Stocks, Treasuries Get Relief Ahead of CPI, US Diesel Passes $6/Gallon

Summary

Bloomberg Brief previews a CPI-driven session with markets steadier after a selloff, but Treasury yields still near 5% and US diesel above $6 a gallon for the first time. Guests debate whether the Fed hikes next week, what is driving the long-end selloff, and whether Treasury buybacks can cap yields. The episode also covers DeepSeek-driven weakness in Korean memory chips, Middle East oil supply risks, Microsoft's data-center expansion, corporate movers, and the political backdrop.

• Equities and Treasuries steadied ahead of the US CPI print after a multi-day selloff, with the 10-year yield just below 5%.
• Asian tech led declines, with SK hynix and Samsung Electronics hit as DeepSeek's more efficient model raised doubts about high-bandwidth memory demand.
• US diesel topped $6 a gallon for the first time, and the IEA warned high prices may force oil demand lower as Middle East supply risks escalate.
• Oracle lifted tech futures after cloud sales more than doubled, while Adobe slid on a soft outlook and AI competition fears.
• BNP Paribas expects a 25 basis point Fed hike next week and roughly three hikes in total, arguing policy is not restrictive enough.
• Guests debated long-end yield fundamentals, the Treasury buyback bazooka and Bank of Japan independence after Bessent's comments.
• Microsoft's plan to more than triple data-center capacity was viewed as positive; Scotland's wind-to-data-center plan and OpenAI's possible slowdown were also discussed.
• Political coverage focused on the midterm Republican convention and the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.