400 jobs in September, almost entirely reversing the losses of the previous month, while the unemployment rate held steady at 7.1%. Economists had forecast a 5,000 jobs gain."Overall, we would definitely characterize this as a solid and encouraging report," said Doug Porter, chief economist at BMO Capital Markets. "We've been leaning to a hold in late October. This somewhat helps that story but it's a close call."Investors see a roughly 50% chance the BoC lowers interest rates at its next policy decision on October 29, down from 72% before the data.The central bank eased its benchmark rate by a quarter of a percentage point last month to 2.50%, its first cut since March, to support the economy which has been buffeted by trade uncertainty.The price of oil , one of Canada's major exports, fell 2.6% to $59.92 a barrel as the market's risk premium faded after Israel and Hamas agreed to the first phase of a plan to end the war in Gaza.Canadian government bond yields rose across much of a flatter curve. The 2-year was up 4.1 basis points at 2.518%, while the gap between it and the U.S. equivalent narrowed by 5.5 basis points to about 107 basis points in favor of the U.S. note.That was the smallest gap since September 17. The bond market was set to close early ahead of the Thanksgiving Day holiday on Monday.Reporting by Fergal Smith; Editing by Andrea Ricci

Canadian dollar rebounds from six-month low on jobs gain

OTTAWA, Oct 10 (Reuters) - Canada's economy posted a surprise 60,400 net job gains in September, almost entirely reversing the losses of the previous month, data showed on Friday, though the unemployment rate remained at a multi-year high.The jobless rate held at 7.1% from August, when the rate hit a nine-year high outside of the pandemic years. Analysts polled by Reuters had forecast job gains of 5,000 and the unemployment rate to edge up to 7.2%, Statistics Canada said. Canada's employment gains this year have averaged about 24,000 jobs per month, almost 10,000 less than seen in the previous two years, as U.S.tariffs have either forced job cuts or dissuaded employers from hiring more.The employment increase in September was completely led by full-time work and it increased in 10 out of 16 industry groups, StatsCan said.However, a few metrics showed the impact of low hiring by companies and increasing slack, or underutilized labor force, in the economy.The unemployment rate among youth or those in the age bracket of 15 to 24 years edged up to 14.7% in September, the highest rate in 15 years. The youths represent around 14% of the total labor force in Canada.Also, the proportion of people working in jobs which are unrelated to their qualification as well as immigrants who were over-qualified for their jobs scaled up, reflecting tough labor market conditions, the statistics agency said. The Bank of Canada has warned that slack was building up in the economy and continued uncertainty and the impact of tariffs could lead to further labor market weakness.Weaker economic data could tilt the Bank of Canada toward a rate cut later this month after it &nbsp;reduced rates by 25 basis point to 2.5% in September."Overall, today's data still suggests that a large degree of slack remains within the labor market, which we think justifies a further interest rate cut from the Bank of Canada," said Andrew Grantham, senior economist at CIBC Capital Markets.The strength in employment seen in September could delay the timing of a cut, particularly if the upcoming data on inflation shows prices firmed up, he added.Money markets are betting that the odds of a 25 basis point rate cut this month are at around 72%.The Canadian dollar firmed after the data and was trading up 0.27% to 1.4018 against the U.S. dollar, 71.34 U.S. cents.The manufacturing sector posted its first increase in job gains since January.This sector accounts for almost a tenth of the labor force and has been the worst hit due to U.S. tariffs this year. But September data showed this sector posted the highest jobs gains in absolute numbers at 27,800, a jump of 1.5% from August.The agriculture sector posted an increase of 6.1% and jobs in the natural resources sector increased by 2.2%.The average hourly wage of permanent employees - a gauge closely tracked by the Bank of Canada to ascertain inflationary trends - grew by 3.6% in September on a yearly basis to C$37.87, same percentage increase as last month.Reporting by Promit Mukherjee; Editing by Dale Smith and Toby Chopra

Canada posts surprise jump in job gains in September, unemployment rate unchanged

Oct 10 (Reuters) - A group of banks including Bank of America (BAC.N), , Citi (C.N), Deutsche Bank (DBKGn.DE), Goldman Sachs (GS.N), and UBS (UBSG.S), will work together to explore creating blockchain-based assets pegged to G7 currencies, the banks said on Friday.The project, which is in its early stages, will explore creating assets on public blockchains which are pegged 1:1 to real-world currencies - known as stablecoins.Various banks and other financial institutions have announced plans to look at launching stablecoins, as soaring crypto prices and U.S. President Donald Trump's support for the sector has sparked a revival of interest in the idea of using blockchain in the mainstream financial system.The market for stablecoins, however, is dominated by the El Salvador-based Tether, which accounts for $179 billion of the $310 billion worth of stablecoins in circulation, according to CoinGecko."The objective of the initiative is to explore whether a new industry-wide offering could bring the benefits of digital assets and enhance competition across the market, while ensuring full compliance with regulatory requirements and best practice risk management," the statement said.The banks involved are Santander (SAN.MC), Bank of America (BAC.N), Barclays (BARC.L), BNP Paribas (BNPP.PA), Citi (C.N), Deutsche Bank (DBKGn.DE), Goldman Sachs (GS.N), MUFG Bank Ltd MTFGTU.UL&gt;, TD Bank Group (TD.TO), and UBS (UBSG.S), .France's Societe Generale (SOGN.PA), which was not included in the list, became the first major bank to issue a dollar-backed stablecoin through its digital asset subsidiary earlier this year. The token has not been widely adopted, with just $30.6 million in circulation.A separate consortium of nine European banks including heavyweights ING (INGA.AS), and UniCredit (CRDI.MI), said last month they were forming a new company to launch a euro-denominated stablecoin.Reporting by Elizabeth Howcroft; Editing by Tommy Reggiori Wilkes

