(The opinions expressed here are those of the author, a

columnist for Reuters.)

By Mike Dolan

Nov 12 - What matters in U.S. and global markets today

By Mike Dolan, Editor-At-Large, Finance and Markets

Markets have already effectively priced in the U.S. government's

reopening on Monday, with today's House vote to restore funding

through January seen as a formality. Attention has now turned

more to tech sector wobbles and the deluge of delayed economic

data now due.

Veterans Day stock market trading was relatively subdued,

even though the S&P500 eked out a modest gain and the Dow Jones

Industrial Average clocked a new record high.

Unusually, the tech sector underperformed and the Nasdaq ended

in the red - unnerved by CoreWeave's 16% slide on data center

flubs and as SoftBank's sale of its stake in Nvidia knocked back

the world's most valuable company by more than 2%.

SoftBank's shares slid as much as 10% in Tokyo on Wednesday

as Nvidia highlighted the scale of the funding demands it faces

to bankroll an "all-in" bet on ChatGPT-creator OpenAI.

And Japan was volatile for other reasons - with the yen sliding

to a nine-month low of 154.9 per dollar after new Prime Minister

Sanae Takaichi once again urged the Bank of Japan not to be

overzealous in raising interest rates.

The yen move was arrested somewhat by comments from Finance

Minister Satsuki Katayama, who warned about the negative effects

of "one-sided and rapid movements" in the currency. Currency

traders doubt intervention alarm bells will ring before the yen

hits 160 - but that level is fast approaching.

Asian and European shares were higher and Wall Street stock

futures in positive territory ahead of Wednesday's bell,

however.

The prospect of a reopening of the federal government came

against another set of mixed signals on the U.S. economy, with

weekly updates of ADP's preliminary payroll figures showing

private sector employers shed an average of 11,250 jobs a week

through October.

That cosseted persistent speculation the Fed will cut interest

rates again next month, with futures clinging to a two-thirds

chance of another move in December despite clear disquiet in

some parts of the central bank about further easing.

A slew of Fed officials are on Wednesday's speaking diary,

including resident board doves Christopher Waller and Stephen

Miran. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is also due to address a

joint Fed-Treasury conference later in the day.

After Tuesday's holiday, Treasury markets reopen with yields

under wraps ahead of today's 10-year note auction.

President Donald Trump is expected to host a private dinner at

the White House with several top business executives, including

the chief executives of Nasdaq and JPMorgan Chase.

Aside from its move against the yen, the dollar was flatter

against the euro and other currencies on Wednesday. The Swiss

franc continued to push higher on reports that U.S. tariffs on

Swiss imports will be slashed to 15% from 39%.

Britain's pound and government bond prices weakened in tandem,

meanwhile, on overnight reports that Prime Minister Keir Starmer

may face a leadership challenge from within his own Labour

Party. Health minister Wes Streeting denied he was plotting to

bring down Starmer after unnamed allies of the prime minister

claimed a leadership bid could come after this month's critical

government budget.

In today's column, I argue that Europe's equity outperformance

this year has been flattered by currency shifts, so the

long-term test of its companies and economy rests on how it

fosters its emerging tech ecosystem.

Today's Market Minute

* Members of the House of Representatives headed back to

Washington on Tuesday, after a 53-day break, braving the

congestion at the nation's tangled airports for a vote that

could bring the longest U.S. government shutdown in history to a

close.

* U.S. President Donald Trump has threatened to sue the BBC

for at

least $1 billion over its airing of what he says was a

deceptively edited documentary, but the case could hinge on

whether anyone in Florida watched it online and felt misled.

* General Motors (GM.N) has directed several thousand of its

suppliers to scrub their supply chains of parts from China, four

people familiar with the matter said, reflecting automakers'

growing frustration over geopolitical disruptions to their

operations.

* The International Energy Agency's latest outlook signals

that

oil demand may continue rising into 2050, a sharp shift from its

previous reports and a stark reminder of how dominant black gold

remains in the global economy. Read the latest from ROI energy

columnist Ron Bousso.

* Momentum has been the stock market story of 2025, as

trades that

have worked just keep on working. It would be brave to bet

against momentum at this point, but there might be ways to ride

the wave while avoiding a wipeout, argues Helen Jewell,

BlackRock International CIO, Fundamental Equities.

Chart of the day

SoftBank's shares slid as much as 10% on Wednesday after a

$5.8 billion sale of its stake in Nvidia highlighted the growing

funding demands it faces to bankroll an "all-in" bet on ChatGPT

creator OpenAI and other investments. The conglomerate needs to

fund a $22.5 billion follow-on investment in OpenAI, is

acquiring chipmaker Ampere in a $6.5 billion deal and has agreed

to buy the robotics business of Swiss group ABB for $5 billion.

A total spending commitment of $41 billion compares with the

group's $28 billion cash position as of September.

Today's events to watch

* Canada September building permits (8:30 AM EDT)

* Republican-controlled U.S. House of Representatives to

vote Wednesday afternoon on restoring funding to government

agencies and ending a shutdown now in its 42nd day

* Federal Reserve Board Governors Christopher Waller,

Stephen Miran and Michael Barr all speak, New York Fed President

John Williams, Philadelphia Fed President Anna Paulson, Boston

Fed chief Susan Collins and Atlanta Fed boss Raphael Bostic all

speak; European Central Bank Vice-President Luis de Guindos and

ECB board member Isabel Schnabel speak; Bank of England chief

economist Huw Pill and BoE's Director for Financial Stability,

Strategy and Risk Lee Foulger speak

* Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent speaks at 2025 U.S.

Treasury Market Conference (10:45 AM EDT)

* U.S. Treasury sells $42 billion of 10-year notes

* U.S. corporate earnings: Cisco, TransDigm

* U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission chair Paul Atkins

speaks about SEC's "Project Crypto"

* Euro zone finance ministers meet in Brussels, with

European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde, ECB board

member Piero Cipollone and ECB chief supervisor Claudia Buch all

attending.

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Opinions expressed are those of the author. They do not reflect

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committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.