Overnight US Stocks | The three major indexes were mixed; US Treasury bonds and oil prices disrupted the market; Oracle (ORCL.US) data center project raises concerns

According to Zhitong Finance APP, on Thursday, the three major U.S. stock indices closed mixed. The Dow Jones Index fell for the third consecutive trading day due to U.S. Treasury yields reaching decades-high levels, continuing to put pressure on cyclical sectors. In addition, reports said that U.S. and Iranian negotiators in New York are considering reaching an agreement to end the Middle East conflict in stages. Driven by this news, the stock market rebounded from intraday lows.

[U.S. Stocks] At the close, the Dow Jones Index fell 0.31% to 51,349.98 points; the S&P 500 Index declined 0.02% to 7,704.13 points; the Nasdaq Composite Index rose 0.01% to 26,939.37 points. Meta (META.US) closed up 4.5%, with its market value approaching $2 trillion; Intel (INTC.US) rose 3.9%, AMD (AMD.US) climbed 2.38%, while Oracle (ORCL.US) fell 3.47%.

[European Stocks] The German DAX30 Index lost 0.57% to 25,266.53 points; the UK FTSE 100 Index dropped 0.24% to 10,679.99 points; the French CAC40 Index fell 0.52% to 8,081.43 points; the Euro Stoxx 50 Index slipped 0.43% to 6,272.95 points; the Spanish IBEX35 Index decreased 0.30% to 19,573.40 points; and Italy’s FTSE MIB Index declined 0.85% to 51,543.45 points.

[Asian Stock Markets] The Nikkei 225 Index gained 0.76%, and the KOSPI Index in South Korea rose 0.90%.

[U.S. Dollar Index] The U.S. Dollar Index, which measures the dollar against six major currencies, increased by 0.19% on the day and closed at 101.285 in the foreign exchange market. At the close of the New York forex market, 1 euro exchanged at 1.1374 USD, down from the previous trading day's 1.1387 USD; 1 pound sterling exchanged at 1.3217 USD, down from the prior 1.3243 USD. One U.S. dollar exchanged at 158.85 yen, up from 158.27 yen; 1 U.S. dollar exchanged at 0.8282 Swiss francs, up from 0.8244 Swiss francs; 1 U.S. dollar exchanged at 1.4141 Canadian dollars, up from 1.4097; and 1 U.S. dollar exchanged at 9.9224 Swedish krona, up from 9.9169.

[Cryptocurrency] bitcoin edged up 0.2% to about $84,357, while ethereum rose 0.9% to around $2,695. bitcoin and ethereum quarterly options expire this Friday with a combined size of several billion dollars, including about $1.59 billion in bitcoin options and about $210 million in ethereum options.

[Crude Oil] The West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures for November delivery rose $2.45, settling at $94.61 per barrel, an increase of 2.66%; Brent crude oil futures for November delivery gained $3.52, closing at $106.60 per barrel, up 3.41%.

[Precious Metals] Pressured by a stronger dollar, spot gold fell 0.4% to $4,272.32 per ounce.

[Macro News]

U.S. and Iran reportedly discuss a phased agreement to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. According to insiders, U.S. and Iranian negotiators are discussing a phased agreement, which includes Iran reopening the Strait of Hormuz and the U.S. lifting its blockade of Iranian ports. The unnamed source stated that both countries have refused to sign a similar deal in recent months, and on Thursday, negotiations were pushed during the United Nations General Assembly in attempts at a breakthrough. The source added that officials from Qatar are mediating these talks. The phased agreement is similar to a memorandum of understanding reached between the U.S. and Iran in mid-June, which brought a fragile ceasefire that lasted only a few weeks before collapsing. A White House official stated that President Donald Trump is still willing to engage in dialogue with Iran, but emphasized that the U.S. does not need to negotiate; continuously escalating sanctions and the ongoing maritime blockade have severely damaged Iran’s economy, putting the U.S. in a favorable position. Talks between the U.S. and Iran have broken down repeatedly since the war began, with disputes mainly focusing on the Strait of Hormuz, and the timing for Iran to access billions of dollars in funds frozen by the U.S. Speaking at the United Nations summit in New York, Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian emphasized that as long as sanctions and the U.S. maritime blockade remain, Iran will not permit free passage through the Strait of Hormuz.

U.S. Treasury sell-off continues. The 30-year U.S. Treasury yield spiked to 5.502% during Thursday’s session, marking its highest since 2004. The benchmark 10-year yield, tied to mortgage rates, surged to 5.223%, the highest since June 2007. The 2-year yield rose to 4.941%. On the day, the U.S. Treasury held its second enlarged sovereign debt buyback, actually repurchasing $4.078 billion in 20–30 year bonds, with an announced buyback cap of $6 billion. In addition, the yield on the $44 billion 7-year Treasury auction reached 5.085%, the highest since the bond was reintroduced in 2009, indicating weaker than expected demand.

Fed officials collectively turn hawkish. Philadelphia Fed President Patrick Harker said that the Fed might need to raise rates again to lower inflation; New York Fed President John Williams noted that the U.S. economy has shown “extraordinary resilience,” but the Fed still has much work to do to address price pressures; Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester believes inflationary pressures remain high, and the longer this persists, the harder it will be to return inflation to target; Richmond Fed President Thomas Barkin pointed out that broad and persistent cost pressures increase the risk of entrenched inflation. With yields soaring, expectations for further Fed rate hikes have intensified. According to the CME FedWatch Tool, the probability of the Fed raising the benchmark rate again in October is close to 71%, up from about 55% a week ago.

[Stock News]

Oracle reportedly sent a force majeure notice to Stack Infrastructure. According to media reports, Oracle has issued a force majeure notice to Stack Infrastructure, under Blue Owl Capital, hoping to defer related payments if construction of the “Project Jupiter” data center in New Mexico is delayed and cannot be put into operation as planned in 2028. Sources said Oracle is not seeking to withdraw as a major tenant from the project. Oracle replied that such notices are intended to preserve contractual rights and do not themselves mean the project has been delayed or its delivery schedule has changed. Blue Owl also stated that the notice does not alter either party's financial commitment to this multi-year project.

Tesla Nevada plant goes into production, Semi heavy truck output set to rise. Tesla will officially open its first mass production plant for Semi heavy-duty electric trucks in Sparks, Nevada, marking CEO Elon Musk’s entry into the heavy trucking industry. Tesla first unveiled the Semi in 2017 and delivered a small number to initial customers—including core client Pepsi—in 2022. The launch of this plant comes as Tesla’s core electric vehicle business faces growing global competition, while high diesel prices provide potential opportunities for commercial trucking to go electric.

Qualcomm announces global patent license renewal with Apple. On September 24 local time, Qualcomm announced a new global patent license agreement with Apple, effective April 1, 2027. The term and financial details of the new deal were not disclosed. The two companies ended their patent litigation and signed a licensing agreement in 2019, which was set to expire at the end of March 2027.

Google, OpenAI, and Anthropic reportedly plan to jointly establish “Standards Authority for Frontier AI.” According to reports, Google, OpenAI, and Anthropic are pushing to form an AI safety standards organization, aiming for launch by the end of this year or early 2027. The organization, tentatively called “Standards Authority for Frontier AI” (SAFA), plans to operate independently without government oversight. Previously, the slow progress at the U.S. federal level on AI regulation has stalled the establishment of relevant institutions.