Top Stories — Sunday, September 7, 2025
What is trending in the USA today? Here is Breaking News:
- Japan Prime Minister Ishiba Shigeru says he will step down after election setback — CNBC
- Gold is on a record run — here's how to invest, according to experts — CNBC
- Pope Leo XIV Declares Two Saints, Including Carlo Acutis — nyt News
Japan Prime Minister Ishiba Shigeru says he will step down after election setback
Source: CNBC • Published: 9/7/2025, 3:50:23 PM
Japan's Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba announced Sunday he will step down as leader of the world's fourth-largest economy amid growing political discord within his party.
"I made a difficult decision to step down," Ishiba said during a press briefing, in comments translated by Japan's public broadcaster NHK. He added that it is his "strong wish" for members of his Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) to overcome the "difficult divide" within the party.
Ishiba indicated that he had been thinking about his position as prime minister since last year's election, but that it was a matter of finding the right timing.
Ishiba described the U.S. tariff measures as a "national crisis." He added that he believes a "significant milestone" has been reached, after receiving a report from Japan's tariff negotiator, Ryosei Akazawa, on Saturday.
"I have consistently stated that I do not intend to cling to this position, and that I would make a decision at the appropriate time after accomplishing what needed to be done.... Now that negotiations concerning U.S. tariff measures have reached a conclusion, I believe this is precisely the appropriate timing. I have therefore decided to step aside and make way for my successor," he said in comments translated by NBC News.
The prime minister called for the LDP to hold an emergency leadership vote. Ishiba will continue his duties until a new successor has been found, he told reporters.
The world's fourth-largest economy has been plagued with political uncertainty since the LDP lost its parliamentary majority in a snap election late last year. The election marked the first time since 2009 that the LDP has lost its majority. Pressure mounted when Japan's ruling coalition lost control of the upper house in July.
Japan had struggled to reach a trade agreement with the U.S. and protect its massive auto sector from high duties. U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Thursday to implement a trade deal with Japan, imposing 15% baseline tariffs on most Japanese goods, including autos.
The deal was agreed to after months of negotiations, with Washington and Tokyo continuing to haggle over details for weeks before it was signed. On Sunday, negotiator Akazawa stated that the agreement was still "not settled" as the U.S. had yet to issue the expected presidential orders on duties for pharmaceuticals and semiconductors, Reuters reported.
Earlier this week, Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party released a long-awaited report on why it lost seats in the upper house election in July.
The report ascribed the loss to the lack of appeal for the party's measures aimed at taming inflation, previous political scandals and weak mobilization of young voters.
Local media reports suggested many key members of the LDP had signaled their intention to resign to the prime minister, while Ishiba had said that he intended to stay on amid calls within his party for choosing another leader.
— CNBC's Anniek Bao contributed to this report.
Gold is on a record run — here's how to invest, according to experts
Source: CNBC • Published: 9/7/2025, 3:36:35 PM
Gold prices notched another fresh record this week as more investors piled into the metal amid economic uncertainty and rising bets for a Federal Reserve rate cut.
So far this year, bullion has gained about 35% as of Friday's close. Spot gold is now near $3,600 an ounce.
"Without a doubt, gold has been trending higher, and it's getting a lot of attention from investors," said Blair duQuesnay, a chartered financial analyst and certified financial planner, who is also an investment advisor at Ritholtz Wealth Management.
Investors regard gold as protective against "bad economic times," according to research by the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago. As a safe-haven investment, gold tends to perform well in low-interest-rate environments and during periods of political and financial uncertainty.
"Gold checks all of those boxes," said Sameer Samana, head of global equities and real assets at the Wells Fargo Investment Institute.
Here's a look at other stories offering insight on ETFs for investors.
According to Wells Fargo Investment Institute's latest investment strategy report, its analysts "expect ongoing gold purchases by global central banks and heightened geopolitical strife to support demand growth for precious metals."
