⏱️ ~4 min read
📊 Today's Numbers
KOSPI ▲ 5.56% to 7,123.43: strongest open in months
SK Hynix ▲ 9.00%+: AI chip demand doing the heavy lifting
UK 30-yr Gilt Yield ▲ 5.75%: two-month high before partial retreat
S&P 500 ▲ +0.89% to 7,509.20: three-day losing streak snapped
Canada Tariff Rate ■ 50%: effective August 19 under Section 338
🏦 MACROECONOMIC
Photo: Tim Gouw
Trump hits Canada with 50% tariffs on autos, dairy, wine
A law that hasn't been used since Herbert Hoover signed it is now the legal spine of the biggest single trade action against America's closest neighbour in living memory. Effective August 19, Canadian cars, dairy, wine, electronics, and sports goods all carry a 50% levy. And the USTR is signalling this is just the opening act.
50% duties on Canadian goods under Section 338 of the Tariff Act of 1930, effective in 30 days
Canada has a narrow window to negotiate, but it's one of the only countries besides China that retaliated against earlier Trump tariffs, making a deal politically messy on both sides
USTR Greer confirmed July 21 that "dozens" of additional countries are next, ahead of the existing 10% global baseline tariff expiry
💬 The last time Washington used this particular law, the Great Depression was just getting started.
📉 BONDS
UK gilts stabilise as surprise chancellor pick calms markets
Bond traders woke up expecting Shabana Mahmood as chancellor. They got John Healey instead, and the relief was immediate. Gilt yields had spiked hard on Prime Minister Andy Burnham's "flexibility" comment on borrowing rules. Healey's pledge of fiscal credibility pulled them back from the edge, but not all the way.
UK 30-year gilt yield hit 5.75% — a two-month high — before partially reversing on Healey's appointment
10-year gilt briefly crossed 5.00%, up roughly 19 basis points over the past month, among the highest in the G7
Every 25bps added to the 10-year gilt typically costs a £200,000 variable-rate borrower around £25 more per month
💬 Britain's new chancellor went straight from running defence to running the economy. Denis Healey made the exact same career move in 1974, though the two are unrelated.
📈 EQUITIES
Photo: Naufal Shidqi
South Korea's KOSPI surges 5.56% as AI chip rally extends
South Korean stocks had one of their best mornings of 2026, driven by AI semiconductor demand, solid export data, and a slightly calmer Strait of Hormuz. SK Hynix alone jumped over 9%. For context: the KOSPI had fallen nearly 30% from its 2026 peak before this recovery began.
KOSPI opened at 7,123.43, up 5.56%, with SK Hynix +9.00% and Samsung +5.80% leading the charge
KOSDAQ added 3.29% to 778.13, showing the rally wasn't just a large-cap chip story
MSCI Asia-Pacific rose 1.30% in tandem, extending what was Tuesday's biggest single-day regional gain in a month
💬 South Korea's stock market now moves more on Nvidia's order book than on anything Seoul's own government announces.
📰 Also Today
Wall St. snaps three-day losing streak: The S&P 500 closed +0.89% at 7,509.20 on Tuesday, with the Nasdaq Composite adding 1.29% to 25,837.21; GM surged nearly 5% on a Q2 earnings beat posting adjusted EPS of $3.57, and BlackRock now puts full-year S&P 500 earnings growth at 25% for 2026, up from 18% just three months ago.
Oil climbs as US-Iran strikes enter tenth consecutive day: Brent crude rose in early Asian trading July 22 as peace talks stalled and Strait of Hormuz disruption kept a geopolitical risk premium embedded in crude prices; the UN's worst-case modelling warns the conflict's energy and fertiliser shock could push 19 million more people into chronic hunger by 2030.
USTR Greer confirms imminent tariff wave on dozens of countries: Speaking on July 21, Greer said new action is coming "soon" across a wide sweep of trading partners ahead of the 10% global baseline tariff expiry; the Supreme Court struck down an earlier batch of Trump tariffs in 2026, but the White House is now routing new duties through multiple alternative legal statutes, including the same Section 338 mechanism just deployed against Canada.
🎧 Listen to today's episode — The Open Bell with Alex Monroe
Know someone who imports, buys Canadian, or just pays a grocery bill? Send this one their way.
📬 Forwarded this? Subscribe free at theopenbell.co
Not investment advice. For informational purposes only.