Market Snapshot
In pre-market trading on Wednesday, the weekly change in U.S. ADP employment for the week ended August 22 was 12,000, compared with a previous reading of 11,750. Major stock index futures fell across the board; as of press time, Dow Jones futures dropped 0.75%, Nasdaq 100 futures declined 0.65%, and S&P 500 futures slipped 0.45%.
U.S. Treasury yields rose broadly, with the 10-year yield climbing to 4.8184%, its highest level since November 2023.
Oil prices rise.
Gold, Bitcoin, and Ethereum rose, while silver and other precious metals edged lower.
$Star Tech Stocks (LIST2518.US)$Most stocks declined in pre-market trading: Google and Intel fell more than 2%; Amazon and Tesla dropped over 1%; SpaceX declined 1%; while Meta bucked the trend, rising more than 5%.
$Popular Chinese ADRs (LIST2517.US)$Shares moved lower in pre-market trading: JD.com fell more than 2%; Alibaba and Taiwan Semiconductor dropped over 1%; XPeng declined 1%; ASE Technology Holdings rose more than 1%; and Baidu gained nearly 1%.
$Optical Communications (LIST23979.US)$Stocks faced pressure in pre-market trading: AXT Inc. dropped nearly 4%; Applied Optoelectronics fell more than 2%; Marvell Technology and Lumentum declined over 1%; while Nokia defied the trend, rising nearly 2%.
$Gold (LIST2110.US)$、$Silver (LIST2093.US)$Stocks generally rose in pre-market trading: Aya Gold & Silver gained more than 2%; Kinross Gold, Pan American Silver, and Newmont each rose over 1%.
Individual Stock News
OpenAI cuts prices to compete with open-source models and partners with Samsung on chip development
According to reports, OpenAI is lowering product prices to compete with open-source models and exploring new outcome-based pricing models to address corporate concerns regarding ROI on AI investments. Meanwhile, the company is deepening its collaboration withSamsung Electronics (SSNLF.US)to jointly develop next-generation chips. Driven by rapid growth in the South Korean market, ChatGPT's enterprise user base surged approximately 27-fold year-on-year, making South Korea the largest paid subscription market outside the United States.
CNBC financial commentator highlights NVIDIA and Broadcom as the most likely beneficiaries of the GPT-6 Astra launch
CNBC financial commentator Jim Cramer stated,NVIDIA (NVDA.US)and$Broadcom (AVGO.US)$These are the two stocks most likely to benefit from OpenAI's launch of the GPT-6 Astra model. Cramer believes NVIDIA deserves credit for enabling the development of Astra, reportedly trained using 100,000 NVIDIA Blackwell GPUs. Broadcom benefits in a different way, having partnered with OpenAI to develop a customized chip named Jalapeno, primarily designed for AI inference.
Cramer stated that if OpenAI and Anthropic proceed with their planned IPOs, Broadcom would be their preferred partner, which could drive a significant surge in its stock price. He also believes that demand across the AI chip industry is substantial enough for multiple companies to benefit simultaneously, preventing any single enterprise from capturing all AI chip orders.
Amazon's inaugural sterling bond issuance is sized at £4.25 billion.
According to Bloomberg,$Amazon (AMZN.US)$The inaugural sterling bond issuance is sized at £4.25 billion. Reports indicate that the bonds will be issued in four tranches, with maturities ranging from 3 to 19 years and spreads of 70 to 110 basis points. This move continues Amazon's effort to raise capital through global bond markets to fund its artificial intelligence (AI) 'arms race'.
Citi: NPO has replaced CPO as the preferred near-term trade thesis, with lasers and optical fibers being positioned as the 'next HBM'.
Citi's Atif Malik team released a latest research report summarizing key points from interviews with executives at Lightmatter, a photonics interconnect startup, during the global TMT conference. The report notes that as OCI industry standards are implemented, Near-Packaging Optics (NPO) has replaced Co-Packaged Optics (CPO) as the preferred near-term investment direction. Meanwhile, expectations of supply shortages for lasers and optical fibers are granting them a scarcity premium valuation akin to the 'next HBM'.
