Here are the key stories moving markets this evening.
1. Global Markets Rally as Gold, Silver and Equities Jump; Crude Oil Plunges
Good news has arrived, and global markets are reacting sharply. On the evening of September 17, gold and silver prices saw a powerful rally, with European stocks and US futures also climbing in tandem. Nasdaq futures surged more than 1.6% during the session. Meanwhile, crude oil prices dropped steeply. Analyst commentary suggests this combined market movement points to a de-escalation in the Middle East. Saudi Arabia is seeking to restore approximately half of the capacity on its critical East-West pipeline within the coming days, a key artery that was shut down last week following a drone strike. Additionally, the kingdom has been selling more crude to Asian refiners, with delivery points located outside the Strait of Hormuz. However, significant risks persist, with the conflict between the US and Iran continuing to threaten regional energy transit, while the Russia-Ukraine war also remains an ongoing concern.
2. China Commerce Ministry Confirms Active Talks with US on Tariff Reduction
On September 17, the Ministry of Commerce held its routine press conference. When asked about the latest progress in discussions regarding a potential $30 billion mutual tariff reduction arrangement, spokesperson He Yadong stated that the economic and trade teams of both sides are maintaining close communication on relevant topics, with updates to be released in due course.
3. Jensen Huang: Nvidia Chip Sales Set to Double Next Year
On Thursday, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang stated that the company's chip sales next year are expected to be double this year's figures. He also emphasized that unsafe products must be blocked, asserting that AI safety is of critical importance. Huang noted that AI is fundamentally "very different" from social media, suggesting that current safety concerns revolve around products that are "not yet ready for release." Rather than imposing regulations on the technology itself, he argued for regulating issues that arise after AI is actually deployed.
4. Tesla Accelerates Robot Mass Production with New Chinese Supply Chain Audits
A Tesla team has arrived in Ningbo and begun a new round of production audits for its robotics business on September 17. Industry sources indicate that Tesla initiated this audit process in September to verify exclusivity and consistency for Optimus robot production, including assistance with equipment calibration and the transfer of manufacturing capabilities from US factories. Reports suggest this audit round will directly steer Optimus toward mass production, with purchase orders already issued to supply chain partners. According to plan, Tesla aims to produce around 50,000 Optimus robots by 2026, deploying them across its network of gigafactories worldwide.
5. Warning Signs Flashing for Several Hot Stocks
On September 17, corn sector leader Wanxiang Denong announced that its stock had accumulated an unusual price surge, with a closing price increase deviation exceeding 20% over two consecutive trading days, qualifying as abnormal trading activity. Shares have risen 119.97% between August 17 and September 17, triggering five abnormal fluctuation alerts during that period. The company warned that its valuation has deviated significantly from fundamentals and fair value ranges, creating a risk of rapid price declines. Additionally, Aohong Electronics, which has risen for five consecutive sessions, Jixin Technology, and Inner Mongolia Xinhua all issued similar risk warnings in their evening announcements.
6. Goldman Sachs Revises Forecast After Hawkish Fed Signal, Now Expects October Hike
The Federal Reserve's September meeting proved more hawkish than anticipated, forcing Goldman Sachs to quickly revise its projections. The investment bank has shifted its base case from a "one-and-done" rate hike to a scenario featuring consecutive increases in September and October. The core logic behind incorporating an October hike into Goldman's baseline forecast lies in the Fed's characterization of this move as supporting a "more timely return" to the 2% target, making follow-through at the next meeting a more natural progression than skipping a session.
7. Major Exchanges Announce Holiday Trading Schedules
On September 17, the Shanghai Stock Exchange, Shenzhen Stock Exchange, and Beijing Stock Exchange announced their trading arrangements for the 2026 Mid-Autumn Festival and National Day holidays. Markets will close from Friday, September 25 through Sunday, September 27, reopening on Monday, September 28. For National Day, markets will close from Thursday, October 1 through Wednesday, October 7, with trading resuming on Thursday, October 8. Additionally, weekend closures will apply on Sunday, September 20 and Saturday, October 10.
8. Bank of England Holds Rates Steady but Warns of Hike if Iran Conflict Persists
The Bank of England kept its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 3.75% on Thursday, though its language on inflation risks turned more hawkish. Governor Andrew Bailey warned that if Middle East energy market turbulence persists and begins transmitting more broadly to UK prices and wages, the central bank may need to raise rates again. The BoE chose not to immediately follow the Federal Reserve and European Central Bank in tightening policy, primarily due to weaker domestic demand and labor market conditions in the UK. However, months of the Iran conflict have clearly altered the trajectory of UK interest rate expectations.
Opportunities to Watch
Innovative drugs are drawing significant market attention. According to CCTV News, reporting from the 2026 Zhangjiang Pharma Summit and Shanghai International Biomedical Industry Week, the momentum for innovative drug approvals continues unabated. A total of 59 innovative drugs have been approved for market this year, including 13 with novel mechanisms or new targets, reflecting steady progress in original innovation capabilities. From January to August, the national biopharmaceutical business development sector recorded 113 transactions totaling $119.997 billion. Analysts at Zheshang Securities indicate that domestic innovative drug BD deals are being consistently realized, with China's path to global innovation drug commercialization becoming increasingly smooth and potentially leading to a comprehensive valuation reassessment. The firm also notes that improvements in CXO orders and profitability continue to validate key assumptions, alongside sustained BD activity and overseas clinical data that demonstrates the global competitiveness of domestic innovative drugs.
Other sectors worth monitoring include: computing power, as Nebius announced GPU cloud service price increases effective October 1, with the highest rise reaching 21%; wind power, with domestic wind turbine units seeing surging global orders according to CCTV Finance; foldable screens, as Samsung may accelerate development of its second-generation tri-fold phone; agricultural planting, given India's rice production faces its largest decline in 16 years; and lithium resources, with CATL planning a 1.4 billion yuan investment in Ya'an to build new annual production capacity of 40,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate.
Positive Announcements
Notable positive corporate announcements include: Fujian Expressway's controlling shareholder plans to increase holdings by 130 million to 230 million yuan; Zhenlan Instruments' chairman proposes a share buyback of 80 million to 160 million yuan; Hengrui Medicine repurchased 335,000 A-shares today, paying 14.5 million yuan; Hengtong Co's controlling shareholder received a 90 million yuan special loan commitment for share increases; and China Ruilin signed an overseas copper tailings leaching project contract worth approximately 3.378 billion yuan.
Negative Announcements
On the downside, several companies announced shareholder reduction plans: Ankai Bus's shareholder Anhui Provincial Investment Group intends to reduce holdings by up to 0.85%; Jiangshun Technology's shareholders plan to reduce holdings by up to 3%; Chitianhua's shareholder Great Wall Company plans to cut holdings by up to 3%; Huiyu Pharmaceutical's shareholder Huang Ganyi faces passive reduction of up to 2.46%; and Yuanxiang New Materials' shareholder Huaxing Venture Capital plans to reduce holdings by up to 1.22%.
This article is based on publicly available information compiled from multiple sources.