1. Asia-Pacific markets mostly fall as investors assess Japan trade data; SoftBank drops over 5%
Asia-Pacific markets mostly fell Wednesday as investors assessed trade data from Japan and the country’s new leadership. Japanese exports in September snapped four months of declines, climbing 4.2% year on year, as shipments to Asia saw robust growth, partially offsetting the drop in exports to the U.S. Exports, however, missed analysts’ expectations of a 4.6% rise, according to median estimates in a Reuters poll of economists. Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and her new cabinet were sworn in on Tuesday, with her former rival in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party’s leadership race, Shinjiro Koizumi, named defense minister and Satsuki Katayama becoming Japan’s first female finance minister. Japan’s Nikkei 225 was down 0.48%, leading losses in Asia, while the Topix index gained 0.33%.
2. Dow sets new record close just below 47,000 on strong Coca-Cola, 3M earnings
The Dow Jones Industrial Average had a record-setting session on Tuesday, boosted by strong earnings reports from companies such as Coca-Cola and 3M, while the S&P 500 was relatively unchanged. The 30-stock index gained 218.16 points, or 0.47%, to close at 46,924.74. It briefly topped 47,000. The broad market S&P 500 closed just above the flatline at 6,735.35. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite lagged, falling 0.16% to 22,953.67. Coca-Cola and 3M supported the Dow’s move after their latest releases surpassed Wall Street’s estimates, jumping 4% and 7.7%, respectively. Fellow old economy stock General Motors soared 14.9% after it hiked its guidance for the full year and topped estimates.
3. Gold retreats as FOMO buying gets reality check
Global shares slipped on Wednesday and gold pulled back sharply from a blistering rally, as stretched valuations came under scrutiny and investors booked profits. Geopolitics loomed large. A planned summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin was put on hold and ambiguity lingered over a potential meeting between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping. Despite Washington and Beijing striking a more conciliatory tone in recent times, Trump added to the uncertainty over the meeting on Tuesday, saying that “maybe it won’t happen”. The overnight dive in gold was the main focus for markets, after prices of the yellow metal sank more than 5% on Tuesday despite no obvious catalyst. It last traded 0.6% lower at $4,098.89 an ounce.
4. Oil maintains gains on supply risks and U.S. plan to refill strategic reserves
Oil prices pushed higher for a second day on Wednesday, buoyed by sanctions-related supply risks, hopes of a U.S.-China trade deal and news that the U.S. is seeking oil for delivery to its strategic reserves. Brent crude futures rose 18 cents, or 0.29%, to $61.50 a barrel as of 0137 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures climbed 21 cents, or 0.37%, to $57.45. Oil has bounced off a five-month low hit on Monday that was fuelled by producers pumping more and trade tensions impacting demand.
5. China says U.S. and Australia ‘should play a proactive role’ to bolster rare earths supply chains
China on Tuesday responded to the U.S.-Australia critical minerals deal by saying resource-rich rare earth countries should take “a proactive role” in stabilizing their critical minerals supply chains. A spokesperson for China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs was asked about the U.S. and Australia critical minerals deal which has been framed as an effort to counter Beijing’s dominance. “The formation of global production and supply chains is the result of market and corporate choices,” Guo Jiakun said, according to NBC. “Resource-rich nations with critical minerals should play a proactive role in safeguarding the security and stability of the industrial and supply chains, and ensure normal economic and trade cooperation,” he added. Rare earths are a category of minerals that are critical for a swath of products from cars to semiconductors.
7. Fall in China’s exports of rare earth magnets stokes supply chain fears
China’s exports of rare earth magnets fell in September, reigniting fears that the world’s top supplier could wield its dominance over a component key for U.S. defence firms and makers of items from cars to smartphones as leverage in trade talks. In April and May, Beijing squeezed global automakers with export curbs on a range of rare earths items and related magnets, while negotiators faced off over triple-digit U.S. tariffs on goods from the world’s second-largest economy. China’s shipments of rare earth magnets fell 6.1% in September from August, customs data showed on Monday, ending three months of gains, and dropping even before Beijing unveiled a dramatic expansion of its export licensing regime this month.
8. Nebraska GOP Sen. warns Trump buying beef from Argentina will hurt U.S. ranchers
Republican Sen. Deb Fischer of Nebraska on Tuesday warned President Donald Trump that his proposal for the U.S. to buy Argentina’s beef will hurt American cattle ranchers and fail to lower prices. “Bottom line: if the goal is addressing beef prices at the grocery store, this isn’t the way,” Fischer wrote in an X post. Trump floated the idea over the weekend as a way to bring down beef costs, which have soared in the U.S. this year. The tentative plan would involve further U.S. investment in Argentina, the South American nation whose teetering economy has recently been buoyed by a $20 billion currency swap deal with the Trump administration. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said last week that the U.S. is considering providing Argentina another $20 billion in financing. Argentina President Javier Milei is a close ally of Trump. Fischer wrote Tuesday morning that she has reached out to the Trump administration to express “deep concerns” about the possible Argentine beef buy.
