Good morning. Here's what happened overnight and what you need to know today.
1.
Trump pick: Donald Trump has chosen Senator JD Vance of Ohio as his vice-presidential running mate for the upcoming election. In a post on his social media site ahead of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Trump said the Yale graduate was “best suited” for the position. A political newcomer who once criticised Trump but gained his support by embracing his political stance and false election claims, Vance views align closely with Trump's ideologies, including his hardline immigration stance. Praising Vance's service in the Marine Corps, his academic achievements and business career, Trump said Vance would focus on campaigning in the key states of Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, Ohio and Minnesota. His youth and ability to energise donors are seen as assets to the Republican ticket, The New York Times reported. However, his extreme views, especially on abortion, could pose challenges among moderate or independent voters. The announcement came shortly after the RNC began amid heightened security measures following an assassination attempt against Trump on Saturday. Both Trump and President Joe Biden both called for unity in response to the political violence. Trump said he had changed his nomination acceptance speech to focus on national unity. Meanwhile, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas labelled the shooting at Trump’s rally a “failure” of security. (The New York Times)
2.
Rate watch: Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said the US economy has performed “remarkably well” with inflation slowing in line with the central bank’s expectations, but declined to say whether that meant it was time for the Fed to cut rates at its meeting later this month. Speaking in Washington, Powell said recent data had boosted the bank’s confidence that inflation is moving toward its 2% target. “Our test has been for quite some time that we want to have greater confidence that inflation was moving sustainably down toward our 2% target, and what increases confidence in that is more good inflation data,” he said. “And lately, we have been getting some of that.” Investors anticipate interest rate cuts in September, after the Fed raised rates to a 20-year high last year to combat high prices. With inflation easing last month and a cooling labour market, some traders are ramping up bets the first cut could be as large as half a percentage point, double the standard 25 basis point cut, according to Bloomberg. (The Wall Street Journal)(Bloomberg)