Related Reading:Citi TMT Conference: NPO Takes the Lead, CPO Bottleneck Lies in Testing, Optical Interconnects Are the "Next HBM"
Gurman: Apple’s first foldable smartphone to be named “iPhone Duo,” with a starting price of $2,000
Prominent technology journalist Mark Gurman posted that,$Apple (AAPL.US)$Apple will launch the foldable iPhone Duo at its new product event on Wednesday local time, with a starting price of $2,000. The entry-level model will feature 256GB of storage, while Apple will also offer higher-capacity versions priced up to approximately $3,000. The iPhone Duo is expected to hit the market as early as October, available in white and dark blue. Apple will also showcase the iPhone 18 Pro, the new Apple Watch, and upgraded AirPods at this event.
Apple's autumn event kicks off tonight at 01:00.
$Apple (AAPL.US)$ The autumn product launch, themed 'Surprise and Shine,' is scheduled for Wednesday Eastern Time (1:00 AM Beijing Time on September 10). This will mark Tim Cook's first major public appearance as Apple's Chief Executive Officer (CEO). In addition to the flagship foldable smartphone, Apple is expected to introduce the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max, the new Apple Watch, and upgraded AirPods at this event.
Related Reading:New CEO’s Debut and Foldable Screen Unveiling: A Guide to Key Highlights of Apple’s 1:00 AM Event
JD.com plans to build a 100,000-GPU cluster
At the 2026 JD.com Global Technology Explorer Conference held today,$JD.com (JD.US)$Cao Peng, Chairman of the Technical Committee and President of JD Cloud, announced the latest progress in JD.com's three major AI infrastructure pillars: computing power, data, and models. In terms of computing power, JD Cloud has partnered with Moore Threads and others to build a domestic 10,000-GPU cluster, with plans to construct a 100,000-GPU cluster. Regarding data, JD Cloud is steadily advancing its large-scale data collection initiative, which involves 10 million hours of human-labeled data. In the area of models, JD.com has established a JoyAI foundational model matrix covering multimodal models, world models, and embodied AI models. At the conference, JD.com launched JoyAI-Echo WM, a real-time interactive world model.
Meta launches personal AI assistant Muse
$Meta Platforms (META.US)$Meta has officially launched Muse, an around-the-clock personal AI assistant powered by cloud-based virtual machines. The product supports 24/7 continuous operation and features capabilities for nightly review and reflection, as well as proactive task planning. On the commercial front, Meta offers a free monthly allowance of 100 million tokens, with plans to generate revenue by charging a small commission when AI assists users in completing commercial transactions. To ensure data security, Meta has invited the founder of Signal to participate in building a highly confidential virtual machine architecture.
Rocket Lab launches germanium-free solar cells for space applications
$Rocket Lab (RKLB.US)$On Tuesday, the company announced the launch of IMM Apex, a new generation of solar cells with an initial lifetime conversion efficiency of 31.5% and a 40% reduction in mass. By eliminating the germanium substrate used in traditional multi-junction solar cells, the product helps address rising costs and supply constraints facing the aerospace energy industry. Rocket Lab stated that IMM Apex is now available on the market and can be mass-produced at the scale of hundreds of kilowatts. IMM Apex serves as a direct mechanical and electrical replacement for existing germanium-based products.
Nio's Li Bin discusses embodied AI: Strategic investment will be the primary mode of participation over the long term, rather than developing it into a core business
$Nio (NIO.US)$Li Bin, Chairman and CEO, stated at an internal all-hands meeting held on September 8 that Nio will primarily participate in the field of embodied AI through strategic investments over the long term and will not develop it into a core mainstream business.
