After a volatile Tuesday marked by tit-for-tat sanctions and tariff threats, global markets regained their footing as investors shifted attention from confrontation to accommodation. 

The S&P 500 rallied back from early losses, led by broad gains across industrials, financials, and small caps, while the Nasdaq trimmed declines that had followed President Trump’s threat to “terminate business with China on cooking oil and other elements of trade.”

The spark for recovery came not from geopolitics but from monetary reassurance. In Philadelphia, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell struck a notably dovish tone, signaling that the central bank may soon end its quantitative tightening program and acknowledging that “the two risks, jobs and inflation, are closer to being in balance.” 

The remarks sent the 10-year Treasury yield down to 4.0%, boosted gold above $4,200 an ounce, and knocked the dollar to a two-month low.

Even with trade tensions escalating (China has sanctioned U.S. subsidiaries of South Korea’s Hanwha Ocean, while both nations now levy port fees on cargo ships) the market’s takeaway was clear: the Fed’s bias is toward easing. Futures now price a 95% probability of another rate cut this month and a 70% chance of a follow-up in December.

The government shutdown entered its fifteenth day, stretching into its third week with little movement in Congress. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent warned that “each day adds measurable drag.” 

Yet investors appeared more concerned with policy signals than fiscal paralysis. Equities finished well off their lows, the Russell 2000 posted another record close, and volatility gauges retreated as dip-buyers leaned on the Fed’s implied floor.

The Original Magnificent Seven Produced 16,894% Average Returns Over 20 Years.

But the Man Who Called Nvidia at $1.10 Says "AI's Next Magnificent Seven Could Do It Even Faster."

See His Breakdown of the Seven Stocks You Should Own Here.

The conversation on Wall Street turns from what happened to what’s next, and for now, that means earnings and positioning. 

Bank of America and Morgan Stanley headline today’s lineup, following a run of stronger-than-expected results from JPMorgan, Wells Fargo, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, and BlackRock. 

The common thread: consumer credit is holding, net interest margins are compressing, and trading desks are compensating with stronger fee revenue.

Jamie Dimon’s warning, “when you see one cockroach, there are probably more,” about the recent Tricolor and First Brands bankruptcies added a cautionary note, but investors shrugged it off as credit spreads stayed tight. The market’s rotation from defensives to cyclicals suggests faith that the economy’s soft landing remains intact.

Fund managers surveyed by Bank of America reported their lowest cash holdings since 2024, now at 3.8%, underscoring the “fear of missing out” that continues to drive allocation. 

With volatility back above 20 but retreating from Tuesday’s highs, options desks describe a market “nervous but not panicked.” The VIX spike that followed Friday’s tariff threat already looks more like a positioning flush than a structural shift.

Attention now shifts to corporate guidance and the reopening of rate-cut chatter. If Powell’s pivot holds, the Fed’s easing bias could serve as the dominant narrative through quarter-end. 

Analysts expect seven of eleven S&P sectors to post year-over-year earnings growth, led by technology, utilities, and materials. The question isn’t whether growth holds, it’s how much of it the market has already priced in.

Powell’s remarks landed with global resonance. 

The Fed chair’s acknowledgment that quantitative tightening could end “in coming months” was the clearest sign yet that the balance-sheet drawdown is nearing completion. 

In Europe, bond yields fell in sympathy, and the euro strengthened to $1.16.

The dovish tilt also reframed the conversation at this week’s IMF and World Bank meetings, where leaders warned that the U.S. government shutdown and the politicization of economic data threaten to “erode institutional trust.” 

With official U.S. releases still frozen, policymakers abroad are increasingly flying blind. Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda called the data blackout “a serious problem for global calibration.”

The IMF nudged its 2025 global growth forecast up to 3.2%, citing resilience in North America and stabilizing trends in Europe, but flagged that renewed U.S.–China trade frictions could “materially slow output.” 

The World Bank struck a similar tone, describing the global economy as “running on judgment, not numbers.”

