Midday Mashup
Published
The concentrated AI and chip rally that lifted futures this morning has only broadened into midday. The Nasdaq 100 has extended its gain to 2.5%, with Advanced Micro Devices crossing $1 trillion in market capitalization for the first time and Meta Platforms up 11.8%. Arm Holdings is up 15.8%, Intel 12.0%, and Moderna 12.6%, underscoring how narrow, high-conviction names are doing the heavy lifting while broader trade and geopolitical risks remain unresolved underneath.
On trade, the US-China truce talks that Bessent framed as preparation for Thursday's Trump-Xi summit have taken shape further. USTR Greer said a 3-6 month extension of the current truce could be possible, and the New York Times reported the US has proposed a six-month extension while China is pushing for something longer. Greer also said there is no "grand bargain" to be had with China, though rare earths are flowing, and separately noted Boeing is making progress on finalizing 200 Chinese jet orders.
Warner Bros. Discovery, up 11.1%, extended its morning gain after Paramount reached settlements with a coalition of state attorneys general and New Jersey's AG resolving antitrust litigation over the merger, requiring theatrical film commitments, added domestic production spending, and an editorial-independence board for CNN and CBS. California's AG stressed the settlement is not an endorsement of the deal.
Energy is pulling in the opposite direction from equities. Brent has dropped below $100 a barrel for the first time since September 9 even as Saudi Aramco loaded 14 million barrels onto seven tankers through the Strait of Hormuz, and Vice President Vance said oil is still flowing from Iran while the US works to protect Navy operations. The crude oil ETF is down 3.7%, with SM Energy and Matador Resources each off 4.7% and 4.1% respectively. Yet US diesel prices hit a record above $6.50 a gallon according to AAA, and Total's CEO warned too much refining capacity is offline ahead of winter.
Elsewhere, Fed's Goolsbee said he does not view a possible hike as reversing 2025 cuts, Bank of Canada's Macklem warned fourth-quarter growth could roughly halve if US tariffs persist, and French five-year credit default swaps hit their highest since March 2020. A communications failure at a Philadelphia FAA facility has also triggered ground stops at JFK, LaGuardia, Newark and Boston.