SINGAPORE, LONDON July 17 Reuters Gold hit a record and bonds rallied on Wednesday, while chip stocks tumbled after U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump sounded lukewarm about his commitment to defending Taiwan.

Sterling ticked higher after British inflation held at 2 yearonyear in June against forecasts for 1.9, with services inflation stuck at an uncomfortable 5.7.

Europe39;s Stoxx share index futures traded 0.2 lower. SP 500 futures were also 0.5 lower after the cash index hit a record high in the previous session.

In Taiwan, TSMC fell 3, wiping out close to 30 billion from the market value of the world39;s largest chipmaker and a key player in the global supply chain.

The slide came after Trump questioned U.S. support for Taiwan in an interview with Bloomberg Businessweek, saying the closely monitored island that sits roughly 100 miles from the mainland Chinese coast should pay for U.S. protection.

ASML, the largest equipment supplier to chipmakers, reported betterthanexpected profit in the second quarter, but its shares dropped as much as 7.7.

It was unclear exactly what Trump was planning, but his selection of trade hawk J.D. Vance as his running mate had already put markets on notice that China will figure heavily in his foreign policy thinking.

Chinese stocks were subdued for a second straight day.

The Taiwan dollar slipped slightly to a twoweek low. China39;s yuan steadied at 7.2673 per dollar as markets waited on news from a leadership meeting in…