To invest in the precious metal, investors can either buy physical gold or gold-related financial investments.
Most experts recommend getting investment exposure to gold through an exchange-traded fund that tracks the price of physical gold, as part of a well-diversified portfolio, rather than buying actual gold coins or bars.
"In times of acute stress, gold stocks underperform, so to the extent that people want exposure, a gold bullion-backed ETF does a better job than gold-related equities and gold miner stocks," said Samana.
SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) and iShares Gold Trust (IAU) are the two largest gold ETFs, according to ETF.com.
"Gold ETFS are going to be the most liquid, tax efficient and low-cost way to invest in gold," duQuesnay said.
"It's much more inefficient to own physical gold," according to duQuesnay, largely due to higher transaction costs and storage considerations of bullion, including bars and coins.
Alternatively, gold mining stocks are not as closely linked to the underlying price of gold and are more tied to business fundamentals, she added.
Despite gold's record run, financial advisors generally recommend limiting gold exposure to less than 3% of one's overall portfolio.
CNBC Financial Advisor Council member duQuesnay said she has no gold in the portfolios she manages for her clients, in part because of the temperamental nature of any trendy investment.
"Are we in the third inning of this rally of the ninth inning? Gold is priced as a commodity, and that can make it hard to pinpoint the fundamentals," she said.
Pope Leo XIV Declares Two Saints, Including Carlo Acutis
Source: nyt News • Published: 9/7/2025, 3:26:14 PM
Tens of thousands of people packed into St. Peter's Square on Sunday for the canonization ceremony of Carlo Acutis and Pier Giorgio Frassati, two Italians who died young but whose deep faith has inspired millions worldwide.
Lengthy applause filled the square when Pope Leo XIV pronounced them saints during a Mass. These were the first saints declared by the new pope.
"They were both young and have united Christians — we're all here together," said Eva Destier, 29, a French researcher and one of hundreds of people who pressed against metal barriers hoping to get into the square, which was crowded from an early hour.
Some 60,000 faithful were present at the beginning of the celebration, according to the Vatican, but thousands continued to trickle into the square throughout the ceremony. Many were young and came with scout or parish youth groups.
Carlo has become especially well known, and the Catholic Church is hoping to use his fame to encourage more young people to be active in the church. As the first millennial saint, and because of his use of technology to spread the faith, he has been nicknamed, "God's influencer."
Frassati was beatified by Pope John Paul II in 1990 after the Vatican deemed the healing of a person in the United States to be a miracle attributed to Frassati. Pope Francis recognized a second miracle in 2024, opening the way to Frassati's canonization. Carlo was beatified in 2020. Two instances of healing, one in Brazil and one in Italy, have been deemed miracles attributed to him by the Vatican.
Frassati and Carlo lived a century apart. Frassati was an enthusiastic member of Italian Catholic youth movements and an avid mountain climber. Carlo, who was born in London and raised in Italy, was a computer whiz kid who taught himself coding and created a website listing eucharistic miracles. Both volunteered and assisted the poor, and both died within days of being diagnosed with a fatal illness. Frassati died of polio in 1925, when he was 24. Carlo died of leukemia in 2006, when he was 15.
In both cases, word of their goodness and faith spread quickly and grew globally. There are churches and school dedicated to both in countries around the world.
Rachel McCleary, an economics lecturer at Harvard University who studies sainthood, calculated that from 1588 to 1978, the year John Paul II became pope, an average of 262 years passed between death and canonization. Under the past three popes, however, that period has more than halved. In the case of Frassati, a century passed, with Carlo, a mere 19 years, a meteoric rise helped, in part, by the spread of his popularity on the internet.
"We want to live life, in friendship, in sport, in a Christian way," and were inspired by such young saints, said Severina Miselli, from Sassuolo, in central Italy.
Elisabetta Povoledo is a Times reporter based in Rome, covering Italy, the Vatican and the culture of the region. She has been a journalist for 35 years.
Read the full story at nyt News.
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