Major banks explore issuing stablecoin pegged to G7 currencies

Oct 10 (Reuters) - Gold rebounded from earlier losses on Friday and was on track for an eighth consecutive weekly gain, driven by broad political and economic uncertainty and expectations of further U.S. rate cuts, while silver hovered near a record high.Spot gold , which hit a record high of $4,059.05 on Wednesday, was up 0.6% at $3,998.02 per ounce as of 1112 GMT - a gain of 2.9% so far this week. U.S. gold futures for December delivery rose 1% to $4,012.30. Non-yielding bullion is traditionally considered a hedge during times of broader uncertainty."Gold is no longer just a defensive asset — it's becoming an offensive one. In this environment, it stands as the strongest alternative to the dollar and a true measure of trust in the global financial system," said Alex Ebkarian, COO at Allegiance Gold, adding that gold is in a secular bull market for the next five years.Multiple factors were supporting the rally, including geopolitical risks, robust central bank buying, exchange-traded fund inflows, expectations of U.S. rate cuts, and trade-related uncertainties. Silver rose 2.6% to $50.40 per ounce a day after touching a record high of $51.22. It has gained 74% so far this year."Given the increase in lease rates, a pronounced backwardation curve, and lack of liquidity in London OTC, one should anticipate greater volatility for silver," said Hugo Pascal, a precious metals trader at InProved. Backwardation is when a commodity's spot price is higher than its future price."If contango (the opposite of backwardation) returns and stress eases, a short pullback could emerge (in silver) — and that may prove to be the next great buying opportunity," Ebkarian said.The U.S. dollar index (.DXY), &nbsp;fell 0.2%, making greenback-priced bullion cheaper for overseas buyers.Meanwhile, minutes from the U.S. Federal Reserve's September meeting revealed policymakers were open to rate cuts to address labour market risks, though inflation concerns persisted.Investors still anticipate two Fed rate cuts of 25 basis points each in October and December. FEDWATCH/Israel's government ratified a ceasefire with the Palestinian militant group Hamas on Friday.In other metals, platinum was up 0.7% to $1,629.49 and palladium gained 3% to $1,454.59. Both these metals were headed for weekly gains.Reporting by Anmol Choubey in Bengaluru; Editing by Harikrishnan Nair, Elaine Hardcastle and Susan Fenton

Gold eyes eighth weekly gain on safe-haven rush; silver hovers near record

LONDON, Oct 10 (Reuters) - Global financial regulators have laid out plans for closer monitoring of artificial intelligence risks as banks and other parts of the financial industry ramp up the use of AI.Banks have been broadly optimistic that AI will make them more productive, but regulators around the world have expressed concerns about its potential impact on financial stability. The G20's risk watchdog, the Financial Stability Board, said in a report on Friday that if too many institutions end up using the same AI models and specialised hardware, this could lead to herd-like behaviour. "This heavy reliance can create vulnerabilities if there are few alternatives available," the board said.A separate study published by the central bank umbrella group, the Bank for International Settlements, added there was an "urgent need" for central banks, financial regulators and supervisory authorities to "raise their game" in relation to AI."There is a need to upgrade their capabilities both as informed observers of the effects of technological advancements and as users of the technology itself," the BIS said.The United States, China and other countries around the world are currently racing to lead the development, opens new tab of revolutionary, machine-learning technologies.The FSB report said that while AI could amplify market stress, there was currently "little empirical evidence that AI-driven market correlations affect market outcomes".It added that financial institutions were also at risk of more AI-related cyberattacks and AI-driven fraud.Some regions have already taken the first steps towards regulating AI, including the European Union, whose Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA) came into force in January.Additional reporting by Elizabeth Howcroft; editing by Mark Potter and Mark Heinrich

