Jamie McGeever
8 min read
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By Jamie McGeever
ORLANDO, Florida (Reuters) - TRADING DAY
Making sense of the forces driving global markets
By Jamie McGeever, Markets Columnist
Hawkish Fed minutes
A day of drift - stocks lower and bond yields higher - was the hallmark of global markets on Wednesday as investors, in the absence of major fresh news on tariffs or developments in long-dated bonds, waited for Nvidia's results after the U.S. close.
In my column today I look at why the United States may follow Japan in looking to shorten the maturity of its debt profile, as investors turn increasingly reluctant to hold long-dated bonds. More on that below, but first, a roundup of the main market moves.
If you have more time to read, here are a few articles I recommend to help you make sense of what happened in markets today.
1. Fed minutes saw rising inflation, jobless risks as ofMay meeting 2. Japan's quick-fix for bond markets sets a global testcase 3. Demand at Japan's 40-year bond auction sinks as fiscaldoubts prevail 4. Lagarde's euro 'battle cry' emphasizes EU cash need:Mike Dolan 5. ECB's Lagarde determined to complete her term,spokesperson says
Today's Key Market Moves
* Wall Street closes in the red, the S&P 500 and Dow off0.6% and the Nasdaq down 0.5%, tracking similar-sized losses inEurope. * Nvidia shares rose nearly 4% in after-hours tradingfollowing the chipmaker's earnings and outlook. * U.S. Treasury yields rise, by as much as 5 bps at thelonger end, bear-steepening the curve. A record $70 billion saleof 5-year notes goes well, and earlier, Japan's 40-year yieldrose after a weak auction. * Brazil's real is one of the biggest movers in FX, falling1% back through 5.70 per dollar. * Oil rises more than 1% on supply concerns as OPEC+agreed to leave its output policy unchanged and as the U.S.barred Chevron from exporting Venezuelan crude.
Investors shrug off Nvidia caution
Nvidia on Wednesday was the last of the U.S. 'Magnificent Seven' tech giants to report earnings. It announced record quarterly revenue in the first quarter of fiscal year 2026 but warned that tighter U.S. curbs on exports of its AI chips to key semiconductor market China will hit second quarter revenue.
Investors cheered the news though, sending shares up as much as 4% immediately after the release.
The relationship between Nvidia's share price and its long-term revenue outlook has been tight, and both were near recent highs before Wednesday's results. Nvidia said on Wednesday it expects revenue this quarter of around $45 billion, almost $1 billion below analysts' average estimate.
