Daily News 5th Aug 26
Daily News
Dow Surges 900 Points as S&P 500 Tops 7,700 for the First Time; South Korea's Kospi Leads Asia With 4% Gain; Gold Climbs Above $4,100 as Crude Slides Toward $75 on Hopes for a Hormuz Deal
05 August 2026
Today in Brief
In Asia, South Korea's Kospi led gains, rising over 4%, while Japan's Nikkei 225 rose 3.1% and the Topix added 1.57%, extending a banner Wall Street session in which the S&P 500 gained 1.79% to a record 7,736.52, the Nasdaq Composite popped 2.59% to 26,584.99 on a 29% Palantir rally, and the Dow surged 907.47 points, or 1.71%, to a record 54,085.88, led by a more than 5% rise in Caterpillar. Gold climbed above $4,100 an ounce on Wednesday, rising for a third straight session as investors weighed reports of an imminent deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, while crude oil fell toward $75 a barrel, extending losses for a third consecutive session and bringing its weekly decline past 10%; markets trimmed expectations for a September Fed rate hike to around 57%, down from 67% a day earlier.
In other news: India's central bank held its repo rate steady at 5.25% and retained a "neutral" stance; U.S. Central Command said the Strait of Hormuz's southern route remains "free and open" as Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent signalled an Iran deal could come as soon as this week; Bessent also said the U.S. backed Japan's yen intervention to help stabilize currencies across Asia; the U.S. Army has reportedly used "virtually all" of its long-range precision missiles during the five-month war with Iran; solar stocks surged on a Reuters report that Washington is weighing a price floor and tariffs on Chinese polysilicon; and SpaceX, AMD and Wayfair all posted second-quarter results that beat expectations, though SpaceX and AMD shares fell in after-hours trading.
In Asia, South Korea's Kospi led gains, rising over 4%
In Asia, South Korea's Kospi led gains, rising over 4%, while the small-cap Kosdaq advanced 2%. Japan's Nikkei 225 rose 3.1%, and the Topix added 1.57%. Australia's benchmark S&P/ASX 200 was 0.13% higher. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index slid 0.4%, while mainland China's CSI 300 was little changed. In U.S. after-hours trading, SpaceX lost almost 7% after Elon Musk's company said capital expenditures climbed to $18.4 billion in the second quarter.
Dow surges 900 points, S&P 500 closes above 7,700 for first time in booming Wall Street rally
Stocks had a banner day Tuesday, with the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average scaling to fresh record highs, thanks to strong earnings and another decline in oil prices driven by hope that the Strait of Hormuz could be reopened. The broad market index gained 1.79% and hit a fresh high for the first time since June, closing at 7,736.52. The Nasdaq Composite popped 2.59% to close at 26,584.99, as Palantir Technologies rallied 29%. The Dow surged 907.47 points, or 1.71%, to end at 54,085.88. The 30-stock index was led by more than 5% rise in Caterpillar, surpassing its intraday record from last month. Both the S&P 500 and the Dow also posted record closes.
Gold climbed above $4,100 an ounce on Wednesday, rising for the third straight session
Gold climbed above $4,100 an ounce on Wednesday, rising for the third straight session as investors assessed reports of an imminent deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, which could ease inflation concerns and lower the likelihood of near-term Federal Reserve interest rate hikes. On Tuesday, Qatar said an interim proposal had been prepared, while both Washington and Tehran signalled progress in negotiations to reopen Hormuz, triggering a sharp decline in oil prices. Markets trimmed expectations for a September Fed rate hike to around 57%, down from 67% a day earlier. Investors are now awaiting a fresh batch of US labour market data for further clues on the Fed's policy outlook, with ADP's July private payrolls report due later today.
Crude oil fell toward $75 per barrel on Wednesday, extending losses for a third consecutive session
Crude oil fell toward $75 per barrel on Wednesday, extending losses for a third consecutive session and bringing its weekly decline to more than 10% as optimism grew over a potential interim agreement to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, boosting the supply outlook. On Tuesday, Qatar said an interim proposal had been prepared and both Washington and Tehran indicated that negotiations to restore access to the vital waterway were making progress. President Donald Trump had earlier called off planned military action against Iran to give diplomacy a chance, while reiterating his demand for the swift reopening of Hormuz. Meanwhile, Iran is reportedly weighing a proposal to allow European countries to clear mines from the strait and said discussions with Oman on securing safe shipping routes were advancing.
RBI holds rates steady as expected, retains 'neutral' stance
The Reserve Bank of India kept its benchmark repo rate unchanged on Wednesday, in line with expectations, as policymakers weighed persistent inflation risks against resilient economic growth and global uncertainty. The six-member Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) unanimously voted to keep the policy rate unchanged at 5.25% and retained its "neutral" policy stance. Governor Sanjay Malhotra said the conflict in West Asia, uncertainty surrounding U.S. tariffs and disruptions to global trade routes and supply chains had made the global economic environment increasingly unstable, contributing to volatile commodity prices, currencies and financial markets.