Nokia rises more than 2% in pre-market trading as hosted mobile core network live testing platform goes online
Nokia (NOK.US)Launched Mobile Core Early Access on Tuesday—an industry-first managed online live-testing platform for mobile core networks. Aimed at global telecom operators and enterprises, it provides an end-to-end real network environment, allowing customers to practically verify cutting-edge capabilities such as 5G core networks, network automation, and AI-native networking in advance. This eliminates the need to build proprietary test infrastructure, thereby reducing evaluation costs and uncertainty before the commercial deployment of new technologies. The project initiated pilots in June 2026 and opened global industry registration on September 8.
Robinhood expands its prediction market footprint through a partnership with Crypto.com and acquires a minority stake.
According to The Wall Street Journal,$Robinhood(HOOD.US)$Announced a multi-year partnership with cryptocurrency exchange Crypto.com to introduce yes-or-no event contracts supported by Crypto.com’s prediction market business, OG.com, on its trading platform. The company also acquired minority stakes in both Crypto.com and OG, further expanding its footprint in the prediction market sector.
Neither party disclosed the agreement amount or Robinhood’s investment scale. Crypto.com also announced that it had spun off OG into an independent company. In July this year, after Citadel Securities took stakes in Crypto.com and OG respectively, the two companies were valued at $15 billion and $5 billion, respectively.
U.S. financial company Chime rose more than 8% in pre-market trading after announcing the acquisition of Stride Bank and raising its performance guidance.
$Chime Financial(CHYM.US)$The company announced it would acquire its long-term partner Stride Bank for $590 million in cash, marking a formal transition from a fintech firm to a “licensed bank.” Additionally, the company simultaneously raised its performance guidance for the third quarter and the full year, signaling strong growth momentum.
The acquisition and upward revision of guidance are viewed by the market as a key step for Chime in evolving from an industry “challenger” to a “leader.” Multiple institutions reacted positively, believing that the banking license will accelerate the expansion of the company’s credit business and profit growth. Loop Capital even set a target price of $45.
U.S. Department of Justice expands antitrust investigation into Fox and Roku deal
Citing informed sources, Semafor reported that the U.S. Department of Justice is expanding its$Fox Corporation Class A (FOXA.US)$antitrust investigation into the acquisition of the streaming platform$Roku Inc (ROKU.US)$. Fox announced this $22 billion deal several months ago. The transaction will combine Fox’s broadcasting and sports businesses with Roku’s streaming services, making the merged entity the third-largest player in television viewing, behind YouTube and Disney, but ahead of Netflix. Reports indicate that the U.S. Department of Justice plans to request additional information from both companies through so-called “second requests,” which will involve a new round of data and document sharing.
Global Macro
Wall Street is closely watching the scale of Bessent’s U.S. Treasury buyback program, with analysts suggesting it could reach the $10 billion cap.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Bessent is set to announce the scale of long-term U.S. Treasury buybacks at 23:00 tonight. Analysts expect a single buyback operation to range between $5 billion and $10 billion, with Morgan Stanley citing an upper limit of approximately $10 billion. If this level is reached, the quarterly net issuance of bonds with maturities exceeding 20 years could decrease by 55%. Barclays anticipates that the Treasury will retain room for adjustment. Market participants will subsequently focus on the scale, frequency, and long-term guidance of the buybacks, with the 30-year swap spread likely serving as a more direct indicator of market sentiment regarding supply changes.
Related Reading:How will Bessent "buy back US Treasuries"? Early signs to emerge at 11:00 PM tonight
U.S. Central Command: No U.S. Navy vessels were attacked; 10 Iranian oil tankers destroyed.
U.S. Central Command: The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) of Iran claimed to have attacked two U.S. Navy destroyers operating in the Middle East. This claim is entirely false. No U.S. Navy warships were attacked; all IRGC attack attempts failed. Meanwhile, U.S. forces successfully destroyed 10 Iranian oil tankers over the past week. These vessels are part of a multi-billion-dollar shadow network that funds the IRGC, which Iran has been unable to protect.
