On Wednesday, all three major US indices closed higher, with the S&P 500 reaching an intraday record high of 6,487.03 points during trading sessions. NVIDIA dropped as much as 5% following its latest earnings release.

**US Stock Market** At market close, the Dow Jones gained 147.16 points (+0.32%) to 45,565.23; the Nasdaq rose 45.87 points (+0.21%) to 21,590.14; and the S&P 500 advanced 15.46 points (+0.24%) to 6,481.40 points.

NVIDIA edged slightly lower while Robinhood (HOOD.US) fell 5.4%. The Nasdaq Golden Dragon China Index declined 2.58%, with Chinese EV stocks suffering broad losses - NIO, XPeng, and Li Auto dropped 5.6%, 6.7%, and 8.3% respectively.

**European Markets** Germany's DAX 30 fell 128.36 points (-0.53%) to 24,051.51; the UK's FTSE 100 dropped 11.40 points (-0.12%) to 9,254.40; France's CAC 40 gained 34.12 points (+0.44%) to 7,743.93; the Euro Stoxx 50 rose 10.67 points (+0.20%) to 5,394.35; Spain's IBEX 35 declined 99.28 points (-0.66%) to 15,022.82; and Italy's FTSE MIB fell 301.95 points (-0.71%) to 42,353.00.

**Asia-Pacific Markets** Japan's Nikkei 225 gained 0.3%, South Korea's KOSPI rose 0.25%, and Indonesia's Composite Index advanced 0.38%.

**Commodities** WTI crude oil for October delivery climbed $0.90 (+1.42%) to $64.15 per barrel, while Brent crude for October rose $0.83 (+1.23%) to $68.05 per barrel.

**Currencies** The US Dollar Index edged up 0.01% to close at 98.233. In late New York trading: EUR/USD fell to 1.1632 from 1.1644; GBP/USD rose to 1.3497 from 1.3480; USD/JPY climbed to 147.39 from 147.38; USD/CHF dropped to 0.8025 from 0.8032; USD/CAD fell to 1.3794 from 1.3835; and USD/SEK declined to 9.5320 from 9.5590.

**Cryptocurrencies** Bitcoin fell 0.48% to $111,258.8, while Ethereum surged over 2% to $4,501.05.

**Metals** Spot gold gained 0.12% to $3,397.30 per ounce, and COMEX gold futures rose 0.51% to $3,450.60 per ounce.

**Macro News** **US Housing Market Shows Renewed Seller Contraction** Redfin data reveals the US housing market lost approximately 14,000 sellers over the past two months, with July seller numbers dropping to 1.95 million from May's peak of 1.96 million - the first decline since July 2023. However, sellers still outnumber buyers by the largest margin since records began in 2013, with buyer numbers at approximately 1.43 million in July, near historical lows outside the pandemic period.

**Fed Official Hints at Rate Adjustments at Every Meeting** New York Fed President John Williams indicated that upcoming policy meetings will be "live" events, suggesting potential rate adjustments without specifying his preferred course. "From my perspective, I absolutely think every meeting is live," Williams said, adding that the Fed is working to balance risks more effectively regarding its dual mandate of maximum employment and price stability.

**Corporate Buybacks Hit Record Pace** US companies are planning stock buybacks at a record pace, with announced repurchases exceeding $1 trillion by August 20 - the fastest pace to reach this milestone. Major corporations have approved massive buyback programs recently, including Apple's $100 billion announcement in May and significant programs from Alphabet, JPMorgan Chase, and Goldman Sachs. July alone saw $166 billion in announced buybacks, setting a monthly record.

**Citigroup Expects High Tariffs on Silver and Palladium** Silver was added to a list of 54 critical minerals that the US relies on imports for, awaiting review under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act. Citigroup anticipates some metals could face targeted tariffs of up to 50% when the report is released in October. The Commerce Department has also initiated anti-dumping investigations on unrefined palladium from Russia.

**Individual Stock News** **NVIDIA Beats Expectations but Offers Tepid Outlook** NVIDIA reported fiscal Q2 2026 revenue of $46.7 billion versus expectations of $46.0 billion, while approving an additional $60 billion in stock buybacks. However, the company provided lukewarm third-quarter revenue guidance of $54.0 billion (±2%), slightly above market expectations of $53.46 billion, raising concerns about slowing AI spending growth. Data center revenue, NVIDIA's core growth engine, increased 56% year-over-year to $41.1 billion, with Blackwell chip sales up 17% quarter-over-quarter. NVIDIA shares dropped as much as 5% in after-hours trading.

**Google Reduces Management Layers by One-Third** Google executives revealed the company has eliminated over one-third of managers overseeing small teams as part of organization-wide efficiency improvements. "We have 35% fewer managers than we did a year ago, with fewer direct reports as well," said Google's VP of People Analytics and Performance Brian Welle. The reduction primarily affected managers overseeing fewer than three people. The company has also implemented voluntary departure programs across 10 product areas, with 3% to 5% of employees accepting buyouts this year.