Daily News
Dow Jumps More Than 470 Points to Cap Winning Week Despite Yield Surge; Gold Slides to Seven-Week Low as Crude Tops $93 on Stalled Iran Talks
28 September 2026
Today in Brief
In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei 225 slipped 0.12% while the broader Topix was little changed, South Korea’s Kospi fell 2.36% while the small-cap Kosdaq gained 0.76%, mainland China’s CSI 300 fell 2.15% as the country reported its slowest monthly industrial profit growth, and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index added 0.65%. U.S. tech-linked stocks led the way last week, with Meta Platforms rallying nearly 13% on its Muse artificial intelligence agent, Microsoft climbing more than 4%, and Apple and Nvidia advancing more than 1% each. U.S. equities rose on Friday as Wall Street wrapped up a volatile week despite a surge in Treasury yields — the S&P 500 climbed 0.51% to 7,743.41, the Nasdaq gained 0.5% to 27,068.72, and the Dow advanced 478.64 points, or 0.93%, to 51,828.62, with Akamai Technologies rising 3% on a multiyear deal with Anthropic. Gold fell to around $4,200 an ounce on Monday, its lowest level in seven weeks, as stalled US-Iran negotiations kept oil prices elevated, while crude oil climbed above $93 per barrel after President Trump rejected Iran’s latest proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
In other news: China posted its weakest industrial profit growth this year, expanding just 4.2% in August; Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Tehran is ready for a “doomsday” war with the U.S. but is leaving diplomacy on the table; President Trump said he approved new fuel economy standards, rolling back Biden-era rules meant to fuel EV adoption; China said it agreed with the U.S. on a $30 billion reciprocal tariff-reduction arrangement and an AI dialogue during President Xi Jinping’s visit to Washington; China is weighing allowing ByteDance and Alibaba to buy Nvidia’s RTX PRO 5500 chips; several foreign banks have reportedly expressed interest in a merger with Switzerland’s UBS; a US jury ruled Apple owes Taction more than $5.7 billion in a haptic technology patent case; and a bipartisan group of US lawmakers introduced legislation to bar Chinese-made optical transceivers from sensitive government AI data center systems.
In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei 225 slipped 0.12% while the broader Topix was little changed
In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei 225 slipped 0.12% while the broader Topix was little changed. South Korea’s Kospi fell 2.36%, while the small-cap Kosdaq gained 0.76%. Mainland China’s CSI 300 fell 2.15% as the country reported its slowest monthly industrial profit growth. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index added 0.65%. U.S. Tech-linked stocks led the way last week. Meta Platforms rallied nearly 13% in that time, as traders cheered the company’s Muse artificial intelligence agent. Microsoft climbed more than 4%, while Apple and Nvidia advanced more than 1% each.
Dow jumps more than 470 points Friday; stocks notch winning week despite Treasury yield surge
U.S. equities rose on Friday as Wall Street wrapped up a volatile week of trading, with a surge in Treasury yields rippling through financial markets. The S&P 500 climbed 0.51% to close at 7,743.41, while the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.5% to 27,068.72. The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 478.64 points, or 0.93% to end at 51,828.62. Akamai Technologies was a key winner of the session, rising 3% after announcing a multiyear deal with Anthropic. Also helping sentiment, oil prices slid amid optimism that the Strait of Hormuz could be reopened, as Iran has asked the U.S. to return to the memorandum of understanding from June that failed to end the Middle East conflict.
Gold fell to around $4,200 an ounce on Monday, hitting its lowest levels in seven weeks
Gold fell to around $4,200 an ounce on Monday, hitting its lowest levels in seven weeks as stalled US-Iran negotiations kept oil prices elevated and reinforced expectations for additional Federal Reserve tightening to curb inflation. President Donald Trump rejected Iran’s latest proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, saying Tehran had overplayed its hand while adding that he expects talks to resume this week. Meanwhile, Iran said it would not soften its conditions for reopening the strategically important waterway. In the US, several Fed officials cited resilient economic growth and a robust labour market as reasons additional rate hikes could be necessary. Cleveland Fed President Beth Hammack said those factors, together with concerns over government debt, are contributing to higher long-term Treasury yields.
Crude oil climbed above $93 per barrel on Monday, recovering some of the previous session’s losses
Crude oil climbed above $93 per barrel on Monday, recovering some of the previous session’s losses after President Donald Trump rejected Iran’s latest proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, raising concerns that the restoration of oil flows through the critical waterway could face further delays. Trump also said Tehran had overplayed its hand and expects negotiations to resume this week. Meanwhile, Iran said it is waiting for a definitive US response to its seven-day proposal to reopen the strait and other demands, adding that it will not ease its conditions after Trump rejected Tehran’s latest plan. Elsewhere in the Middle East, tensions remain high as Saudi Arabia intercepted Houthi drones heading toward Riyadh, along with a missile targeting Khamis Mushait in the south. Alerts were also issued in Abha and Jazan, where Aramco operates energy facilities.
