Overnight Headlines 28th July 2026

 

Morning Market Pack

Tuesday, 28 July 2026 · Market levels captured around 06:00–06:15 BST

Market overview

Risk-off tone across Asia. A deep semiconductor sell-off drove the Kospi down almost 10%, with the Nikkei and Shenzhen also sharply weaker. US futures point to further pressure in technology shares, while Treasuries are firmer and oil continues to retreat as Washington and Tehran pursue talks over the Strait of Hormuz.

Asia: Kospi −9.96%, Nikkei −3.81%, Shenzhen −3.42%. Australia was the regional exception, up 0.45%.

US pre-market: Nasdaq futures −0.75% on the contract and an implied opening decline of roughly 1.08%; S&P futures imply −0.46%.

Rates: 10-year Treasury 4.628%, down 1.3bp; 30-year 5.120%, down 0.5bp.

Commodities: WTI $81.57, down 1.26%; Brent $87.24, down 1.27%; gold around $4,043, down roughly 0.9%.

Top headlines

• US stock futures slip as South Korea’s Kospi plunges and the chip sell-off deepens
• Chip rout deepens on China competition and circular-funding concerns
• OpenAI hacking incident is a “warning shot” for cyber security, Microsoft’s AI chief warns
• Iran and Oman seek a Hormuz agreement in an effort to restart peace talks
• Nvidia-linked AI financing and data-centre projects revive concerns over circular investment
• ASML falls after reports that China has begun mass-producing some chipmaking equipment
• UK property investors buy discounted bundles from housebuilders

Asia-Pacific equities

Index	Level	Net	Change
Nikkei 225	62,456.72	−2,474.47	−3.81%
Shanghai Composite	3,820.524	−37.721	−0.98%
Shenzhen Component	13,664.801	−483.929	−3.42%
Hang Seng	25,178.21	−28.97	−0.11%
ASX 200	8,934.40	+40.40	+0.45%
Kospi	6,082.92	−672.83	−9.96%
Straits Times	5,608.52	−11.72	−0.21%
NZX 50	13,861.93	+11.24	+0.08%

Asia commentary

The regional move is concentrated in semiconductors and AI-linked names. South Korea suffered the most severe pressure, with SK Hynix and the broader Kospi caught in concerns over stretched valuations, circular AI financing and rising Chinese competition. Japan’s weakness was amplified by heavyweight technology names, while Chinese mainland markets also fell sharply despite a relatively steadier Hang Seng.

United States — previous close

Index	Close	Net	Change
Dow Jones	52,210.08	+262.83	+0.51%
Nasdaq Composite	24,932.081	−43.743	−0.18%
S&P 500	7,413.18	+1.20	+0.02%
Russell 2000	2,948.035	+18.036	+0.62%
VIX	18.67	+0.09	+0.48%

US futures

Contract	Last	Day move	Implied open
Dow futures	52,383.0	+1.00 / 0.00%	−57.08 / −0.11%
S&P 500 futures	7,431.0	−17.25 / −0.23%	−34.18 / −0.46%
Nasdaq futures	27,979.25	−210.75 / −0.75%	−304.96 / −1.08%
Russell 2000 futures	2,954.0	−6.00 / −0.20%	−14.03 / −0.47%

US commentary

Monday’s cash session masked a split beneath the surface: the Dow and small caps rose, but the Nasdaq slipped. Futures now suggest that technology will again lead the downside. The market’s immediate concern is whether aggressive AI investment is producing durable returns or merely recycling capital through chipmakers, cloud platforms, data-centre developers and their financiers.

US Treasuries

Maturity	Yield	Change
6-month	4.073%	+0.2bp
1-year	4.127%	+1.0bp
2-year	4.306%	−1.7bp
3-year	4.335%	−1.4bp
5-year	4.387%	−1.4bp
7-year	4.497%	−1.2bp
10-year	4.628%	−1.3bp
20-year	5.140%	−0.9bp
30-year	5.120%	−0.5bp

Rates commentary

Treasuries extended their rebound as crude prices fell and demand for defensive assets increased. The curve remains elevated in outright yield terms, but the overnight move is a modest bull rally rather than a disorderly flight to safety. Monday’s two-year auction was comparatively solid, while the five-year sale drew more mixed demand.

Foreign exchange

Pair	Rate	Net	Change
USD/JPY	163.75	+0.01	+0.01%
EUR/USD	1.1361	−0.0006	−0.0528%
GBP/USD	1.3287	Unchanged	Unchanged
AUD/USD	0.6966	−0.0023	−0.3291%
NZD/USD	0.5763	−0.0010	−0.1732%
EUR/GBP	0.8549	−0.0003	−0.0351%
USD/CHF	0.8194	+0.0008	+0.0977%
USD/CAD	1.4124	+0.0001	+0.01%
USD/CNY	6.7677	+0.0020	+0.03%
USD/KRW	1,463.90	−0.72	−0.0492%

FX commentary

The dollar is mixed rather than decisively stronger. It gained against the Australian and New Zealand dollars as equity risk appetite deteriorated, but the yen remained weak near 164 per dollar despite the regional sell-off. Japanese officials reiterated that their intervention stance is unchanged while declining to discuss specific exchange-rate levels.

Commodities

Contract	Price	Net	Change
WTI crude Sep-26	$81.57	−$1.04	−1.26%
Brent crude Sep-26	$87.24	−$1.12	−1.27%
Natural gas Aug-26	$2.734	−$0.033	−1.19%
RBOB gasoline Aug-26	$3.3109	−$0.0164	−0.49%
Heating oil Aug-26	$4.104	−$0.0076	−0.18%
Gold	$4,042.97	−$35.47	about −0.9%

Commodities commentary

Oil extended Monday’s decline as US-Iran negotiations reduced the immediate probability of a prolonged closure or severe disruption in the Strait of Hormuz. Prices remain highly sensitive to the tone of the talks, and the OPEC meeting later today adds another potential volatility point. Gold softened as the dollar found support and the immediate geopolitical premium eased.

Economic calendar — GMT

Time	Event	Forecast	Previous
10:00	OPEC meeting	—	—
12:15	US ADP employment change, weekly	—	16.50K
12:30	US goods trade balance, June	−$100.30bn	−$105.89bn
12:30	US retail inventories ex-auto, June	—	0.3%
13:00	S&P/Case-Shiller 20-city HPI YoY, May	1.3%	1.1%
13:00	S&P/Case-Shiller 20-city HPI MoM, May	—	1.0%
14:00	Atlanta Fed GDPNow, Q2	—	—
14:00	Conference Board consumer confidence, July	92.4	91.2
17:00	US seven-year note auction	—	4.260%
20:30	API weekly crude-oil stocks	−1.500m	+2.603m

Times shown in GMT, matching the supplied calendar. During British Summer Time, add one hour for UK local time.

Today’s focus

Three drivers dominate: the depth of the Asian semiconductor rout; any fresh details from US-Iran talks over Hormuz; and whether the OPEC meeting changes the supply outlook after oil’s sharp two-day reversal. US consumer confidence and the seven-year Treasury auction will provide secondary signals on domestic demand and duration appetite.