Deeper Analysis
May 2026 in Figures
May 29, 2026
For many weeks now, Trump administration officials have been saying that a peace deal may be just around the corner, but the conditions for such have so far proven elusive. That hasn’t mattered. Repeat something long enough and people will come to believe it, and so financial markets in the third month of the Middle […] More
New Overnight Developments Abroad - Daily Update
Waiting for the War to End
May 29, 2026
The verbal message that a peace deal in the Middle East, which began very soon after the conflict’s outbreak, may be getting stale but nonetheless continues to temper the reaction of financial markets. The Strait of Hormuz remains largely shut. Fighting in Lebanon continues. The U.S. has still not signed off on the reported deal […] More
New Overnight Developments Abroad - Daily Update
Mixed Middle Eastern News But Investors Seeing the Cup Half Full
May 28, 2026
From a military standpoint, it doesn’t look like long-term peace in the Middle East is close at hand. The U.S. and Iran traded military strikes already this week, and the ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon is being repeatedly violated as well. Nonetheless, reports continue that Iranian and U.S. negotiators are close to a penciling a […] More
New Overnight Developments Abroad - Daily Update
Big Overnight Drop in the Price of Oil
May 27, 2026
The news regarding U.S.-Iranian negotiations remains confusingly mixed, but the market’s attention has honed in on an optimistic comment on Iranian state news predicting a return to pre-war shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz within a month. In response, the price of WTI crude dived as low as $87.77 (a 40-day trough) and is […] More
New Overnight Developments Abroad - Daily Update
U.S. Dollar and Equities Outperforming Other Financial Markets
May 26, 2026
In overnight trading following the extended U.S. Memorial Day holiday weekend, the dollar strengthened 0.8% against the Indonesian rupiah, 0.5% vis-a-vis the kiwi, 0.3% relative to sterling, the Mexican peso and Swiss franc, and 0.2% versus the yen and euro. Advances so far in the Russell 2000, Nasdaq and S&P 500 amount to 1.7%, 1.3% […] More
Central Bank Watch
Bank of Israel Policy Rate Cut to 3.75%
May 25, 2026
The policy interest rate of the Bank of Israel as expected has been lowered by 25 basis points today. This was the fourth such cut since the start of 2024 but only the first since this past January. At 3.75%, the new interest rate level is its lowest since September 2o23. The central bank’s statement […] More
New Overnight Developments Abroad - Daily Update
Holiday Interruptions and Optimism about a Deal to Open the Strait of Hormuz
May 25, 2026
(138) U.S. and British financial markets will be closed for Memorial Day and the late spring bank holiday, respectively. While many other European countries will be observing Whit Monday, the major stock markets are open. President Trump keeps dangling the prospect of a coming deal with Iran to end the war, reopen the Strait of […] More
New Overnight Developments Abroad - Daily Update
Balancing Strong Corporate Earnings Against Continuing Frustration Over Failure to Reopen the Strait of Hormuz
May 22, 2026
This week at least the lack of cheery news on the U.S./Iranian negotiating front was outweighed by proof of continuing heavy investment in AI and overall strong profitability in the tech industries. U.S. equities rose further today. Japan’s Nikkei leaped by 2.7% and was nearly matched by a rebound in Taiwanese equities. Stock markets rose […] More
New Overnight Developments Abroad - Daily Update
Thursday Highlights
May 21, 2026
Whereas it was President Trump’s questionable decision to launch a military attack on Iran with the intent of never allowing the current regime there to possess nuclear weapons lit the fire of global inflation and the second major supply shock of this decade, purchasing manager surveys reported today suggest that other countries so far are […] More
New Overnight Developments Abroad - Daily Update
Watching Iran, Central Banks and Inflation Data While Also Anticipating Nvidia’s 1Q Earnings Report
May 20, 2026
As has become increasingly common, same-day movement in Asian equity markets has been opposite in direction from the trends in Europe and North America. On this Wednesday, Pac Rim share prices closed lower, including losses of 1.7% in New Zealand, 1.3% in Australia, 1.2% in Japan and 0.9% in South Korea. The major euro area […] More