The trade war has drifted from rhetoric to logistics. New sanctions and port fees have turned maritime routes into the latest pressure point between Washington and Beijing, rattling shippers and commodities alike. 

Oil prices fell for a second straight day, with Brent at $62 and WTI near $58, after the International Energy Agency projected a 2026 surplus of four million barrels per day, its largest forecast gap in years.

Gold’s rally to record highs has become a proxy for the policy fog, part rate-cut bet, part geopolitical hedge. Meanwhile, rare earths remain the quiet fuse in the conflict: China’s tightened export controls are hitting supply chains for magnets, electronics, and defense materials.

Still, not all signals are defensive. France’s markets surged after Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu postponed pension reforms until after the 2027 election, lifting the CAC 40 to a seven-month high and French bonds to their lowest yields since August. 

In Asia, Chinese equities rebounded more than 1% on speculation of new stimulus measures at next week’s Communist Party plenum.

That's the urgent warning the former $200 million hedge fund firm manager who predicted 2008 and 2020 just issued.

He says if you're over 50, there's one urgent move you need to make to survive... or risk getting left behind. 

The rules are changing…

Here's your financial lifeline.

Washington’s paralysis is now economic, not just political. The shutdown is the fifth-longest in U.S. history, and federal workers are approaching a missed pay cycle. 

The Senate’s repeated failure to pass a stopgap measure has hardened partisan lines, and the House remains in recess.

Markets have mostly looked through the impasse, but ripple effects are spreading, airport delays, frozen small-business loans, and postponed construction contracts. The Fed’s Beige Book, normally due today, will be delayed indefinitely. 

Analysts estimate each week of closure trims 0.1% from quarterly GDP.

President Trump, meanwhile, has broadened his trade offensive into domestic populism, framing China’s soybean boycott as an “Economically Hostile Act.” His rhetoric plays well politically but complicates negotiations ahead of the expected Trump–Xi meeting in Seoul later this month.

NY Empire State Manufacturing Index

Fed Speakers: Powell, Waller, Miran, Bostic, Schmid

Bank of America (BAC)
Morgan Stanley (MS)
Abbott Laboratories (ABT)
PNC Financial (PNC)
Prologis (PLD)
Progressive (PGR)
United Airlines (UAL)
Kinder Morgan (KMI)

Asia: Nikkei -2.58%, Shanghai -0.62%
Europe: FTSE -0.42%, DAX +0.12%

While Wall Street cheers record ETF inflows, one crypto is doing something far more powerful.

It’s not a meme coin or hype token.

It’s real — already revolutionizing finance by letting investors act as their own banks.

Billions in loans.
No middlemen.
No Wall Street suits.

And here’s the kicker: it’s still trading for pennies on the dollar.

As “Uptober” heats up, this could be the final moment to get in before the next wave of institutional money sends it soaring.

Click here to uncover the crypto Wall Street doesn’t want you to notice — yet.

© 2025 Boardwalk Flock LLC. All Rights Reserved. 2382 Camino Vida Roble, Suite I Carlsbad, CA 92011, United States. The advice and strategies contained herein may not be suitable for your situation. You should consult with a professional where appropriate. Readers acknowledge that the authors are not engaging in the rendering of legal, financial, medical, or professional advice. The reader agrees that under no circumstances Boardwalk Flock, LLC is responsible for any losses, direct or indirect, which are incurred as a result of the use of the information contained within this, including, but not limited to, errors, omissions, or inaccuracies. Results may not be typical and may vary from person to person. Making money trading digital currencies takes time and hard work. There are inherent risks involved with investing, including the loss of your investment. Past performance in the market is not indicative of future results. Any investment is at your own risk.

Markets enter midweek with an uneasy calm. Powell’s words steadied risk assets, but the crosscurrents of trade friction, data darkness, and political stalemate still shape the narrative. 

The signal investors are betting on is clear: central banks are blinking first.

As earnings season builds momentum, the next move depends less on what companies report than on what they project. With liquidity rising and inflation data on pause, markets are trading on faith and forward guidance. In that sense, it’s not the numbers that matter most, it’s the tone.