Investing.com - Here are the top five things you need to know in financial markets on Tuesday, August 30:
1. EU slaps Apple with €13 billion Irish tax bill
The European Commission ruled against Ireland's tax arrangements with Apple on Tuesday, saying they have breached the bloc’s state-aid rules. The commission has judged that the Irish government granted Apple undue tax benefits and may have to repay up to 13 billion euros ($14.5 billion).
The European Union accused Ireland of dodging international tax rules by letting Apple shelter profits worth tens of billions of dollars from tax collectors in return for maintaining jobs.
Shares of the tech giant fell 2% (NASDAQ:AAPL) in pre-market trade in wake of the decision.
2. Dollar at 2-week highs ahead of more U.S. data, Fed speak
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, rose to 95.83 early Tuesday, the most since August 12. It was last at 95.75 by 5:55AM ET (09:55GMT), up 0.2%.
Investors looked ahead to upcoming U.S. data to gauge if the world's largest economy is strong enough to withstand a rise in borrowing costs in the coming months.
The Conference Board is scheduled to release a report on U.S. consumer confidence for August at 10:00AM ET (14:00GMT). There is also S&P/Case-Shiller home price data at 9:00AM ET (13:00GMT).
Besides the data, Fed Vice Chair Stanley Fischer is due to give an interview on Bloomberg Television at 6:30AM ET (10:30GMT).
According to Investing.com's Fed Rate Monitor Tool, investors are pricing in a 27% chance of a rate hike by September, down from 36% a day ago. December odds were at around 59%, compared to 65% on Monday, suggesting that traders are still not convinced that the Fed will hike rates in the coming months.
3. Global markets mostly higher as traders wait for more Fed rate clues
U.S. stock index futures struggled for direction on Tuesday morning, as investors looked ahead to U.S. economic data for fresh hints on the timing of the next U.S. rate hike.
Meanwhile, European and U.K. stocks edged higher in mid-morning trade, although basic resources stocks were hit by falling metal prices.
Earlier, Asian shares ended mostly higher, boosted by strong overnight gains on Wall Street, while Japanese shares edged down in a muted reaction to better-than-expected economic data.
4. Oil prices rebound as focus shifts to U.S. supply data
Oil prices were higher on Tuesday, rebounding from steep overnight losses as market players shifted their focus to weekly data from the U.S. on stockpiles of crude and refined products.
Industry group the American Petroleum Institute is due to release its weekly report at 4:30PM ET (20:30GMT) later on Tuesday. Official data from the Energy Information Administration will be released Wednesday.
U.S. crude was up 36 cents, or 0.77%, to $47.34 a barrel during morning hours in New York, while Brent tacked on 28 cents, or 0.57%, to $49.73.
5. Hershey tumbles as Mondelez loses interest
Mondelez International, the maker of Oreo cookies and Cadbury chocolates, said it was no longer pursuing the acquisition of Hershey, two months after the U.S. chocolate company turned down its $23 billion cash-and-stock bid.
In a statement, Mondelez CEO Irene Rosenfeld said the company decided "there is no actionable path forward toward an agreement" following additional discussions.
Hershey shares (NYSE:HSY) plunged almost 12% in pre-market trade, while Mondelez (NASDAQ:MDLZ) jumped more than 3%.