Stock Market Update

Equity futures point to a mostly lower opening this morning following Tuesday’s relatively sharp retreat. A surge in oil prices and pronounced weakness across technology stocks weighed heavily on the broader market, while strength in energy and defensive stocks provided only a partial offset.

Crude oil is easing modestly from yesterday’s highs, with WTI back below $90 per barrel, but elevated U.S. Treasury yields are adding another headwind for equities and contributing to the cautious tone ahead of the open.

On the U.S. data front:

• 08/29 MBA Mortgage Applications Index 0.8%; prior -1.0%

Today's remaining economic calendar:

• 8:15 AM ET: August ADP Employment Change; Briefing.com consensus 47K; prior 44K
• 10:00 AM ET: July Factory Orders; Briefing.com consensus 0.6%; prior -0.3%
• 10:30 AM ET: 08/29 EIA Crude Oil Inventories; prior +4.41M
• 2:00 PM ET: September Beige Book

In corporate news:

• GitLab (GTLB 54.85, +9.76, +21.65%) beat quarterly earnings and revenue expectations and issued guidance for the September quarter.
• Dell Technologies (DELL 460.09, +35.41, +8.34%) beat quarterly earnings and revenue expectations, supported by record Infrastructure Solutions Group revenue, and guided fiscal third-quarter and full-year earnings and revenue above consensus.
• Palo Alto Networks (PANW 352.68, -9.41, -2.6%) beat EPS expectations by $0.04, beat revenue expectations, guided Q1 EPS above consensus with revenues above consensus, and guided FY27 EPS above expectations with revenues above consenusus.

Reviewing overnight developments:

Asia-Pacific equity markets had a weak session, while continued selling in Japanese government debt pushed yields across the curve to fresh highs for the year. Japan's Nikkei: -3.0%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng: -0.1%, China's Shanghai Composite: -1.0%, India's Sensex: -0.5%, South Korea's Kospi: -4.0%, Australia's ASX All Ordinaries: -1.1%.

In news:

• South Korea and Japan agreed to deepen cooperation on energy, critical minerals, and carbon rules.
• Treasury Secretary Bessent said China continues to flood global markets with inexpensive exports due to overcapacity.
• The Reserve Bank of New Zealand raised its official cash rate by 25 basis points to 2.75%, as expected.

In economic data:

• South Korea's August CPI 0.2% m/m (expected 0.3%; last -0.2%); 3.1% yr/yr (expected 3.2%; last 2.8%)
• Australia's Q2 GDP 0.4% qtr/qtr (expected 0.3%; last 0.3%); 2.1% yr/yr (expected 1.8%; last 2.5%). August AIG Construction Index -6.9 (last -40.8) and AIG Manufacturing Index -16.6 (last -19.3)
• New Zealand's July Building Consents -4.3% m/m (last -3.7%)

Major European markets trade lower alongside weakness in regional sovereign debt, with benchmark yields in Germany, France, and the U.K. reaching fresh 2026 highs. STOXX Europe 600: -0.7%, Germany's DAX: -0.6%, U.K.'s FTSE 100: -0.5%, France's CAC 40: -0.5%, Italy's FTSE MIB: -0.3%, Spain's IBEX 35: UNCH.

In news:

• European Central Bank policymaker Nagel acknowledged that markets are nearly certain of a rate hike later this month.

In economic data:

• France's July budget deficit EUR145.9 bln (last deficit of EUR106.8 bln)
• Italy's July PPI 2.4% m/m (last 0.0%); 7.8% yr/yr (last 5.8%)
• Spain's August Unemployment Change 44,400 (expected 15,400; last 19,500)