On Wednesday, the three major indexes pulled back from their highs. Newly released meeting minutes showed that Federal Reserve officials expect to raise interest rates once more before the end of the year to curb inflation that has remained above the target level for more than five consecutive years.

Following strong 10-year Treasury auction results, the long end of the yield curve narrowed its losses. The auction's high yield came in 1.7 basis points below the pre-issuance trading level, and bid-related metrics were also solid.

US Stocks

At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 341.41 points, or 0.66%, to 51,179.87; the S&P 500 dropped 17.20 points, or 0.22%, to 7,801.73; and the Nasdaq Composite declined 61.20 points, or 0.22%, to 27,538.69.

Micron Technology (MU.US) rose 4%, while SK Hynix (SKHY.US) and SpaceX (SPCX.US) each fell more than 2%. The Nasdaq Golden Dragon China Index edged up 0.12%, with JD.com (JD.US) gaining 2%.

European Stocks

Germany's DAX 30 fell 320.08 points, or 1.26%, to 25,129.11; the UK's FTSE 100 dropped 77.51 points, or 0.74%, to 10,464.18; France's CAC 40 declined 95.86 points, or 1.22%, to 7,769.21; the Euro Stoxx 50 slid 87.08 points, or 1.39%, to 6,185.15; Spain's IBEX 35 fell 316.66 points, or 1.63%, to 19,127.54; and Italy's FTSE MIB plunged 1,249.90 points, or 2.44%, to 50,011.50.

Asia-Pacific Stocks

Japan's Nikkei 225 fell 0.92%, South Korea's KOSPI dropped 1.98%, and Indonesia's composite index declined 0.75%.

Forex

The US dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major currencies, rose 0.4% on the day and closed at 102.242 in late New York trading. As of the close of New York foreign exchange trading, 1 euro bought 1.1199 dollars, down from 1.1261 dollars the previous session; 1 pound bought 1.3219 dollars, down from 1.3277 dollars; 1 dollar bought 157.96 yen, down from 158.12 yen; 1 dollar bought 0.8330 Swiss francs, up from 0.8313; 1 dollar bought 1.4256 Canadian dollars, up from 1.4209; and 1 dollar bought 9.9992 Swedish kronor, up from 9.9861.

Cryptocurrencies

Bitcoin briefly fell below $83,000 and was at $83,106 as of publication; Ethereum dropped more than 4.8% to $2,565.

Precious Metals

Spot gold fell 1.3% to $4,109.82 per ounce; spot silver stood at $59.798 per ounce.

Crude Oil

At the close, the November delivery light crude futures contract on the New York Mercantile Exchange fell $1.16 to settle at $88.28 per barrel, a decline of 1.3%; the December delivery London Brent crude futures contract dropped 38 cents to settle at $100.20 per barrel, a decline of 0.38%.

Macro News

Fed Meeting Minutes: Most Officials Expect One More Rate Hike by Year-End, Calling the Path a Prudent Move. According to minutes released Wednesday, Federal Reserve officials expect to raise interest rates again before the end of the year to curb inflation that has run above target for more than five years. However, the minutes did not show policymakers projecting a specific timing for a hike, only indicating that persistently elevated prices and a stable labor market could prompt the Fed to raise rates a second time this year. "With regard to the outlook for monetary policy beyond this meeting, most participants judged that it would likely be appropriate to raise the target range for the federal funds rate further before the end of the year," the minutes said. "Participants emphasized, however, that they would approach each meeting in an open-minded manner, and that decisions at upcoming meetings would depend on newly released information and its implications for the economic outlook and the balance of risks." The September meeting discussion showed officials saw a risk that inflation could prove persistently sticky, while the labor market was "near full employment" and overall economic growth had picked up. "Many participants stressed that, from a risk-management perspective, a path of raising the target range for the federal funds rate was prudent, providing insurance against the risk that inflation could remain above target due to stronger-than-expected demand or further adverse supply shocks," the minutes said.

