Good morning, CFOs. Japan’s ruling coalition suffers a significant loss; how Bessent made his case against firing Fed Chair Powell; plus, Trump aides discussed nixing SpaceX contracts.

Japan’s ruling coalition suffered a significant loss in a parliamentary election Sunday, a setback that risks derailing delicate trade negotiations with the U.S. just weeks before punishing tariffs are set to take effect.

Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba had gambled that his tough stance on trade with President Trump would help cement his shaky grip on power after less than a year in the job and an electoral snub last fall. 

Instead, he lost his ruling coalition’s majority in an election for the Japanese parliament’s upper house, having already lost its lower-house majority in a vote in October. Polling showed Japanese voters were far more focused on inflation and immigration than they were on U.S. tariffs, a combination that has proved toxic to incumbent parties around the world and propelled the rise of populist alternatives.

Monday

Earnings: Domino’s Pizza, NXP Semiconductors, Roper Technologies, Steel Dynamics and Verizon

Tuesday

Earnings: Coca-Cola, D.R. Horton, Equifax, General Motors, Halliburton, Lockheed Martin, MSCI, Northrop Grumman, Philip Morris International, PulteGroup, Sherwin-Williams, Synchrony Financial and Texas Instruments

Wednesday

Earnings: Alphabet, Boston Scientific, AT&T, Chipotle Mexican Grill, CME Group, Crown Castle, CSX, Fiserv, Freeport-McMoRan, General Dynamics, GE Vernova, Hasbro, Hilton Worldwide Holdings, IBM, Las Vegas Sands, Lennox International, Moody’s, NextEra Energy, Northern Trust, Otis Worldwide, ServiceNow, Tesla and T-Mobile US

The National Association of Realtors reports existing-home sales for June.

Thursday

Earnings: Ameriprise Financial, Blackstone, CenterPoint Energy, Deckers Outdoor, Deutsche Bank, Dow, Honeywell International, Intel, Keurig Dr Pepper, Mohawk Industries, Nasdaq, Newmont, Southwest Airlines, Tractor Supply, Union Pacific, Valero Energy, VeriSign, Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies and Weyerhaeuser

The European Central Bank announces its monetary policy decision.

S&P Global releases both its Manufacturing and Services Purchasing Managers Indexes for July.

The Census Bureau reports new-home sales for June.

Friday

Earnings: Aon, Booz Allen Hamilton Holding, Centene, Charter Communications and Phillips 66

The Census Bureau releases the durable-goods report for June.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent in recent days privately laid out his case to President Trump for why he believed Trump shouldn’t try to oust Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, people familiar with the matter said.

Bessent said firing Powell was unnecessary because the economy is doing well and markets have responded positively to the president’s policies, according to one of the people familiar with the matter. Here’s how he made his case.

• Column: Firing Powell Would Shatter the Economy’s Inflation Defenses

📰 Other headlines

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• Exclusive: Trump Aides Discussed Ending Some SpaceX Contracts, but Found Most Were Vital
• AI Is Dividing the Fortunes of the Magnificent Seven
• Here’s What a Late-Career Layoff Looks Like in America, in 5 Charts
• Atlanta’s Growth Streak Has Come to an End
• Blank-Check Company Strikes Cryptocurrency Deal
• The Robots That Are Taking Over Your Food Delivery
• Heard on the Street: Netflix Is Running Out of Worlds to Conquer
   

The Wall Street Journal's CFO Journal offers corporate leaders and professionals CFO analysis, advice and commentary to make informed decisions. We cover topics including corporate tax, accounting, regulation, capital markets, management and strategy.

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