(Bloomberg) — Stocks are marking a second straight day of restrained moves as traders await the Fed’s outlook for interest rates in 2026 after an expected cut at Wednesday’s policy announcement.
S&P 500 futures were little changed. A rally in US stocks has stalled this week after traders pulled big bets off the table, with mixed economic signals and divisions among Fed policymakers clouding the path for rates. Europe’s Stoxx 600 ticked lower while markets in Asia were mixed.
Treasury yields extended their advance. The 10-year rate rose two basis points to 4.20%, the highest since the first week of September. Globally, the view that rate-cutting cycles are nearing their end has driven yields on a Bloomberg gauge of long-dated government debt to a 16-year high.
Recent economic data have shown that the US economy is cooling in a manner consistent with what the Fed wants, but not weak enough to accelerate rate cuts, wrote Linh Tran, market analyst at XS.com. Inflation is easing but still above target, while the labor market continues to show some resilience.
“This combination provides little incentive for investors to continue buying at elevated valuations, yet does not offer sufficient reason for them to sell aggressively,” Tran said. “What the market needs at this moment is a clearer policy signal from the Fed.”
Markets are anticipating a third straight rate cut at Wednesday’s Fed meeting, with attention centered on the latest dot plot, economic projections and comments from Chair Jerome Powell. Investors will also be watching Oracle Corp.’s post-market results as questions mount over technology valuations and whether heavy investment in artificial intelligence will ultimately pay off.
In Asia, Chinese property stocks surged on expectations for policy stimulus from Beijing and hopes of progress in China Vanke Co.’s debt talks.
A Bloomberg Intelligence gauge of Chinese developer shares jumped 3%. Shares of Vanke, which is at the center of investor scrutiny following bond payment delays, jumped as much as 19% in Hong Kong.
Silver extended its rally after breaking above $60 an ounce for the first time on Tuesday, with momentum coming from supply tightness and bets on further monetary easing by the Fed. The white metal rose as much as 1.6% to a record $61.6145 an ounce.
Corporate News:
China Vanke Co. rallied in the equity and credit markets Wednesday after a bondholder meeting included discussion of sweetened terms among plans for a closely watched effort by the distressed builder to delay a note payment. HSBC Holdings Plc Chief Executive Officer Georges Elhedery said not enough executives were fully accountable for the performance of their businesses before he began his radical restructuring of the bank 15 months ago. SpaceX is moving ahead with plans for an initial public offering that would seek to raise significantly more than $30 billion, people familiar with the matter said, in a transaction that would make it the biggest listing of all time. Amazon.com Inc. pledged to invest $35 billion in India over the next five years, boosting its spending in the key growth market to expand in businesses from quick commerce to cloud computing. Coupang Chief Executive Officer Park Dae-jun resigned over his failure to prevent South Korea’s largest-ever data breach, Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
The Stoxx Europe 600 fell 0.2% as of 9:30 a.m. London time S&P 500 futures were little changed Nasdaq 100 futures were little changed Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average were little changed The MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose 0.2% The MSCI Emerging Markets Index rose 0.3% Currencies
The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed The euro rose 0.1% to $1.1642 The Japanese yen was little changed at 156.80 per dollar The offshore yuan was little changed at 7.0616 per dollar The British pound rose 0.1% to $1.3315 Cryptocurrencies
Bitcoin fell 0.2% to $92,524.1 Ether rose 0.5% to $3,319.01 Bonds
The yield on 10-year Treasuries advanced two basis points to 4.20% Germany’s 10-year yield advanced four basis points to 2.89% Britain’s 10-year yield advanced five basis points to 4.55% Commodities
Brent crude rose 0.2% to $62.04 a barrel Spot gold fell 0.2% to $4,198.18 an ounce This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.
–With assistance from Neil Campling and James Hirai.
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