Last updated: September 29, 2026, 2:04 PM ET
Equities
U.S. stocks wavered on Tuesday as traders readied for key economic data, with the S&P 500 fluctuating after a sharp selloff. The Dow slipped at the open as oil prices and Treasury yields remained the dominant combination. European indexes gained at the open, lifted by mining and AI-related stocks. Asian bonds declined as oil and inflation fears persisted. A drop in oil prices brought a degree of relief to Wall Street, though stocks churned after the rout.
Car Max posted higher profit as its turnaround took shape, with shares climbing on green shoots in comparable used-vehicle sales. Shein shares sank 14% after disappointing earnings, with profits falling two-thirds in Q2, squeezed by rising freight costs. Carnival logged higher profit and revenue on accelerating demand, posting net income of $1.92 billion. Legrand shares rose after a data-center boom prompted a guidance upgrade. Nvidia added $150 billion to its massive stock buyback, the largest ever. Summit Therapeutics jumped on a $2 billion AstraZeneca deal. Robo Technik dropped in its Hong Kong debut. Julius Baer shares hit a record high after the Swiss regulator ended its probe. French infrastructure stocks were weighed down by tax-hike concerns, with more than €2 billion wiped off their value.
Fixed Income & Currencies
The US 30-year Treasury yield hit its highest since 2002, rising for a sixth straight day as inflation and surging oil prices weighed on markets. The 10-year yield surpassed 5.2% as hopes for a US-Iran deal faded. Traders are snapping up options on BlackRock ETFs at a record pace amid the yield spike. Muni bonds are on track for their worst monthly loss since 1987. A ‘big fat cushion’ in yields is luring new bond bulls. Bond investors have become oil traders as the Iran war drives yields. The bond sell-off deepened as oil rose. U.S. and European government-bond yields fell midday but remained near recent highs. A simple way to take advantage of higher yields is 2-year Treasury notes. Could there be a run on the bond market? Japan’s 40-year bond auction drew its strongest demand since 2020. The Philippines raised 84.9 billion pesos in a retail Treasury bond sale. Bulgaria sold €2.25 billion in bonds to plug its budget deficit. Thailand is eyeing a pivot to short-term debt as bond volatility rises. China’s government bond supply is poised to pick up next quarter.
The dollar hit a two-month high on US rate-rise bets. The WSJ Dollar Index rose 0.2%, up nine of the past 11 trading days. Japan’s Finance Minister reaffirmed coordination with the U.S. on yen stability. Rethinking the dollar shows it remains strong and stable.
Commodities
Oil prices reversed gains as Gulf crude exports recovered, with Brent falling below $105. Middle Eastern oil exports rose to their highest level since the Iran war began, as more tankers moved through the Strait of Hormuz. Saudi Arabia resumed Red Sea oil exports via the East-West pipeline. Tankers are loading oil again from the vital Saudi pipeline. Mideast oil exports rebounded even as prices remained elevated. Oil prices climbed on the continued impasse in U.S.-Iran talks. Crude oil pared early gains, settling up 0.2% to $92.60. Russia’s oil export windfall was eroded by a ban on diesel shipments. The average UK diesel price is set to reach £2 a litre within days. Texas is allowing wider use of dyed diesel as war boosts fuel costs. Republicans have called on Trump to ban U.S. diesel exports.
Natural gas slid on a milder temperature outlook, with futures finishing down 6.1% to $3 per mm Btu. China’s LNG imports are set to fall for a second month due to high prices.
Gold edged higher as Treasuries stabilized, but gains were likely limited by the Fed in inflation-fighting mode. The cash gold market is booming in India as high prices and taxes bite. Copper edged higher after a Chile mine union rejected a pay offer, holding above $14,400 a ton. Copper is set to give Australia’s mining stock rally a new engine.
Deals, M&A & Corporate Finance
Banks drew $11.5 billion of demand for a Paramount loan deal. Paramount kicked off a high-grade bond sale for its Warner Bros. deal. Piper Sandler held talks to buy Perella Weinberg. Lundbeck expressed interest in buying Xeris Biopharma. AAR agreed to pay $1.8 billion for a stake in an aircraft-maintenance company. AMD is buying Fei-Fei Li’s AI start-up for $8 billion. Novo bought rights to a Chinese weight-loss pill in a $2.6 billion deal. Bain Capital invested $250 million in construction tech firm Kahua at a $1 billion valuation. AT&T signed a $3 billion deal with Corning for fiber. Samsung committed $1 billion to AI infrastructure firm Helix Digital Infrastructure. M&S struck a beauty deal with LVMH’s Sephora. Apollo and Oaktree sued Patrick Drahi over a US telco restructuring. Raytheon got a $20.7 billion contract for AMRAAM missile production. A Shell-led consortium backed a $23 billion expansion of the LNG Canada project. HSBC moved to bolster Hang Seng by cleaning up its balance sheet. Oura postponed its IPO over market uncertainty. Ace Designers weighed a $400 million India IPO. Dangote targeted 10 million investors with an IPO marketing blitz. A Kenyan court blocked Dangote’s $16 billion oil refinery. Goldman’s board discussed a plan to name John Waldron as its next CEO. Susquehanna said it would settle with alleged insider traders. Hapag-Lloyd raised guidance again on strong demand and freight rates. Michaels won an S&P ratings lift after cutting debt.
