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July 30, 2026 - 03:00
6 minutes
(Bloomberg) — US equity-index futures rebounded and Asian shares slipped modestly as markets sought to stabilize after a recent chip-led selloff. Longer-dated Treasuries fell amid uncertainty over the Federal Reserve’s policy outlook.Contracts for the Nasdaq 100 Index climbed as much as 1% after the underlying gauge on Wednesday fell into a technical correction — a drop of more than 10% from a peak. MSCI’s gauge for Asian stocks swung between small gains and losses, with Japanese shares advancing, while South Korea’s Kospi Index dropped 0.5%.Helping sentiment, Microsoft Corp. climbed almost 9% in extended trading after reporting its fastest cloud-computing growth in four years. Samsung Electronics Co. rose over 1% after chip profit soared over 250-fold. Meta Platforms Inc., however, fell over 7% in post-market trading following a disappointing revenue forecast for the current year.Meanwhile, the Treasury yield curve steepened after the Fed held rates steady. The 30-year yield jumped more than 10 basis points to the highest level since 2007 during the US session. A Bloomberg gauge of the dollar edged lower for a fifth consecutive day on Thursday, while American crude slipped 0.1% to trade around $84.60 a barrel.Investors have been whipsawed this week by three forces: a global selloff in semiconductor stocks amid concerns over returns on billions of dollars of artificial intelligence spending, renewed fighting in the Middle East and uncertainty over the Federal Reserve’s inflation fight. The lack of updated policy guidance by the Fed, coupled with a divided committee, left markets with little clarity on the path for interest rates.“There is very little to hang your head on in the markets,” Torsten Slok, chief economist at Apollo Global Management, told Bloomberg Television. “It was also a little bit complicated to figure out what was the basis of the decision today,” he said, adding that the Fed’s abandonment of guidance is fueling historic bond market volatility.Fed Chair Kevin Warsh said the decision to leave rates unchanged wasn’t a sign of inertia at the central bank and that markets would be free to chart their own course based on economic signals. Three of the Fed’s 12 voting officials dissented in favor of a rate increase, highlighting persistent concerns over inflation.That uncertainty is likely to keep volatility elevated across bond markets as traders parse incoming inflation and economic growth data for clues on the Fed’s next move.“Despite three committee dissents in favor of a July hike, Chair Warsh stopped short of flagging an imminent hike, echoing June’s tone,” said Fabien Yip, a market analyst at IG International in Sydney. “That is starting to unsettle investors: a Fed unwilling to commit to further tightening raises the question of whether it can keep long-term inflation expectations anchored.”Elsewhere, South Korea pledged additional measures to stabilize the stock market and curb retail access to leveraged exchange-traded funds after a rout that wiped billions of dollars off investors’ holdings. That came after the Kospi Index cratered Wednesday.Meanwhile, US crude edged lower early Thursday as Axios reported that the US military is conducting air strikes on Iran. Oil has whipsawed this month as the US and Iran went from escalation to efforts at diplomacy, and now back to trading military fire.Traders remain focused on diplomatic moves to end the war, as well as signs that flows through key chokepoints remain compromised. The so-called call skew for Brent, or the premium traders pay for options betting on further price gains, jumped to the highest level since late April.The global benchmark is also experiencing reduced liquidity ahead of its expiry on Friday, contributing to exaggerated price moves.“We remain exceedingly skeptical that we are on the brink of a major diplomatic breakthrough that will resolve the nuclear standoff that started the war,” RBC Capital Markets LLC analysts including Helima Croft said in a note. “The ongoing threat of missiles, mines, drones, and Tehran tolls will keep a significant portion of the shipping market on the sidelines,” they added.Corporate Highlights:Qualcomm Inc., the largest maker of smartphone processors, gave a weak profit forecast for the current quarter, signaling that component shortages and rising costs are taking a toll on its main market. Arm Holdings Plc delivered a sales forecast that failed to impress investors, who have grown increasingly wary about chip-industry prospects in recent days. Starbucks Corp. raised its annual outlook after quarterly results surpassed market estimates, a sign that efforts to attract diners with speedier service and new products are paying off. Some of the main moves in markets:StocksS&P 500 futures rose 0.3% as of 9:55 a.m. Tokyo time Hang Seng futures rose 0.7% Nikkei 225 futures (OSE) fell 0.3% Japan’s Topix fell 0.6% Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.6% Euro Stoxx 50 futures were little changed CurrenciesThe Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed The euro was little changed at $1.1458 The Japanese yen was little changed at 163.43 per dollar The offshore yuan was little changed at 6.7608 per dollar The Australian dollar was unchanged at $0.6956 CryptocurrenciesBitcoin rose 0.1% to $63,536.85 Ether rose 0.5% to $1,892.57 BondsThe yield on 10-year Treasuries was little changed at 4.68% Japan’s 10-year yield advanced four basis points to 2.785% Australia’s 10-year yield advanced four basis points to 4.96% CommoditiesWest Texas Intermediate crude rose 0.1% to $84.56 a barrel Spot gold was little changed This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.–With assistance from Carmeli Argana.©2026 Bloomberg L.P.
