• US investors demonstrated pure risk aversion the week leading up to the 6th of August, pulling a net $13.7 billion from US equity funds, but putting in a record high of $78.85 billion into money market funds. The behavior was prompted by skepticism and confusion over the new US President Donald Trump trade tariffs, as well as muddled US economic statistics. Although some analysis argues the net impact of the tariffs will be in tolerable limits, immediate market response obscures investors’ anxiety.

• Germany decided to stop the provision of weapons to Israel, to be perhaps employed within the Gaza Strip. The decision by Chancellor Friedrich Merz came after he further became alarmed for human agony within the Gaza Strip as a reaction to the Israeli plot for a military conquest of Gaza City. The decision is a big reversal for the long existing policy by the government of Germany to uphold a tough pro-Israel line.

• In the meantime, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) continues to ride the blazing AI chip demand. TSMC has just reported strong 22.5% month-to-month growth in July revenue compared to the month before, which reflected healthy stable sales of premium chips. The company’s solid performance, thanks to its dominance as a supplier for AI behemoths like Nvidia, is a testament to the vibrancy of the AI ecosystem even amidst greater economic and geopolitical uncertainties.