Central Banks & Policy
Fed’s Barr said more hikes are likely needed as growth picks up. The US Treasury threatened a crackdown on Wall Street tax-avoidance strategies. The IRS warned about a tax-slashing strategy popularized by AQR. Trump sharply scaled back fuel economy rules. Trump officials revised how Title IX sex discrimination rules are enforced. The Trump administration prepared to ask tax filers if they are U.S. citizens. The administration asked the Supreme Court to allow it to deny hormones to trans inmates. The US hit Canada with a ban on some dairy and liquor products. Spain sought to ban ‘vulture funds’ from the housing market. Spain, Portugal and Luxembourg urged the EU to set a 2040 renewables goal. The UK should relax accounting rules to boost investment. Erdogan said Turkey created a board to oversee fund liquidation. Hungary’s Kurali backed a path to euro accession. China urged Japan to normalize ties over Taiwan. The US and China pledged to cut tariffs on $60 billion in goods. Demand for US crops is still unclear after China tariff cuts. Trump’s offer for more solar came with a catch. The coal industry asked for a rescue, and Trump obliged.
Technology & AI
Trump met tech chiefs including Amodei, Musk and Zuckerberg over AI safety. Anthropic’s IPO filing warned of ‘existential risks to humanity’. The filing showed the company lost $8 billion last year on $4.6 billion in revenue. Is Claude conscious? Inside Anthropic’s quest to instill morality into its A.I. models. OpenAI halted a new model over safety worries, and apologized for an Australia Medicare hack. Pope Leo criticised Nvidia’s Jensen Huang over AI safety. Nvidia turned to insurers to spread the risk of the AI build-out. Bill Gates gave a blunt warning on A.I. College students are flexing their power in the A.I. investment frenzy. Etsy aims to get more personal and boost business with AI. Javier Milei is pitching Argentina as a rules-free haven for AI. A software glitch will delay US approval of the newest Boeing. SpaceX’s Starship reached orbit for the first time despite an engine failure. HANetf launched the first euro-hedged Bitcoin fund.
Politics & Regulation
Homeland Security money financed pro-Trump television ads. Trump unveiled a $15 billion Iowa steel project. Mesabi Metallics plans to build a $15 billion steel mill in Iowa. The Senate approved a sweeping college sports measure. Democratic turnout surged in the primaries. Black voting groups prepare for disinformation campaigns in the midterms. A judge blocked FEMA from tying antiterrorism grants to election changes. ICE plans 5,000 new hires to help with the deportation drive. A body camera captured an incident between an ICE agent and a driver in Austin. The Cornell University rape investigation is being reopened. A huge data breach left the FBI scrambling. A couple accused of killing their son-in-law in a Bay Area park. Justice Alito recused himself days before a major climate-change case. A possible terrorist plot at RAF Fairford involved a foreign actor, Rubio said. The threat of a Berlin property grab spooked real estate stocks. Brussels’ protectionist turn spooked the bloc’s free-market stalwarts.
Other Markets & Business
TMX is open to extending hours and adding prediction markets. Barclays watered down its return-to-office mandate after staff backlash. Stellantis plans temporary halts at several plants in France. Nike overhauls its China strategy to halt discounting. Vail Resorts’ ski pass sales tumbled 12%. Alaska Air upgraded lounges and cabins in the battle for high-paying travelers. Starbucks scaled back ESG goals and fired sustainability staff. Sunkist Fruit Gems got a second chance after discontinuation. Grant Thornton took on the Big Four with £40,000 graduate salaries. European banks launched in-house ETFs to challenge BlackRock and Vanguard. South Africa retailers tapped new leaders in the fight for shoppers. Morningstar shunned low-growth South Africa, favoring Brazil and Mexico. Indian stocks are breaking long-held supports as the selloff deepens. An Israeli settler attack blocked a Palestinian family from returning home. A nuclear reactor project in Tennessee won US approval. China expanded its military footprint with a new support base in Laos. Singapore placed a bigger bet on chips. Australia’s household spending was flat in August.