The Morning Briefing · Thursday, 22 October 2026 · Published 07:30 CET · 5-minute read
Good morning. A deadly drone attack on a Saudi oil field has put energy back at the centre of the market story, just as Wall Street enjoyed a chip-led rally and Meta and Tesla opened their books. Here is what you need to know before the opening bell.
☕ Today in 30 seconds
- Oil tops $110. A Houthi drone strike near Saudi Arabia’s Shaybah field revived supply fears, which feed straight into fuel and heating costs.
- Chips lift Wall Street. The Nasdaq gained about 1% and the S&P 500 sits close to its record high.
- Meta beats, spends big. Revenue jumped 26%, but AI spending and legal settlements squeezed profit.
- France’s borrowing costs hit 5%. The 10-year yield touched a level last seen in 2002.
📈 Markets
| Index/Asset | Last close | Change |
|---|---|---|
| S&P 500 | 7,757.2 | +0.58% |
| Nasdaq Composite | 26,702.9 | +1.05% |
| Dow Jones | 52,856 | +0.69% |
| Euro Stoxx 50 | ↑ higher | about +1.4% |
| IBEX 35 | 19,323.5 | +1.21% |
| Brent crude (Dec) | $108.82 | ≈ flat |
| Gold | ↑ higher | slightly higher |
| EUR/USD | ≈ 1.12 | ↓ slightly lower |
| US 10-year yield | 5.13% | ≈ flat |
Semiconductor stocks led the gains on Wednesday, while SpaceX jumped almost 8% after reporting its first profit as a listed company. In Europe, banks drove the IBEX 35 back above 19,300 points despite rising French bond yields (Yahoo Finance, Europa Press via Press Digital).
🌍 Economy
The Fed goes quiet before a closely watched decision. US policymakers are in their blackout period ahead of the 28 October meeting, after raising rates in September to a 3.75%–4.00% range. With September inflation at 3.7% and oil climbing, markets are debating whether another hike comes this month or later in the year. A 20-year Treasury auction cleared at its highest yield since 1986, a sign that investors are demanding more to lend long term (Babypips, Yahoo Finance).
UK inflation rises to 3.5%. Consumer prices rose faster than the 3.4% economists expected in September, up from 3.1% the month before. The surprise strengthens the case for the Bank of England to tighten policy at its 5 November meeting (Babypips).
France’s borrowing costs flash a warning. The French 10-year yield briefly reached 5% as investors worried about public finances after weekend unrest, with a Moody’s rating decision due soon. Spain’s 10-year yield also rose, to about 4.08% (Europa Press via Press Digital).
⚡ Energy & bills
Saudi attacks push oil back above $110. A Houthi drone aimed at Saudi Aramco’s Shaybah field was intercepted, but falling debris killed two people; the energy ministry said operations were unaffected. A separate attack on Dammam’s airport killed one person. Brent settled flat at $108.82 on Wednesday and then climbed above $110, adding pressure on petrol, diesel and heating bills. Oil is up roughly 80% this year (The National, Rigzone).
Iberdrola lifts its outlook. Spain’s largest utility reported nine-month net profit of €5.82 billion, up 9.6%, helped by a €953 million gain from selling its Mexican business, and raised its 2026 guidance (Europa Press via Press Digital).
🏢 Companies
Meta beats on sales but its AI bill keeps growing. Third-quarter revenue rose 26% to $64.6 billion and the company guided to $73–76 billion for the fourth quarter. Quarterly capital spending reached $34.9 billion, and legal settlement charges cut the operating margin to 20%. Meta also announced a 2-for-1 split through new non-voting shares; the stock rose about 3% after hours (Forbes, Fortune).
Tesla’s profit falls, but cash flow surprises. Revenue was flat at about $28 billion and operating income fell 56% to $718 million as spending on AI and robots rose. Adjusted earnings of $0.48 a share beat forecasts, and free cash flow came in positive at $1.53 billion. The shares were little changed after hours (Electrek).
🔢 One number to know
5%
The level France’s 10-year bond yield briefly touched on Wednesday, the first time since 2002, raising the cost of public borrowing in the eurozone’s second-largest economy (Babypips).
🗓 What to watch today
| Time (CET) | Event | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| 12:00 | Honeywell, Comcast and Spotify results | Industry, media and streaming demand |
| 13:00 | Procter & Gamble and American Airlines results | How consumers cope with higher prices and fuel costs |
| 13:45 | Union Pacific results | US freight as a gauge of the real economy |
| 14:30 | US initial jobless claims (forecast: 200,000) | Labour-market health before the Fed decision |
| 22:00 | Western Digital and Newmont results | AI storage demand and gold-miner profits |
Full week in our economic calendar.
📚 Read more
- Natural gas slips below $3: what it means for your heating bill
- Best Thermostat Settings for Winter: Save on Heating
- Shoppers spent 0.8% more. Did they actually buy more?
- Tool: see what prices really cost you with our inflation calculator.
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Market data is for information only and is not investment advice.
Written by The Daily Economy editorial team with AI assistance and checked against the linked sources. Read our editorial policy.