Iran announces plans to establish a new maritime "sanctions zone"
Spokesperson for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps: Vessels entering the restricted zone in the Strait of Hormuz will face sanctions. Iran will establish a new maritime "sanctions zone," extending from the port of Chabahar into parts of the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea. Coordinates will be announced separately. Any vessel passing through the restricted area of the Strait of Hormuz without coordination with Iran will face sanctions.
Buoyed by strong earnings reports, Barclays raises its year-end target for the S&P 500 Index to 7,950 points.
Following a standout earnings season led by technology companies, Barclays raised its year-end target for the benchmark S&P 500 Index from 7,800 to 7,950 points on Wednesday. This revised target is approximately 3.6% higher than the index's recent closing price. The brokerage firm expects the benchmark index to rise to 8,800 points by the end of 2027. Barclays stated that investments in artificial intelligence and robust economic activity should support earnings momentum in the coming quarters. The firm also raised its 2026 earnings-per-share forecast for the S&P 500 from $337 to $365.
DeepSeek plans to officially release the V4.1 Flash model around September 10, 2026 (Beijing Time).
According to DeepSeek's official website, the company plans to officially release the V4.1 Flash model around September 10, 2026 (Beijing Time). Following extensive internal and external testing, V4.1 Flash has comprehensively surpassed V4 Pro across key metrics including performance, cost, speed, and total processing time. Demonstrating our commitment to user responsibility, all requests originally directed to V4 Pro will be routed to V4.1 Flash and billed at the V4.1 Flash unit price during the period between the official launch of V4.1 Flash and the subsequent launch of V4.1 Pro.
BlackRock: The impact of Japan’s interest rate reset has transcended national borders
Strategists at BlackRock stated in a research report that the impact of Japan's interest rate reset has extended beyond its borders as competition for capital intensifies. The strategists believe there is a feedback loop between bond markets: "Rising U.S. rates may weaken the yen and pressure the Bank of Japan to accelerate action; meanwhile, rising Japanese rates could attract more capital repatriation, weakening demand for U.S. Treasuries and thereby pushing up U.S. borrowing costs."
They pointed out that decades of ultra-low domestic yields have made Japan a major capital exporter, currently holding approximately $1.1 trillion in U.S. Treasury securities. If Japanese investors repatriate 5% of their funds, it would amount to $55 billion, roughly one-quarter of the total increase in U.S. Treasury holdings by foreign investors last year.
World Platinum Investment Council: Platinum market expected to shift to surplus this year
The World Platinum Investment Council (WPIC) stated that the platinum market is expected to shift from a deficit to a surplus this year after three consecutive years of shortages, driven by factors such as large-scale selling by investors. Earlier this year, the precious metal was swept up in an investment frenzy, with platinum surging to a historical high of nearly $3,000 per ounce. This rally subsequently reversed sharply, with platinum falling more than one-third from its January peak.
The WPIC now forecasts a supply surplus of 8.2 tons in 2026, a significant change from its earlier projection of a 9.2-ton shortage. This shift is attributed almost entirely to a downward revision in investment demand, with ETF holdings expected to decrease by approximately 12 tons this year. Ed Sterck, Head of Research at the WPIC, stated that while a supply deficit is expected in the second half of the year as investor demand recovers, it will not be sufficient to offset the impact of substantial ETF outflows earlier in the year.
Top 20 U.S. Stocks by Premarket Trading Volume
U.S. Equity Market Macro Calendar Reminder
(All times listed below are in Beijing Time)
Early the following morning
04:30 U.S. API Crude Oil Inventories for the Week Ending September 4 (10,000 barrels)
After-Hours Earnings
$American Eagle Outfitters (AEO.US)$、$AeroVironment (AVAV.US)$、$Navan (NAVN.US)$、$CooperCompanies (COO.US)$
Looking to select stocks or analyze your holdings? Want to understand the opportunities and risks in your portfolio? For any investment-related questions,just ask Futubull AI!
Editor/melody