The Australian June 30 profit reporting season takes centre stage this week, with 23 major companies reporting including the Commonwealth Bank, News Corp, Cochlear, Fairfax Media and Telstra among the reporters.

The main Murdoch family company, 21st Century Fox is no longer a popular way for foreign investors to play the US media sector. It is increasingly inward looking, its most profitable business is the rightwing Fox News Channel, it seems the company’s prospects don’t appeal as much to foreigners and the 4th quarter and 2015-16 financial results didn’t set the world on fire.

For Rio Tinto (RIO) (like BHP Billiton (BHP), Fortescue (FMG) and a hots of other companies) the global market for their commodities can be summed up in one word – China.

As expected, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s cabinet yesterday approved a 28.1 trillion yen ($US274 billion) stimulus package.

So much for a weakened Aussie dollar.

As expected the Reserve Bank has cut interest rates to a historic low of 1.5%, cutting the cash rate from the previous low of 1.75% set at the May meeting of the bank’s board.

Hot from the weakest month in a year in July, global oil futures started August on a similar note, losing 3%, falling under $US40 a barrel in New York, and dipping into bear territory.

The chances of an interest rate cut from the Reserve Bank today have risen sharply after a sharp slowdown in growth in the US and eurozone economies was revealed late last week. The news will add to the long list of reasons why the RBA should cut its cash rate.

Amid all the data and decisions around the world last week, one stood out – the first estimate of US second quarter GDP, and an associated set of revisions to past GDP figures that throws into question the need for a US rate rise.

It is going to be another of those big weeks for markets, economies and investors around the world with a series of central bank, statistics and government decisions set to impact sentiment.

July was a good month for shares, and it looks like trading in August will start today with a modest gain in sight with the ASX futures market up 17 points at the close on Saturday morning.

For commodities, gold and oil again dominated last month – the former gaining, the latter selling off to the point where it corrected into bear territory briefly on Friday.

The Australian June 30 reporting season steps up this week, with a handful of ASX 200 companies releasing their full or half year figures, while in the US and Europe, the reporting season continues after last week’s mixture of big surprises from some tech giants, and more shocks from the oil sector.

Cameco, the big Canadian uranium producer, sprung a major surprise on Thursday night, our time, when it revealed a net loss for the second quarter, thanks to the higher costs of closing a mine in Canada and the slide in world uranium prices.

On the face of it, ITV, Britain’s major commercial free to air TV network is battening down the hatches ahead of any adverse impact from Brexit after its core TV broadcasting business saw a sharp slow down in ad revenue growth in the six months to June 30.

Cash splash looms in Japan?

Amazon and Alphabet (nee Google) joined Facebook this morning, and to a lesser extent, Apple in reporting better than expected June quarter figures.

The chances of a rise in US interest rates in December firmed this morning after the Federal Reserve left interest rates unchanged and changed its stance on future increases.

Shares of Facebook soared 10% in early after-hours trading this morning, our time, after the social media network reported much stronger-than-expected revenue and earnings.

Unlike the very obvious rate cut-justifying March quarter reading of minus 0.2%, the Consumer Price Index bounced back into positive territory in the three months to June – but with a rise of just 0.4% in headline inflation, compared with the March period fall of 0.2%, leaving the chances of a rate cut from the Reserve Bank next Tuesday a strong possibility, but no more.