Global financial watchdogs to ramp up monitoring of AI

Oct 10 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures were muted on Friday, extending a pause after a blistering rally, while investors awaited consumer sentiment data due later in the day for fresh insights into the economy.The earnings season that begins next week will be a crucial litmus test for U.S. stock markets, but traders so far have brushed off concerns about a bubble in equities.Some analysts expect the AI trade, mostly concentrated in tech so far, to spill over into energy and construction firms as demand for data center buildout accelerates."I feel pretty confident that AI will broaden out to other areas of the market. Investors are going to realize that the companies that provide or create AI are one thing, but companies that will be the beneficiaries are equally, if not more, important," said Francis Gannon, co-chief investment officer at Royce Investment Partners.Also adding to the rally is the fear of missing out, as some analysts say the nearly three-year-old bull market still has room to run, especially if the Federal Reserve continues to lower interest rates.Recent data has reinforced expectations for easing. While the government shutdown has delayed official releases, proxies point to a weakening labor market, with layoffs tied to the impasse likely to deepen the strain.At 06:55 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis were up 41 points, or 0.09%, S&amp;P 500 E-minis were up 0.5 point, or 0.01%, and Nasdaq 100 E-minis were up 1.5 points, or 0.01%.A preliminary reading of the University of Michigan's consumer sentiment survey, due at 10:00 a.m. ET, will be in focus. It could carry extra weight because of the official data blackout.Investors are also weighing developments in the Middle East, where Israeli troops began pulling back from some parts of Gaza on Friday under a ceasefire deal with Hamas. Signs of easing tensions could lift sentiment by removing a long-standing overhang on equities.Among stocks, Intel (INTC.O), rose 1.9% in premarket trading, after TD Cowen raised its price target on the stock. Data center operator Applied Digital (APLD.O), surged 22.1%, a day after posting better-than-expected revenue for the first quarter.Levi Strauss (LEVI.N), shares slipped 6.6% after it forecast annual profit below analysts' expectations.Qualcomm (QCOM.O), fell 2.6% after China's market regulator said the country has launched an antitrust investigation into the semiconductor manufacturer over its acquisition of Israel's Autotalks.Reporting by Niket Nishant and Sukriti Gupta in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D'Silva and Shilpi Majumdar

US stock index futures muted ahead of consumer sentiment data

NEW YORK, Oct 9 (Reuters) - U.S. companies could report milder earnings growth in the third quarter than earlier this year, partly due to a likely tariff hit, while investors look for signs that heavy spending on artificial intelligence is paying off.While most U.S. corporations have managed to beat earnings expectations even after U.S. President Donald Trump first announced wide-ranging tariffs on imports in April, the full impact of his trade policies remains uncertain. With optimism about emerging AI technology lifting Wall Street indexes to record highs this year, investors are likely to focus more on AI-related capital expenditures than tariffs and other risks.Analysts expect S&amp;P 500 companies to post 8.8% higher earnings than in the 2024 third quarter, according to the latest LSEG forecast. Year-over-year growth was above 13% in each of the first two quarters of 2025.The reporting period unofficially kicks off next week with results from some of the biggest U.S. banks.The S&amp;P 500 (.SPX), and Nasdaq (.IXIC), registered record closing highs on Wednesday, boosted by AI-related megacaps that have been market leaders this year.Earnings from the so-called Magnificent 7 group of megacap stocks and AI leaders could be "very robust," said Anthony Saglimbene, chief market strategist at Ameriprise Financial in Troy, Michigan."But investors are going to be skeptical about some of the commentary on capex spend," he said. "Investors are starting to get a little more concerned about the money that's being spent there, and the payback for that investment."Valuations have hit levels some investors consider frothy, with the S&amp;P 500 now trading at roughly 23 times forward earnings estimates and well above its 10-year average of 18.7, based on LSEG Datastream data. High valuations in megacap technology and growth stocks present a particular risk given the worries about AI investment and spending. Companies continue to pump more money into AI and negotiate AI-related deals, such as AMD's (AMD.O), announcement earlier this week that it will supply chips to OpenAI in a multi-year agreement.Investors are especially keen to see quarterly results for guidance because the U.S. government shutdown that began October 1 has held up official economic reports from the federal government.The information void has made it more difficult to get a sense of how the economy is doing and how the Federal Reserve might proceed with interest rates. The U.S. central bank last month cut rates for the first time since December amid labor market weakness.Still, mostly upbeat economic data during the last quarter likely means third-quarter S&amp;P 500 earnings and sales growth will surpass consensus expectations, according to Goldman Sachs' chief U.S. equity strategist, David Kostin, and his team.Goldman strategists wrote in a recent note that they expect companies to have maintained their profit margins, even as tariffs "were likely a larger headwind to profits in 3Q than they were during 2Q," and said customs duties rose 33% over that period to $93 billion.Sales likely grew 5.7% for S&amp;P 500 component companies compared with the year-ago quarter, according to LSEG. Sales rose 6.4% in the second quarter and 5% in the first quarter.An investment banking rebound is expected to have helped push the six largest U.S. banks to stronger third-quarter earnings. In the second quarter, S&amp;P 500 earnings grew 13.8%, while analysts at the start of July estimated just 5.8%, LSEG data showed."So far neither tariffs nor economic uncertainty by the consumer have had a negative impact" on earnings growth, said Oliver Pursche, senior vice president and advisor for Wealthspire Advisors in Westport, Connecticut.Reporting by Caroline Valetkevitch; Editing by Alden Bentley and Richard Chang

US companies' profit growth seen softer, spotlight on AI spending

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