‼️ Over 80 carbon policies now require companies—from oil and gas to utilities—to cut emissions or buy allowances. BloombergNEF estimates compliance costs at $96 billion in 2026, rising to $188 billion by 2035 and totaling $1.4 trillion over the next decade. With energy prices likely to stay elevated, carbon costs will intensify the trade-off between decarbonization and affordability.
‼️ 🇹🇼 🇰🇷 🇿🇦 Through Aug. 7, South Africa (+9.5%), Taiwan (+6.8%), and South Korea (+5.7%) led global equity markets in USD terms, per LSEG Datastream and Yardeni Research. The U.S. rose 3.5%, outpacing ACWI (+3.2%) and ACWX (+2.9%). China (FXI: −0.9%) and Hong Kong (EWH: −1.6%) declined, while Brazil (EWZ: −3.6%) was the weakest.
‼️ 🇺🇸 President Trump said the US is letting economic pressure on Iran mount instead of launching new military strikes, calling the approach “low key.” He noted Tehran’s soaring inflation and cash shortages, adding that a US naval blockade is worsening its financial crisis and that Washington is only “semi-negotiating” over the Strait of Hormuz.
‼️ 🇹🇼 Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. reported a 45% rise in its monthly sales, a sign of sustained demand for AI hardware in the face of market volatility. Revenue at the go-to chipmaker for Nvidia Corp. and Apple Inc. reached NT$467.58 billion ($14.5 billion) in July
‼️ Samsung HBM4 yield surges to 80%, ahead of year-end target: report. Samsung plans to more than triple HBM4 revenue in the third quarter, with HBM4 expected to account for more than 60% of total HBM sales in the second half of 2026. Higher HBM4 output could also support production of NVIDIA’s (NVDA) next-generation AI accelerator, Vera Rubin, while giving major customers greater supply diversification.
‼️ 🇨🇳 China’s CPI cooled to a six-month low of 0.5% YoY, driven by food prices falling 1.5%. PPI growth slowed to 3.5% YoY from 4.1%, missing forecasts of 3.8%.