Ten Stories Moving the Market

Ten Stories Moving the Market:

U.S. Vice President JD Vance is weighing face-to-face talks with a top Iranian security official as he emerges as the lead negotiator in efforts to end the war; in recent days, President Donald Trump has told top aides and counterparts he’s open to Vance restarting talks with Iran and has empowered him to negotiate – WSJ. (Why you should care – a resolution to the conflict should help to boost global energy supplies, weighing on prices, inflation growth, and bond yields)

Anthropic PBC’s initial public offering has drawn multiple times the orders for the shares available, as demand accelerates for potentially the biggest first-time share sale ever – Bloomberg. (Why you should care – strong demand for the Anthropic IPO should strengthen its balance sheet and lift sentiment toward AI stocks broadly)

Nvidia’s board is preparing to oust CEO Jensen Huang after he had two extramarital affairs, including one with a suspected Chinese spy and another with an employee; the board is planning to meet as soon as today to determine his future – WSJ. (Why you should care – a decision on Huang’s future should lift the uncertainty that has been weighing on Nvidia shares, the largest weight in the S&P 500)

Microsoft aims to find ways to power its data centers without relying on government subsidies or driving up costs for other electricity consumers; the tech giant plans to build $117 billion of computing capacity this year for artificial intelligence and cloud services – Bloomberg. (Why you should care - covering its own power costs should ease public scrutiny while supporting demand for power producers and grid equipment makers)

Samsung Electronics’ 6 trillion won ($4.48 billion) investment in a high-bandwidth memory chip packaging plant in Asan, South Korea, will be followed by roughly 40 trillion won in advanced equipment investment, according to South Korean President Lee Jae Myung; Samsung Electronics ​said in a presentation that the ​new HBM production line is scheduled to begin ‌operations ⁠in June 2028, a year earlier than initially planned - Reuters. (Why you should care - more HBM capacity points to sustained AI memory demand and should drive orders for semiconductor equipment makers)

Japan’s corporate goods inflation accelerated for the first time in three months; the measure of prices for goods traded between Japanese firms climbed 7.1% in October from a year earlier, accelerating from 6.8% in the previous month, according to Bank of Japan data – Bloomberg. (Why you should care – the increase likely raises pressure on the BOJ to hike rates at its upcoming meeting, which could support the yen and push Japanese bond yields higher)

A preliminary agreement between ExxonMobil, the Venezuelan government, and state oil company PDVSA allows the U.S. oil producer to evaluate seven areas for development that ​include undeveloped fields, mature areas and an exploration block; Exxon could re-enter Venezuela in an advantageous position, especially if it can create efficiencies with its operations in neighboring Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago – Reuters. (Why you should care – higher Venezuelan oil production would boost global energy supplies and weigh on prices, while giving Exxon a new long-term growth avenue)

U.S. container ports handled an all-time monthly record of 2.67 million TEUs of imports in October, up 16% from a year earlier and topping the previous record set in May 2022, driven in part by a surge in cargo from China; imports from China rose for a fourth straight month to the highest level since January 2025, according to supply chain technology provider Descartes Systems Group - Reuters. (Why you should care - rising imports signal a lack of supply chain issues outside the Persian Gulf, potentially keeping a lid on inflation growth)

Japan’s currency chief warned that it was too soon to forget the events of this summer after the yen weakened sharply in recent days, signaling that authorities stand ready to intervene again to support the Asian currency – Bloomberg. (Why you should care - the threat of intervention raises the risk of a sudden yen rally, which could force an unwind of yen-funded carry trades and spark volatility across global markets)

Global electrified car sales returned to growth in October, helped by a very low U.S. comparison base and continued growth in Europe, according to data from Benchmark Mineral Intelligence - Reuters. (Why you should care - a rebound in EV demand should support automakers and battery suppliers and could firm up prices for metals like lithium)

Economic Calendar:

Earnings: AMAT, CSCO

U.K. - GDP for Q3 (2 a.m.)

U.K. - GDP for September (2 a.m.)

U.K. - Industrial Production for September (2 a.m.)

U.K. - Manufacturing Production for September (2 a.m.)

U.K. - Trade Balance for September (2 a.m.)

U.K. - Business Investment for Q3 (2 a.m.)

ECB Economic Bulletin (4 a.m.)

EU - European Commission Economic Forecasts (5 a.m.)

U.S. - Initial Jobless Claims (8:30 a.m.)

U.S. - Continuing Claims (8:30 a.m.)

U.S. - Existing Home Sales for October (10 a.m.)

Fed's Barr (Board, Voter) Speaks (10 a.m.)

Fed's Goolsbee (Chicago, Non-Voter) Speaks (11:30 a.m.)

U.S. - Energy Information Administration Crude Oil Inventory Data (12 p.m.)

Treasury Auctions $25 Billion in 30-Year Bonds (1 p.m.)

Fed's Daly (San Francisco, Non-Voter) Speaks (1:10 p.m.)

Fed's Schmid (Kansas City, Non-Voter) Speaks (1:30 p.m.)

U.S. - Federal Budget Balance for October (2 p.m.)

Fed's Balance Sheet Update (4:30 p.m.)

ECB's Lagarde (President) Speaks (4:30 p.m.)

New Zealand - Business NZ PMI for October (4:30 p.m.)

Fed's Williams (New York, Vice Chair) Speaks (6:30 p.m.)