U.S. says Strait of Hormuz is 'free and open' as Bessent signals deal with Iran is close
The U.S. military said the Strait of Hormuz was open for all commercial vessels to transit, after Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent claimed that an Iran deal is close. U.S. Central Command said the "southern route of the Strait of Hormuz remains free and open" in a post on X, highlighting that it had assisted more than 1,000 vessels in transiting the waterway despite "unwarranted" Iranian aggression. The southern route passes through Omani territorial waters, rather than the part closer to Iran. The announcement comes as oil prices also fell sharply Tuesday, following remarks by U.S. Treasury Scott Bessent that there may be a deal to open the Strait of Hormuz as soon as this week.
Bessent says U.S. backed Japan's yen intervention to help stabilize Asia
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Tuesday that the U.S. joined Japan's effort to strengthen the yen because the currency's weakness risked destabilizing markets across Asia. "A stable yen is not only important for the U.S., but very important for the entire region," Bessent said on CNBC's "Squawk Box." Bessent said a sharply weaker yen could pressure other countries to devalue their currencies, pointing to volatility in the South Korean won and concerns that China's yuan is undervalued. "Given the trade flows, given the size of the economy, given their contribution to the global savings market, [it is] very important to have a stable yen," Bessent said. "The Japanese government understands that, and we are proud to stand with them in implementing their policies and help them stabilize the region."
U.S. has used 'virtually all' of its long-range precision missiles during Iran war
The U.S. Army has used up much of its stockpile of highly accurate long-range missiles during its five-month war with Iran, according to three people familiar with the data, raising concerns about the military's readiness for future conflicts. The missiles are principally the Army's surface-to-surface weapons, known as Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS) and Precision Strike Missiles (PrSM). The U.S. has used "virtually all" of these weapons, according to two of the sources. The degree to which the military is running out of ATACMS and Precision Strike Missiles has not been previously reported. The long-range munitions are an important part the military's arsenal, allowing accurate strikes from a safe distance. U.S.-supplied ATACMS have played a key role in the war in Ukraine, allowing Ukrainian forces to attack targets inside Russia.
Solar stocks surge on report of US tariffs on Chinese polysilicon
Enphase Energy (NASDAQ:ENPH) rose 7%, SolarEdge Technologies (NASDAQ:SEDG) rose 8%, First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) rose 8%, and Array Technologies (NASDAQ:ARRY) rose 6% Tuesday following a Reuters report that the US is weighing a polysilicon price floor and tariffs to counter China in the solar and semiconductor sectors. The Trump administration is preparing to set a price floor and impose tariffs on polysilicon and related products, according to four people familiar with the plan cited by Reuters. The material is critical to both solar panels and semiconductors and sits at the center of US efforts to compete with China on artificial intelligence and energy.
SpaceX's first quarterly results as a public company beat expectations, but AI costs hit stock
SpaceX on Tuesday posted its first quarterly results as a public company, highlighting a 92% rise in revenue on strong growth in its Starlink satellite-internet and AI businesses, and announced a datacenter-chip partnership with Nvidia. Revenue for the second quarter ended in June rose to $7.8 billion from $4.1 billion a year earlier, beating the $6.9 billion consensus estimate. The firm lost 9 cents a share, beating the 26-cent loss expected by analysts. CEO Elon Musk said on a conference call with analysts and investors that SpaceX expects to receive a "significant percentage" of Nvidia's sought-after graphics processing units next year. Shares fell 7% in late trading on Tuesday after rising 9.4% in regular action.
AMD's revenue climbs 50% and data center sales doubled, but the stock is down
Advanced Micro Devices reported second-quarter earnings on Tuesday that beat expectations, but the stock slumped in extended trading after rising during regular trading hours. Overall, AMD revenue climbed 50% from $7.69 billion a year ago, a sign of the company's central position in the market for artificial intelligence chips. AMD's Data Center unit is what is driving the company's growth. Data Center sales were $6.7 billion, up 107% on an annual basis, which the company attributed to central processing unit and graphics processing unit sales. The chipmaker's stock has nearly tripled over the past year, both on optimism that its AI chips, branded Instinct, will take a meaningful amount of a growing market from Nvidia, as well as the resurgence of the CPU — which AMD sells under the brand name Epyc — which AI experts now say is an essential component for running agents.
Wayfair tops Q2 estimates, posts strong free cash flow
Wayfair Inc. reported second quarter results that exceeded analyst expectations, with adjusted earnings per share of $0.95 beating the consensus estimate of $0.87 by $0.08. Revenue reached $3.52 billion, surpassing the $3.45 billion analyst estimate and marking a 7.5% increase from $3.27 billion in the prior-year period. The home goods retailer's U.S. revenue grew 8.7% YoY to $3.1 billion, while international revenue declined 1.3% to $394 million. The company generated free cash flow of $301 million in the quarter, its strongest performance since 2020. Shares rose 1.3% following the results. "Q2 marked another strong quarter of share capture and top line momentum, with 7.5% net revenue growth fuelled by momentum in orders, which were up by 6% for the period," said Niraj Shah, CEO, co-founder and co-chairman.