US Consumer Borrowing Growth Slows as Revolving Credit Declines. US consumer borrowing rose less than expected in August, weighed down by the largest decline in revolving credit in nearly two years. Federal Reserve data released Wednesday showed total outstanding credit increased by $8.3 billion, the smallest gain in three months, after a revised $17.7 billion increase in July. Economists surveyed by institutions had projected a median increase of $15 billion for August. The report does not include mortgage loans. Credit card and other revolving debt balances fell by $4.8 billion, the largest decline since November 2024. In August, non-revolving credit, such as auto loans and tuition loans, increased by $13.1 billion. Industry data showed that the pace of auto sales in August reached its highest level since last April.

Trump to Attend AI Science Meeting, Announce Over $1 Billion in Investment Commitments. According to reports, US President Trump will attend an AI science meeting on Thursday aimed at promoting the use of "superintelligence" to accelerate scientific breakthroughs. The White House will announce that companies including AMD (AMD.US), OpenAI and Anthropic have made industry investment commitments totaling more than $1 billion for the "Genesis Mission," and will establish computing hubs comprising more than 14 institutions across 10 southeastern US states, including a $1 billion investment in Georgia to provide computing resources for students and university faculty. The National Science Foundation and the Department of Energy will also invest more than $100 million to develop AI-driven scientific research tools.

Hormuz Shipping Disruption Sends VLCC Freight Rates Soaring to $77 Million. Amid the Hormuz situation, supply chain costs in the global tanker market have risen sharply. Data from the Baltic Exchange in London showed that the cost of chartering a Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC) to transport US crude to Asia has risen to $77 million, far above the 2025 average of $9.2 million. Based on a tanker carrying 2 million barrels of crude, the freight cost equates to about $38.5 per barrel in additional transport costs. The Iran war has changed Middle East crude export routes and transportation methods. Although regional oil flows have recently recovered somewhat, the transport process has become more complex, extending delivery times and effectively reducing the available fleet, further pushing up oil shipping costs.

Individual Stock News

Microsoft Announces Surface Laptop Ultra Pricing: Starting at $2,599, Highlighting Local AI Performance. Microsoft (MSFT.US) announced the price and launch date of a new flagship laptop, the Surface Laptop Ultra, which uses Nvidia chips, and said the device outperforms comparable Apple products on some AI tasks. Microsoft executives said at an event in San Francisco on Wednesday that the Surface Laptop Ultra returns prompt results twice as fast as Apple's MacBook Pro M5 when running local models, and generates video six times faster than comparable Apple devices. The Surface Laptop Ultra will begin shipping soon, with a starting price of $2,599, about $400 lower than the entry-level 16-inch MacBook Pro. The new Surface uses Nvidia chips that support both general computing and AI computing. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang took the stage with Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella to discuss the development of the new PC chip. "We have completely reinvented the personal computer," Huang said.

Media: Broadcom Seeking Over $50 Billion in Financing for OpenAI Custom Chip Development. According to media reports citing people familiar with the matter, Broadcom (AVGO.US) has been seeking more than $50 billion in financing in recent weeks for custom AI chips developed jointly with OpenAI, with institutions including Apollo and Blackstone in talks to participate. The negotiations are still at an early stage and the financing size may be adjusted. The financing could cover several gigawatts of OpenAI custom chip capacity and is expected to be completed as early as the end of this year. OpenAI internally calls the chip project "Nexus," with the first- and second-generation chips code-named Jalapeño and Serrano, respectively. OpenAI and Broadcom previously announced a collaboration to develop a 10-gigawatt custom chip system, with deployment planned from the second half of 2026 through the end of 2029.

US Defense Department Plans $1.5 Billion Loan in Exchange for Warrants for Up to 7.5% of Wolfspeed. The US Department of Defense has offered chipmaker Wolfspeed (WOLF.US) a commitment for a conditional senior secured loan of up to $1.5 billion with a 30-year term to support domestic US production of silicon carbide materials and wide-bandgap power devices. Under terms still subject to negotiation, Wolfspeed would provide the Defense Department with warrants allowing it to purchase up to 7.5% of the company's shares in tranches. Wolfspeed filed for bankruptcy last July due to production problems at a key silicon carbide wafer plant. The company said it will use the funds to expand production of silicon carbide materials and power devices for telecommunications, aerospace and defense applications, and to upgrade related material supply capabilities for military communications systems. After the news was announced, Wolfspeed shares rose more than 28% in after-hours trading.

Analyst Ratings

Barclays: Cut its price target on Netflix (NFLX.US) to $70 from $80.