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[HSBC: The stock market may correct before the U.S. mid-term elections] Max Kettner, chief multi-asset strategist at HSBC, said that as market sentiment overheats, fiscal stimulus effects weaken, and uncertainty caused by the U.S. mid-term elections increases, the stock market may experience a correction, and investors should consider moderately reducing stock positions after the current earnings season. Kettner, who has maintained his top overweight rating on the stock since mid-March, said current positions and market sentiment are close to levels seen during economic reopening trading in 2021, while some U.S. credit card data shows consumer spending has begun to slow. He pointed out, The fiscal stimulus brought by the "Big and Beautiful Act" is equivalent to the stimulus measures during the 2009 financial crisis, but the relevant stimulus is mainly concentrated in the first half of 2026, and the incremental support that can be continued in the future is very limited. Talking about specific mid-term election risks, Kettner pointed out that current polls show that the Senate election is evenly matched, which makes AI and data center regulatory policies face more uncertainty. This uncertainty may drag down the entire technology sector, not just the differentiation between semiconductors and hyperscale cloud service providers, but the entire technology stocks may be affected. However, he also believed that Such adjustments will instead bring buying opportunities.

National Hurricane Center: Tropical Storm Bertha is located about 170 miles (275 kilometers) southeast of Mobile, Alabama; maximum sustained winds are 50 mph (85 kph).

National Hurricane Center: Bertha is moving northwest again, and tropical storm watches and warnings remain in effect for parts of the northern Gulf Coast.

TSMC (TSM.N) shares rose in pre-market trading, currently up 3.4%.

Japan and the Asian Development Bank have established a new fund to strengthen water security, and Japan will initially invest US$10 million in the fund.

Itochu Corp will launch a business in November to recycle critical minerals from used smartphones and computers and resell the materials, according to people familiar with the matter. The move is aimed at strengthening domestic resource recycling in Japan.

Emirates President Tim Clark: We do want the Boeing 777-10, but the performance of the 777-9 is improving.

The optical communications sector of U.S. stocks rose before the market opened, with Marvell Technology (MRVL.O) up about 6% and Corning (GLW.N) up 4.6%.

Emirates President Tim Clark: We expect the Boeing 777-9 to be delivered to us in the second quarter of next year.

U.S. storage stocks strengthened before the market opened, with SanDisk (SNDK.O) up about 7%, SK Hynix (SKHY.O) up about 6%, Micron Technology (MU.O) up about 5%, and Western Digital (WDC.O) up about 5%.

JPMorgan Chase and other U.S. banks are close to a deal to provide some financing to support Japan's $550 billion in U.S. investment commitments, sources said.

British defense stocks rose. Babcock rose 4.9%, Qinetiq rose 4.7%, and Bae Systems rose 2.5%.

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration: Nissan North America is recalling 168,149 U.S. vehicles.

Alphabet's 100-year sterling bond has fallen more than 7% since it was issued in February. The bond was issued in February 2026 and will mature in February 2126. Although demand was strong and oversubscribed at the beginning of the issuance, it continued to fall. Market participants believe that the sell-off is the result of a combination of factors, including the bond's century-long maturity, a surge in debt issuance by global hyperscale cloud service providers, and rising political uncertainty in the United Kingdom. The eventual development is not entirely unexpected. Nonetheless, it also shows that at a time when long-term yields are rising, Investment-grade tech bonds issued this year have almost universally lost value. This is compounded by the fact that such bonds are exposed to both growing turmoil in the artificial intelligence sector and inflation.

The German DAX30 index opened up 30.63 points, or 0.12%, at 24892.30 points on July 21 (Tuesday);The British FTSE 100 index opened down 23.63 points, or 0.22%, at 1050 at the opening on July 21 (Tuesday). 1.13 points;The FCHI index opened up 7.43 points, or 0.09%, at 8347.54 points on July 21 (Tuesday);The European Stoxx 50 Index opened up 22.55 points, or 0.36%, on July 21 (Tuesday). It was reported at 6249.95 points;Spain’s IBEX35 index opened up 51.15 points, or 0.27%, at 19258.05 points on July 21 (Tuesday);Italy’s FTSE MIB index opened at 52100.00 points on July 21 (Tuesday), up 237.21 points, or 0.46%.

JPMorgan Chase pointed out that forced deleveraging driven by leveraged ETFs was the main reason for the recent collapse of South Korea’s KOSPI index. The agency analyzed that the liquidation of leveraged fund positions, rather than corporate profits or deterioration in fundamentals, amplified market volatility. It is estimated that leveraged ETF assets have shrunk to approximately US$26 billion, and the deleveraging process is currently approximately 75% complete. Corporate fundamentals in the Korean market remain solid, but strong deleveraging pressure has dragged down stock prices. The agency predicts that Stronger regulatory measures such as South Korea's financial authorities increasing basic deposit margin requirements and suspending new listings of single-stock leveraged ETFs will further promote the deleveraging process. The report also assesses that the leverage of hedge funds is also decreasing rapidly. JPMorgan Chase said that the size of long and short positions under the management of hedge funds has dropped from more than 5.5 times of net assets to less than 4 times, and it is estimated that more than half of deleveraging has been completed. Net sales of Korean stocks by foreign investors this year are expected to exceed US$110 billion, but about 90% of them are concentrated in memory semiconductor stocks. With the recent decline in the weight of memory stocks, Selling pressure from foreign investors is gradually easing. The bank also remains optimistic about the mid- to long-term prospects. AI investment and data center investment remain solid, the slowdown in memory chip demand has not yet been confirmed, improved profitability in the industrial, financial and consumer goods sectors, as well as improvements in corporate governance structures, are also positive factors for the Korean stock market. JPMorgan Chase maintains its "overweight" rating on the Korean stock market and predicts a 12-month target price for the KOSPI index of 12,500 points, which is consistent with the previous one. Its base case target is 12,500 points, the bull case scenario is 15,000 points, and the bear case scenario is 8,000 points.

Norwegian Petroleum Authority: Preliminary crude oil production data in June was 1.827 million barrels per day.

Jefferies cuts IBM (IBM.N) PT to $260 from $320.

Jefferies: Lowered its target price on IBM (IBM.N) to $260 from $320.

Ukraine's state oil and gas company said Russia attacked gas production facilities in the Kharkiv region on Monday.