New York Stock Exchange rises amid hopes for US-China talks... People Power Party's general meeting today [Morning Briefing]

The main indices of the New York Stock Exchange closed higher amid optimism over US-China trade negotiations. Early this morning at the New York Stock Exchange, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.25% from the previous session. The S&P 500 Index and the NASDAQ Composite Index also advanced by 0.55% and 0.63%, respectively. As the US-China trade negotiations entered their second day in London, United Kingdom, an encouraging comment from Howard Lutnick, the United States Secretary of Commerce and a member of the US trade negotiating team, stating that it was "going very well," pushed the markets higher. The US has reportedly offered to ease sanctions related to semiconductor technology in exchange for stable supplies of rare earth elements from China.

◆"US-China talks may continue until tomorrow"

Howard Lutnick, United States Secretary of Commerce, speaking on the second day of the US-China high-level trade talks, said, "We are putting in a lot of time, effort, and energy," and "everyone is focusing and cooperating." He added regarding the end of the negotiations, "I hope it wraps up this evening, but we may also be here tomorrow," indicating that the talks could extend to a third day. Previously, at last month's US-China negotiations in Geneva, the two sides reached some agreements, such as suspending tariffs, but then accused each other of violating the agreements, causing additional negotiations to stall. Finally, after a phone call between the leaders of the US and China on the 5th, this round of talks was arranged.

◆ People Power Party's general meeting today

The People Power Party is holding a general meeting of lawmakers today to discuss the term of Emergency Response Committee Chairman Kim Yong-tae and the reforms he has proposed. Previously, Chairman Kim had suggested five key reform measures, including holding a party convention in early September, invalidating the party's anti-impeachment stance, conducting a party audit on attempts to change the presidential candidate, establishing procedures to reflect both public opinion and party sentiment, and implementing a 100% bottom-up nomination process for local elections. Today, Chairman Kim plans to convince lawmakers to adopt the reforms, drawing on opinions gathered at meetings with local party committee chairs and others.

◆"Three Special Prosecutor Laws" promulgated... Full investigations begin next month

Three so-called "special prosecutor laws"—the first bills under the Lee Jae-myung administration—were promulgated yesterday: the law on insurrection, the Kim Keon-hee special law, and the Chae Sergeant special law. The insurrection special prosecutor law includes accusations against former President Yoon Suk-yeol for foreign exchange offenses and military coups, while the Kim Keon-hee special law will investigate virtually all allegations previously raised regarding First Lady Kim Keon-hee. The three special prosecutors—consisting of around 570 investigators, including prosecutors and public officials—comprise the largest such team ever. Once recommendations and the composition of the special teams are completed, full-scale investigations could begin as soon as early next month.

◆Early summer heat today... Highs up to 31°C

Today, Wednesday, the weather will be mostly clear across the country, and there will be a large difference of about 15°C between daytime and nighttime temperatures, especially in the central inland and northern Gyeongsangbuk-do regions. According to the Korea Meteorological Administration, cloudy weather is expected from tonight in Jeonnam and Gyeongnam, and Jeju will see cloudy skies as well. Daytime temperatures will continue to rise through tomorrow, with highs expected to range from 24°C to 31°C. The maximum temperatures by region are forecast as follows: Seoul 29°C, Incheon 26°C, Suwon 28°C, Chuncheon 29°C, Cheongju 29°C, Daejeon 29°C, Jeonju 29°C, Gwangju 29°C, Daegu 30°C, Busan 27°C, Ulsan 28°C, Jeju 24°C, etc. Fine dust concentrations are expected to be at "good" to "moderate" levels nationwide.

Noh Jung-dong, Hankyung.com reporter dong2@hankyung.com