Highlights for the morning: gold is at a high, Netflix is renegotiating its deal with Warner Bros.

The price of gold hit another all-time high, while silver topped $90 an ounce for the first time. Donald Trump's administration authorized limited supplies of Nvidia AI chips to China, sparking controversy over the safety and effectiveness of export controls. These and other topics - in our review of key events for the morning of January 14.

The price of gold reached a new record high of $4639.42 per ounce, while silver surpassed the $90 per ounce mark for the first time, rising more than 5%, Bloomberg and Reuters wrote. The rally was supported by expectations of new U.S. rate cuts, attacks on the Federal Reserve's independence and a tense geopolitical environment. US inflation in December 2025 was lower than feared, which reinforced market expectations of at least two rate cuts before the end of the year.

Precious metals continue to rise starting in 2025: investors are looking for protective assets amid the risk of criminal prosecution of the head of the Federal Reserve, conflicts and threats of trade duties. Citigroup raised its short-term forecasts to $5000 per ounce for gold and $100 for silver, while analysts do not rule out silver rising to $150 by the end of 2026 amid supply shortages and strong speculative demand.

Donald Trump's administration has given formal authorization to sell Nvidia's H200 AI chips - the second most powerful in the company's lineup - to China, Reuters reports. Deliveries will only be possible after verification by an independent laboratory, and sales to China cannot exceed 50 percent of deliveries to U.S. customers. Nvidia is required to confirm sufficient availability of the chips in the U.S., and Chinese buyers are required to provide security measures and guarantee non-military use. Previously, no such conditions existed.

The decision has drawn criticism in Washington over the risks of China's rise in AI, despite Trump previously linking the permit to a 25 percent levy on the US budget. Analysts see the restrictions as compromising and difficult to control. Meanwhile, Chinese companies have already ordered more than 2 million H200s, Reuters writes - significantly more than Nvidia's current inventory - and demand from China and global markets is forcing the company to ramp up production.

Netflix is discussing renegotiating the terms of its deal to acquire the studio and streaming business of Warner Bros. Discovery and is not ruling out an all-cash offer, Bloomberg has learned. The goal is to accelerate the closing of the deal, which has already faced political resistance and competition from Paramount Skydance. Warner shareholders were originally offered a combination of cash and Netflix stock, but the streaming service's securities have fallen in price by about a quarter since talks began last fall.

To finance the deal, Netflix has raised up to $59 billion in loans and has already refinanced about $25 billion, keeping its balance sheet and credit ratings strong, according to analysts. In parallel, Paramount, led by David Ellison and backed by Larry Ellison, is trying to block the deal through a tender offer, lawsuits and board pressure. Amid the news, Warner shares rose 1.6% and Netflix shares rose 1%.

U.S. budget revenues from import tariffs totaled $27.9 billion last December, according to a Treasury Department report, Yahoo Finance reports. The collections reached a record $264 billion at the end of 2025, but December was the second consecutive month with a decline in revenues after Donald Trump eased some of the tariff measures in November. It peaked in October at $31.35 billion, after which collections began to decline amid falling trade volumes.

The data also indicate structural changes in U.S. foreign trade: the trade deficit in November narrowed to $29.4 billion - the minimum since 2009. At the same time, despite the growth of tariff revenues compared to 2024, they do not compensate for the budget deficit: in the first quarter of the fiscal year it amounted to $602 billion. Experts note that the slowdown in the growth of fees is expected - the Congressional Budget Office earlier reduced the forecast of future tariff revenues by $1 trillion.

- Japan's broad Topix index was up 1.05%, while the Nikkei 225 was up 1.3% in Jan. 14 trading.

- Hong Kong's Hang Seng index increased by 0.25%. CSI 300 index of mainland China fell by 0.15%.

- In South Korea, the Kospi index added 0.39%, while the Kosdaq fell 0.79%.

- Australia's S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.14%.

- Futures on the S&P 500 were down 0.24%, the Nasdaq Composite was down 0.23% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.31%.

This article was AI-translated and verified by a human editor