China posts weakest industrial profit growth this year, expanding 4.2% in August
China’s industrial profits grew at their weakest pace this year, expanding just 4.2% in August from a year earlier, official data released Monday showed, as manufacturers grapple with persistent weakness in consumer demand and a sustained rise in energy costs. The muted growth in August marked the fourth straight month of deceleration, after the 24.7% expansion in April, and the weakest performance since November 2025 when profits posted a double-digit decline. For the first eight months of this year, profits at large industrial firms climbed 15.7%, losing momentum from a 17.6% rise in the January-July period. The slowdown comes after industrial earnings staged a notable reversal earlier this year, swinging from a barely-positive 0.6% gain for all of 2025 — the first increase after three straight years of declines — to double-digit growth.
Iran’s foreign minister says Tehran ready for ‘doomsday’ war with U.S., but leaves diplomacy on the table
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Sunday that his country is ready for a “doomsday” war with the U.S., but that he is leaving diplomacy on the table so as not to “miss any chance for peace.” Araghchi made the comments during an appearance on NBC News’ “Meet the Press” following last week’s United Nations General Assembly. The U.S. and Iran have been locked in an on-again, off-again war since Feb. 28, which has caused a global oil shock that has spiked gas prices and fanned the flames of inflation. “If you ask us, there is no reason why we should go back to diplomacy, but I am still trying diplomacy because I think we shouldn’t miss any chance for peace,” Araghchi said. “We are ready to negotiate as much as we are ready to face any challenge … We stand firm in the face of any aggression against us, even if it comes to a doomsday war.”
Trump says he approved new fuel economy standards, rolling back Biden-era rules
President Donald Trump on Saturday said he approved new fuel economy standards, reversing former President Joe Biden’s stricter policies meant to fuel electric vehicle adoption. Since the Corporate Average Fuel Economy, or CAFE, standards were established in 1975, they have been periodically updated, typically to make vehicles more efficient. Under former President Joe Biden’s standards, automakers would have had to increase the fuel efficiency of their passenger cars and light trucks to roughly 50 miles per gallon by 2031. The stricter standards were designed to incentivize electric vehicle production and sales in the U.S. Trump presented the policy change as a boon for both automakers and consumers, though the final standards have not yet been publicly detailed.
China, U.S. agree to $30 billion tariff cut, AI dialogue during Xi visit, Beijing says
China said on Saturday it had agreed with the U.S. on a $30 billion reciprocal tariff-reduction arrangement and on launching a dialogue on AI, under an eight-point consensus reached during President Xi Jinping’s visit to Washington. The two sides have also agreed to set up a trade council and extend the outcomes of earlier talks in Kuala Lumpur, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said. The agreement follows an earlier move by the world’s two largest economies to extend by two months a trade truce that had been due to expire on Nov. 10, allowing more time to work on a potentially bigger trade deal, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Wednesday.
China weighs allowing ByteDance, Alibaba to buy new Nvidia chips, The Information reports
The Chinese government has signaled it could allow some domestic companies like ByteDance and Alibaba to buy Nvidia’s chip built for high-end professional computers, The Information reported on Sunday, citing two people familiar with the matter. China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology recently asked companies including ByteDance and Alibaba to report their plans to purchase Nvidia’s RTX PRO 5500 chips, according to the report. The ministry told some Chinese companies the government intends to approve the purchases, The Information report said, adding some industry executives expect the RTX PRO 5500 chip to avoid US export restrictions. Reuters could not immediately verify the report.
Foreign banks have expressed UBS merger interest, Swiss newspaper reports
Several major foreign banks have expressed their interest in a possible merger or combination with Switzerland’s UBS, a Swiss newspaper said on Sunday. At least eight banks have signalled interest to UBS, Blick reported, citing an insider with knowledge of the matter. UBS, which said it does not comment on speculation on the subject, was dealt a blow when Switzerland’s upper house voted on Wednesday in favour of tougher capital rules that the bank estimates could require it to hold about $18 billion in additional capital. Ahead of the vote, chairman Colm Kelleher warned that UBS could rethink its Swiss base if capital rules were too harsh. On Friday, Semafor reported that UBS management had revived discussions on ways to reduce its exposure to Swiss regulation, including through a possible combination with a foreign bank, citing people familiar with the matter.
US jury says Apple owes record $5.7 billion in haptic technology patent case
A US jury ruled that Apple owes San Diego-based Taction more than $5.7 billion for using its patented technology to power the haptic feedback in iPhones and Apple Watches. Apple said it would appeal the country’s largest such verdict to date. The jury said on Friday that Apple’s Taptic Engine, which creates tapping vibrations, infringed two Taction patents “Apple’s Taptic Engine is fundamentally different from Taction’s technology, which Taction’s own testing of Apple’s products confirmed during trial,” Apple said in response “Apple does not use Taction’s technology, and we will appeal,” it added in a statement “We’re happy the jury found for Taction and vindicated its patent rights,” said Taction attorney Lance Yang. Taction, which uses its technology in headphones and gaming headsets, filed the lawsuit in 2021
US lawmakers aim to keep China’s datacenter tech out of sensitive government systems
A bipartisan group of US lawmakers introduced legislation on Friday to bar the federal government from equipping sensitive government systems with Chinese-made components used to transmit data in AI data centers. The devices, known as optical transceivers, allow data to travel over fiber-optic cables at the speed of light and are at the heart of the US AI infrastructure rollout, with some data centers requiring millions of them. The bill adds to growing pressure on Chinese optical transceiver makers, which dominate the market for parts critical to AI data centers. Supporters of the legislation say the devices could be harnessed by Beijing to disrupt access to US AI tools and the cloud.