Apple Stock Hits Record High, US-Australia Forge Minerals Pact, and Japan's New PM Sparks Market Rally
Market Snapshot
- 📈 S&P 500: 6,735.13 (+1.07%)
- 📈 Dow Jones Industrial Average: 46,707 (+1.12%)
- 📈 NASDAQ Composite: 22,991 (+1.37%)
- 📉 US 10-Year Treasury: 3.984% (-0.10%)
- 📈 Gold: $4,349 (+2.32%)
- 📈 Bitcoin: $111,054 (+2.19%)
- 📈 Ethereum: $3,987 (+0.07%)
- 📉 FTSE 100 (U.K.): £9,429.69 (-0.08%)
Global Markets and Economy
Japanese stocks saw a significant rally, with the Nikkei 225 index approaching the 50,000 mark and the Topix index reaching a 34-year high. The surge followed the swearing-in of Sanae Takaichi as the nation's first female prime minister. Investors have responded with optimism, anticipating aggressive fiscal stimulus and dovish monetary policies, which also saw the yen weaken against the dollar, benefiting major exporters.
In the United States, a federal government shutdown has extended into its third week, resulting in over 750,000 furloughed workers and a halt to most economic data releases. However, the critical September Consumer Price Index (CPI) report is still expected, as it is required for Social Security adjustments.
Market analysts have observed an unusual trend where both risk assets, like equities, and traditional safe-haven assets, such as gold, have been rallying simultaneously. This has created a divide in market sentiment, with some interpreting it as a sign of a fragile market, while others view it as a feature of a robust bull market.
Elsewhere, reports suggest that Chinese investment in the European Union's electric vehicle sector is decelerating amid rising political tensions and softening consumer demand.
Federal Reserve to End Quantitative Tightening
US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell has signalled that the central bank's Quantitative Tightening (QT) programme will likely end in the coming months. QT is the process of reducing the Fed's balance sheet by allowing bonds to mature without reinvesting the proceeds, effectively removing cash from the financial system. The move to halt QT is a significant monetary policy pivot, widely anticipated by markets.
The decision is driven by concerns over declining bank reserves, which are crucial for the financial system's stability. Recent data from key dollar funding markets, such as the spread between the Secured Overnight Financing Rate (SOFR) and Interest on Reserve Balances (IORB), indicates minor funding stress, prompting the Fed to act pre-emptively to avoid a repeat of the September 2019 'Repo Crisis'. An end to QT is expected to alleviate this downward pressure on bank reserves. While the halt is seen as a mildly bullish signal for asset markets, it is not expected to trigger an immediate return to large-scale Quantitative Easing (QE) unless a major economic crisis emerges.
Technology Sector Highlights
Corporate and Infrastructure Developments
Apple's stock surged nearly 4% to an all-time high of $262.24, pushing its market capitalisation toward the $4 trillion mark. The rally was fuelled by robust initial sales of the new iPhone 17 series, which surpassed its predecessor's sales by over 10% in the first ten days across key US and Chinese markets. In China, sales of the base model nearly doubled, and the iPhone Air model reportedly sold out within minutes. Consequently, Loop Capital analysts raised their price target for the stock to $315.
In contrast, a significant outage at an Amazon Web Services (AWS) data centre in northern Virginia led to widespread internet disruption. Attributed to a DNS malfunction, the incident impacted thousands of websites and applications, including Reddit, Slack, Zoom, and financial platforms like Coinbase, reigniting concerns over the global economy's dependence on centralised cloud infrastructure.
Artificial Intelligence Landscape
The AI sector saw mixed developments. OpenAI faced renewed scrutiny after it falsely claimed its GPT-5 model had solved ten unsolved mathematical problems, a statement later debunked by experts. In a separate development, Alibaba published research on a new system it claims can reduce reliance on Nvidia chips by up to 82% by enabling a single, less powerful chip to run multiple AI models. The rush to produce advanced AI chips is also reported to be tightening the supply of more common semiconductors used in smartphones and computers, leading some customers to panic-buy and drive up prices for these components.
Meanwhile, a JPMorgan analysis suggests the AI-driven stock market surge has created a $5.2 trillion wealth effect for US households, which could translate into an additional $180 billion in annual consumer spending.
Geopolitics and Trade
The United States and Australia have formalised an $8.5 billion critical minerals framework to challenge China's dominance in the rare earths market. Each country will commit at least $1 billion within six months to finance new mining and processing projects. This pact follows recent export restrictions imposed by China on several rare earth elements crucial for electronics and defence manufacturing. The announcement led to a surge in the shares of Australian mining companies Arafura (+29%) and Lynas (+4.7%). In a related move, US steel company Cleveland-Cliffs announced it is exploring rare earths mining to establish a domestic supply alternative.
Corporate Headlines
Berkshire Hathaway, led by Warren Buffett, has potentially foregone approximately $50 billion in unrealised gains after selling a significant portion of its Apple stock in 2024 and 2025 at an average price estimated at $185 per share.
Lululemon Athletica founder Chip Wilson, who still owns a 9% stake, is reportedly considering launching an activist campaign against the company's board following a 40% drop in the stock's value over the past year. In the airline sector, Delta and United have outperformed rivals by focusing on premium cabin offerings and loyalty programmes, leading both to beat earnings expectations. This strategy contrasts with discount carriers, which have experienced shrinking margins.
In fintech, the Brazilian digital bank Nu Holdings, with a valuation of $74.5 billion, has applied for a US national bank charter to facilitate its expansion into the American market. Additionally, both General Motors and Coca-Cola reported third-quarter earnings that surpassed analyst expectations, with GM also raising its full-year financial guidance.
Cryptocurrency and Digital Assets
The Canadian province of British Columbia has permanently banned new cryptocurrency mining operations from connecting to its power grid. The government cited the need to reserve electricity for industries that create more local employment, noting that 21 pending mining applications alone would have consumed power equivalent to 570,000 homes.
In Washington, top crypto executives are engaging with Senate Democrats to revive stalled market structure legislation. While some bills have passed the House, progress in the Senate remains slow. On the corporate side, Blockchain.com is reportedly exploring a public listing via a SPAC deal. Robinhood has expanded its tokenization services by deploying 493 tokenized assets, including US stocks and ETFs, on the Arbitrum network, enabling 24-hour market access for these blockchain-based derivatives. In other market activity, treasury company Evernorth announced it intends to raise over $1 billion to acquire XRP, and Tom Lee’s Bitmine purchased over 200,000 ETH during a recent price dip.
Aviation
Archer Aviation's launch of its Midnight electric air taxi service in the United Arab Emirates has been postponed from late 2025 to 2026. The company now anticipates receiving certification from the UAE's aviation authority in December 2025. This delay affects a key future revenue stream and diminishes its first-mover advantage, as competitor Joby Aviation also targets a 2026 launch in the region.
NOTE: This content is for informational and educational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. Always do your own research. Not financial advice (NFA).