Market Brief — August 7, 2026

US equities extended gains as DJIA rose 0.28%, SPX added 0.62%, and ^IXIC climbed 1.30% while US Treasuries rallied after data showed a 23,000 decline in July payrolls and markets trimmed near-term Fed hike odds. European benchmarks also advanced, with DAX up 0.69%, UKX up 0.31%, and FRA40 up 0.17% while the ECB deposit facility rate held at 2.25%. In Asia, China’s 000001.SS index finished flat (0.0%).

Central-bank settings were unchanged, with the Federal Reserve keeping the funds rate at 3.50%–3.75% in July as three FOMC members dissented in favor of a 25 bp hike and the ECB deposit facility rate holding at 2.25%. US data showed total nonfarm payroll employment falling by 23,000 in July, the unemployment rate at 4.1% and labor-force participation at 61.4%, prompting a Treasury rally that pushed the two-year yield down as much as 9 bp toward 4.15%–4.20%, the 10-year to roughly 4.63%–4.65%, and lowered September Fed hike odds to about 44% as markets looked ahead to July CPI on August 12, PPI on August 13, FOMC minutes on August 19, and next week’s $58 billion three-year, $42 billion 10-year and $25 billion 30-year auctions. On the commodity and FX side, oil and safe havens firmed on Hormuz risk and the jobs-driven move in yields, with WTI near $77–78, Brent near $82–83, gold above $4,300, the US dollar index (DXY) in the high-99 area and USDJPY around 157–158, while China’s July export growth eased to 23.9% year-on-year from 27% versus 22.2% consensus and the calendar highlighted expectations for July unemployment rates of 4.2% in the US and 6.5% in Canada plus consensus forecasts for Germany’s June trade surplus at €17.4 billion versus €19.1 billion previously and China’s July surplus around $107–108 billion versus $125.62 billion previously.

US sanctions policy remained in focus after the Senate passed the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026 by an 86–11 vote, advancing legislation that would let the president impose tariffs of up to 100% on the five largest importers of Russian crude oil or natural gas, while OFAC separately designated Shelbit Exchange, Aban Tether and related entities as blocked over IRGC-linked crypto flows including over $1 million into Shelbit from IRGC-linked addresses, more than $2 million from Shelbit to IRGC wallets and over $2 million from Kayvanpour-controlled addresses to Nobitex. Primary credit markets reflected strain in absorbing AI-linked jumbo issuance as underwriters prioritized real-money accounts, with Alphabet placing $25 billion of investment-grade bonds against about $115 billion of peak demand and recent $25 billion deals from Nvidia, SpaceX and Amazon slipping below issue price in secondary trading and prompting banks to stagger supply and use larger concessions and non-deal roadshows. Commodities and earnings added stock-specific drivers, with COMEX copper futures reaching an intraday record of $6.7045 per pound as LME three-month copper traded above $14,000 per tonne and inventories fell to around 226,650 tonnes, Nintendo shares closing about 5% higher after reporting June-quarter net income of ¥147.4 billion on ¥517.8 billion of revenue and recording roughly $300 million of U.S. tariff refunds, and Wendy’s (WEN) withdrawing its 2026 outlook, cutting its quarterly dividend to $0.07 per share from $0.14 and posting Q2 revenue of $571.0 million with U.S. same-restaurant sales down about 7%. Yum China completed the acquisition of ownership of the Pizza Hut brand in Mainland China.