Israel

The Bank of Israel’s Monetary Committee decided yesterday to leave the policy rate unchanged at 3.25%. Annual inflation in September stood at 1.6%, slightly below the midpoint of the target range. The labor market remains tight, while geopolitical uncertainty remains high.

The Bank of Israel’s Research Department forecasts economic growth of 5.6% in 2026 and 7.5% in 2027. Excluding production by Israeli companies abroad, the forecasts stand at 3.4% and 5.1%, respectively. Home prices fell 0.6% in the latest reading and 1.8% year over year, while the housing component of the Consumer Price Index rose at an annual rate of 3.8%.

Trading in Tel Aviv was mixed. The TA-35 slipped 0.05% to 4,212.13, the TA-125 gained 0.36% to 4,106.27, and the TA-90 rose 1.45%. In the foreign exchange market, the dollar’s representative rate was set at ILS 3.0910, down 0.48%, while the euro’s representative rate stood at ILS 3.4722, down 0.29%.

United States

Wall Street closed higher as technology stocks rebounded following a period of concern over the scale of spending on AI infrastructure. The S&P 500 rose 0.58% to 7,757.17, the Nasdaq Composite gained 1.05% to 26,702.86, the Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 0.69% to 52,856.09, and the Russell 2000 rose 0.27%. The S&P 500 technology sector climbed about 1.6%, the strongest gain among the index’s 11 sectors.

SpaceX rose about 7.8% after reporting its first profit as a public company. Super Micro Computer jumped about 9.6% on stronger-than-expected guidance, while Netflix fell after issuing a disappointing outlook.

After the close, Meta reported third-quarter revenue of $64.6 billion, up 26%. Net income totaled about $9.86 billion, weighed down by a one-time legal expense. The company expects capital expenditures of $135 billion to $145 billion in 2026.

Tesla reported revenue of about $28.05 billion, net income of approximately $787 million, adjusted earnings per share of $0.48, and free cash flow of about $1.53 billion.

The 10-year U.S. Treasury yield fell about 0.6 basis points to 5.111%.

Europe and the UK

European markets closed higher, supported by corporate earnings. The STOXX 600 rose 0.92%, Germany’s DAX gained 1.35%, and France’s CAC 40 advanced 1.06%. Randstad rose about 20%, while EssilorLuxottica gained approximately 15.5%. Carrefour fell about 13.8% after cutting its profit guidance.

After the session, SAP reported revenue of about €10.27 billion, up 13%, while cloud revenue increased 26% to approximately €6.67 billion.

Pressure on French government bonds continued. The 10-year yield reached about 5% intraday, and the spread over the equivalent German Bund widened to approximately 157 basis points. Concerns over the budget deficit and political instability contributed to the move.

In the UK, consumer prices rose 3.5% year over year in September, up from 3.1% in August and above the 3.4% forecast. Services inflation increased to 3.7%, while core inflation reached 2.8%. UK public debt was also reported to have surpassed £3 trillion. The FTSE 100 rose 0.19%.

Asia

South Korea’s KOSPI jumped 3.29% to 5,735.66, led by chip stocks, after falling 3.73% in the previous session. In Japan, the Nikkei 225 rose 0.85% to 64,621.24 as investors continued to assess the possibility of further interest rate hikes by the Bank of Japan.

In China, the Shanghai Composite fell 0.60%. Data released earlier in the week showed third-quarter economic growth of 4.5%, alongside continued weakness in consumption and the real estate sector.

Commodities and Currencies

Oil prices ended nearly flat after sharp swings during the session. Brent crude traded at $108.82 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate (WTI) fell 0.70% to $97.15.

U.S. crude inventories fell by about 3.06 million barrels, compared with expectations for a decline of approximately 820,000 barrels. Distillate inventories, however, rose by about 1.68 million barrels.

Gold gained 0.30% to $4,137.94 an ounce, while the U.S. Dollar Index (DXY) fell 0.14% to 101.65.

Today’s Outlook

The earnings season continues, with Nokia and Barclays scheduled to report in Europe, while Comcast, Lockheed Martin, and Procter & Gamble are due to report in the United States.

U.S. initial and continuing jobless claims are scheduled for release at 15:30 Israel time, followed by the Leading Economic Index at 17:00. Japan’s Consumer Price Index is due overnight from Thursday into Friday at 02:30.

The Federal Reserve’s next interest rate meeting is scheduled for October 27–28.