US stock futures rose and oil edged lower as traders prepared for a packed week of corporate earnings and Chinese economic data against a backdrop of heightened geopolitical risks.

US stock futures rise ahead of busy earnings week

Long-term Treasuries advanced as oil prices snapped a three-day rally, aiding the US inflation outlook ahead of Wednesday’s release of September consumer prices data.

Long-term Treasuries hold gains as oil snaps three-day rally

Oil advanced and US equity futures slipped after President Donald Trump rejected Iran’s latest proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, while saying negotiations may resume this week.

Oil up, stock futures slip as Iran offer rejected

(Sept 13): AI executives’ calls to slow development of the technology are likely to weigh on chipmaker and supply-chain stocks in the near term, but will probably have limited long-term impact as spending on computing infrastructure remains strong, market watchers say.

Anthropic’s AI warning may weigh on chips, but trade seen intact

Bond bears are pushing benchmark Treasury yields toward the closely-watched 5% level ahead of US inflation data that stands to determine expectations for a Federal Reserve (Fed) interest-rate hike next week.

Global bond sell-off sends 10-year Treasury yields to cusp of 5%

US equity futures dipped with the rising cost of the artificial-intelligence boom in focus, as Nvidia Corp hiked prices and Alibaba Group Holding Ltd launched a US$10 billion share sale. The Canadian dollar slipped as US trade tensions intensified.

US futures edge lower with AI spending in focus

Alphabet Inc paid just under 7% to borrow longer-dated funds in its debut Australian dollar bond offering, its highest-ever for a note, underscoring how broader demands for cash among hyperscalers around the world are feeding into more costly funding almost everywhere.

Alphabet’s 7% Aussie bond debut underscores the sky-high cost of AI debt

Emerging Asian central banks are turning to innovative ways to protect their currencies as fears over higher-for-longer US interest rates and rising global tensions drag down risk assets.

Asian central banks get creative on currencies to defend reserves

The greenback and yen were steady in early trading in Asia as the US sought to head off a widening of the Middle East conflict, with the exchange of fire growing more intense on Israel’s border with Lebanon. 

Australian stocks slipped at Monday’s open with equity futures in Japan and Hong Kong also pointing to losses, after US shares fell and bonds surged on Friday as traders sought out safety amid the looming prospect of a ground offensive in Gaza. Oil and gold held most of Friday’s rallies.

Haven assets in focus with Gaza offensive looming

Emerging-market bond bulls are betting the imminent end of central bank interest-rate hikes will help power up the asset class. El Niño may have something to say about that.

The periodic weather pattern that is currently forming in the Pacific Ocean typically results in hotter, drier conditions and therefore higher food prices in affected nations, giving policymakers more reason to keep pushing up borrowing costs.

El Niño threat looks underpriced as emerging-market bonds rally

Volatility has become a defining feature of global trade, and Malaysian businesses have had to adapt at pace. Over the last five years, they have navigated global events that have had major impacts on how and where trade flows, including COVID-19, the Red Sea disruption, the Russia–Ukraine war, shifting tariff regimes and renewed conflict in the Middle East. Yet trade remains resilient and has kept growing, and expectations have risen with it.

TradeCash is now live in Malaysia – keep your working capital in step with trade

Oil steadied after jumping on Friday, as flareups in fighting in the Middle East and Ukraine dimmed the prospect of a return to normal crude flows.

Brent crude holds near US$110 on Mideast and Ukraine conflicts

Microsoft has pulled out of a data centre deal with British cloud provider Nscale, Britain's Telegraph newspaper reported on Sunday.

Microsoft pulls out of UK data centre deal with Nscale — report

SEOUL (Oct 18): Samsung Electronics will use TSMC's three-nanometre process to produce base dies for Nvidia's next-generation custom high-bandwidth memory (HBM) chips, the Seoul Economic Daily reported on Sunday.

The move would mark the first time Samsung has worked with the Taiw...

Samsung to use TSMC technology for Nvidia's next-generation memory chips — report

Educational institutions under the Ministry of Education (MOE) in Selangor, Negeri Sembilan, Melaka, Pahang, and Penang will reopen and resume normal operations on Monday.

Schools in Selangor, Negeri Sembilan, Melaka, Pahang, Penang to reopen Monday

IPOH (Oct 18): DAP elected representatives who fail to meet their key performance indicators (KPIs) risk not being renominated in future elections, party secretary general Anthony Loke said.

He said Perak DAP, under the leadership of its chairman Nga Kor Ming, had set strict performance...

DAP reps who fail to hit KPIs risk being dropped, says Loke

The Sabah Cabinet has approved 24-hour operations for the Sepanggar Bay Container Port (SBCP) to address logistics congestion, but implementation depends on the industry ecosystem's overall readiness, as well as the readiness of related government departments and agencies.

Sepanggar Bay Container Port gets nod from Sabah Cabinet for 24-hour operations 

The Malaysian Prisons Department is now in the final phase of drafting regulations and conditions for the implementation of home detention following the conditional pardon decision that allows former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak to serve the remainder of his prison sentence through this method.

Prisons Dept finalising house arrest rules, says home minister

Malaysia’s diversified economy, resilient export markets and stronger fiscal buffers will help cushion external shocks and support its growth outlook for 2027, said Finance Minister II Datuk Seri Amir Hamzah Azizan.

Amir Hamzah sees Malaysia’s diversified economy, fiscal buffers cushioning external shocks in 2027

Microsoft has pulled out of a data centre deal with British cloud provider Nscale, Britain's Telegraph newspaper reported on Sunday.

SEOUL (Oct 18): Samsung Electronics will use TSMC's three-nanometre process to produce base dies for Nvidia's next-generation custom high-bandwidth memory (HBM) chips, the Seoul Economic Daily reported on Sunday.

The move would mark the first time Samsung has worked with the Taiw...

US stock futures rose and oil edged lower as traders prepared for a packed week of corporate earnings and Chinese economic data against a backdrop of heightened geopolitical risks.

Oil steadied after jumping on Friday, as flareups in fighting in the Middle East and Ukraine dimmed the prospect of a return to normal crude flows.&nbsp;

Matthew Burgess

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Matthew Burgess

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