Public Markets 3d Briefing – Mar 12, 2026

808 articles summarized · Last updated: March 12, 2026 at 6:30 AM ET v419

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Last updated: March 12, 2026, 6:30 AM ET

Energy & Commodities

Oil futures dropped 1.3% wsj.com in early Asian trade after OPEC+ signaled potential output increases, while gold held near $2,340 wsj.com as a weakening dollar offset risk-on sentiment. A surge in aluminum prices nytimes.com pushed China Hongqiao's Zhang Bo past the $48 billion mark, cementing his position among Asia's wealthiest industrialists. Meanwhile, the Middle East war caused the largest oil supply disruption in history wsj.com, slashing the IEA's oil supply growth forecast and triggering a historic emergency stock release, as Iran war chaos choked crude flows bloomberg.com.

Japanese government bonds extended gains wsj.com tracking overnight Treasury rallies as traders increasingly price in a September Fed rate cut. However, U.S. airline bonds weakened wsj.com after jet fuel costs spiked 8% on Middle East supply fears, and Chicago's planned muni bond sale bloomberg.com is testing investor appetite amid geopolitical uncertainty. Deutsche Bank raised its bonus pool 6.6% bloomberg.com after mixed performance, while Honda warned of a $15.7 billion hit wsj.com from its EV strategy reassessment, projecting a swing to annual net loss.

Madison Air wsj.com filed for a Nasdaq IPO targeting a $500M valuation, buoyed by three consecutive quarters of double-digit revenue growth in the private aviation charter market. Conversely, Honda's plug-in hybrid specialist Li Auto wsj.com reported a profit slide as sales and margins deteriorated while grappling with the competitive full-electric market. In retail, Uber, Nissan, and Wayve teamed up for robotaxi services wsj.com in Tokyo, while McDonald's introduced lower-priced menu items wsj.com to feed budget-minded diners.

Blackstone bloomberg.com arranged a $1.2 billion credit facility for Air Trunk's expansion into Japanese data centers, part of a broader private equity push into AI infrastructure. JPMorgan and UBS cut ties with a hedge fund embroiled in Hong Kong probe bloomberg.com, while Deutsche Bank warned of $1 billion litigation claims ft.com from ex-employees over the Paschi case. JPMorgan capped redemptions from one private credit fund bloomberg.com, returning less than half of requested capital, and Standard Bank reported record profit bloomberg.com as fee growth and client gains offset volatility.

The dollar was on course for a fresh 2026 high bloomberg.com, options markets showing, as the Iran war kept energy prices elevated. European gas prices followed oil higher bloomberg.com, facing shipping turmoil in the Middle East. India's rupee hedging costs rose bloomberg.com as importers braced for more pain, while Indian assets cracked bloomberg.com amid energy shock fears. China's auto sales dropped wsj.com due to the Lunar New Year lull and cooling demand, and China tightened fuel export curbs bloomberg.com as war impacted oil supply.

Tesla's energy division secured a UK license bloomberg.com to supply electricity, expanding its grid-scale offerings. Honda warned of a $15.7 billion charge bloomberg.com on its EV strategy reassessment, joining a growing list of global brands battered by the downturn. Daimler Truck's adjusted earnings slid 29% wsj.com despite order intake growth, while BMW expected flat margins bloomberg.com due to tariffs and China competition. Ford's $15 billion EV push ft.com faced headwinds as EV sales cooled, and Tesla's China shipments rebounded bloomberg.com despite a Lunar New Year lull.