9. Amazon continues expansion of ultrafast 15-minute delivery to UAE after India launch
Amazon on Tuesday launched a new ultrafast delivery service in the United Arab Emirates that can ferry groceries, cosmetics, electronics and other household items to shoppers in 15 minutes or less. The service is called Amazon Now and includes a range of “everyday essentials,” the company said in a release. Amazon said orders can be placed “24/7” and are shipped out via micro-fulfillment centres, or small-format warehouses, located in UAE neighborhoods. Each site’s product selection is tailored “based on hyperlocal demand,” the company said. Some locations can receive deliveries in as little as six minutes, Amazon said. The launch in the UAE marks an expansion of Amazon Now, which debuted in Bangalore and New Delhi earlier this year. Amazon Now will compete with established “quick commerce” players like Zepto, Swiggy and Blinkit in India, as well as Noon and Careem in the UAE.
10. Warner Bros. Discovery says it’s open to a sale; shares jump 13%
Warner Bros. Discovery said Tuesday it’s expanding its strategic review of the business and is open to a sale, sending shares of the company 10% higher in morning trading. Earlier this year, WBD announced plans to split into two separate entities, a streaming and studios business and a global networks business. It’s also been fielding takeout interest from the newly merged Paramount Skydance. But on Tuesday, WBD said it’s received “unsolicited interest” from multiple parties and will now review all options. The company said it’s still moving toward the previously announced separation in the meantime. “We continue to make important strides to position our business to succeed in today’s evolving media landscape by advancing our strategic initiatives, returning our studios to industry leadership, and scaling HBO Max globally,” CEO David Zaslav said in a statement.
11. GM stock soars 15% as automaker raises guidance, beats Q3 earnings
General Motors raised its 2025 financial guidance Tuesday after beating Wall Street’s top- and bottom-line earnings expectations for the third quarter, while lowering its expected impact from tariffs. GM stock rose more than 15% in trading Tuesday. The stock, which closed Monday at $58 per share, is on pace for its best day since 2020. GM’s third-quarter revenue of $48.59 billion was down less than 1% from $48.76 billion in the same period last year. Adjusted earnings exclude one-time or special items, some interest and taxes as well as other financials not considered “core” to the company’s operations. GM’s new outlook signals strength for the automaker heading into the fourth quarter and beats Wall Street analysts’ current expectations for the last three months of the year.
12. Dell stock rises as company unveils enhanced AI data platform
Dell Technologies stock gained 2.4% on Tuesday after the company announced significant advancements to its AI Data Platform designed to help enterprises transform distributed data into actionable insights for artificial intelligence applications. The world’s largest provider of AI infrastructure unveiled improvements to its storage engines, Dell PowerScale and Dell ObjectScale, which deliver enhanced performance and scalability specifically engineered for demanding AI workloads. The company also expanded collaborations with NVIDIA, Elastic and Starburst to bolster its data engines capabilities.
13. Netflix misses earnings targets after tax dispute in Brazil
Netflix missed Wall Street third-quarter earnings targets because of an unexpected expense from a dispute with Brazilian tax authorities and it offered a forecast a touch ahead of Wall Street projections for the rest of the year. Shares of Netflix fell 4% to $1,186.82 in after-hours trading on Tuesday. The streaming service posted net income of $2.5 billion and diluted earnings-per-share of $5.87 for July through September, a period when the animated “K-Pop Demon Hunters” became the most-watched movie in Netflix history. Analysts had expected $3.0 billion and $6.97, according to LSEG. Revenue was even with forecasts, at $11.5 billion. Netflix is searching for growth from new areas such as advertising and video games after attracting more than 300 million customers around the world. It faces competition from YouTube, Amazon’s Prime Video, Disney+ and others.
14. Meta in $27 billion financing deal with Blue Owl Capital for Louisiana data center
Meta has struck a $27 billion financing deal with Blue Owl Capital to fund its biggest data center project globally, as large technology companies race to build out the infrastructure needed to power their artificial intelligence ambitions. Tuesday’s announcement marks Meta’s largest-ever private capital deal. Under it, Meta will retain about 20% equity in the Louisiana project, with the majority owned by funds that alternative asset manager Blue Owl Capital manages. Blue Owl contributed roughly $7 billion in cash to the joint venture, with Meta receiving a one-time payout of about $3 billion. The planned data center in Richland Parish, Louisiana, known as Hyperion, is projected to deliver more than 2 gigawatts of compute capacity to support training of large language models, the technology behind tools such as ChatGPT and Google Gemini.