Business & Markets
US stocks fall as 10-year yield hits 2007 high
US stocks closed lower Wednesday as the benchmark 10-year Treasury yield rose to 5.11%, its highest level since 2007, and oil prices climbed back above $103 per barrel.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.68% to 51,511, the S&P 500 dropped 0.75% to 7,706 and the Nasdaq Composite lost 1.13% to 26,936.
Brent North Sea crude rose 3.86% to $103.08 per barrel, while West Texas Intermediate gained 1.81% to $92.16. The moves revived concern that energy prices and borrowing costs could keep inflation pressure on markets.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian told the UN General Assembly that Tehran would never “bend at the knee” to the United States. On Tuesday, US President Donald Trump told the UN he was weighing whether to “annihilate” Iran but also hailed renewed talks with Tehran.
Angelo Kourkafas of Edward Jones told AFP that Treasury yields were rising and stocks were falling because investors increasingly expected the US Federal Reserve to keep raising rates. He also said UN comments and headlines had not helped sentiment around geopolitical risks.
John Kilduff of Again Capital said traders were pulling back some optimism about US-Iran diplomacy, saying there was not much substance to the meeting. Dan Coatsworth, head of markets at AJ Bell, said the oil-price rise reminded investors not to be complacent about inflation pressures.
European markets also lost ground. Frankfurt closed down 0.7%, Paris fell 0.4% and London finished flat. In Asia, Hong Kong closed down 1.0% and Shanghai fell 0.4%, while South Korea’s Kospi and Taiwan’s Taiex each gained nearly 1%.
Update
The US 10-year Treasury yield rose to 5.11%, its highest level since 2007.
The Dow closed down 0.68%, the S&P 500 down 0.75% and the Nasdaq down 1.13%.
Brent crude rose 3.86% to $103.08 per barrel and WTI rose 1.81% to $92.16.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian told the UN that Tehran would never “bend at the knee” to the United States.
Source note: AFP news report published on 23 September 2026 at 20:40:14 UTC.
Update
Brent North Sea crude was up 3.7% at $102.87 per barrel around 1545 GMT, while West Texas Intermediate was up 2.4% at $92.68.
The Dow and S&P 500 were down 0.6% and the Nasdaq was down 1.0% more than two hours into Wall Street trading.
Frankfurt closed down 0.7%, Paris down 0.4% and London flat.
Dan Coatsworth of AJ Bell said the oil-price rise reminded investors not to be complacent about inflation pressures.
Source note: AFP news report published on 23 September 2026 at 16:14:09 UTC.
Update
Brent crude rose back above $100 per barrel, up 1.8% at $101.08 around 1445 GMT.
West Texas Intermediate was up 1.2% at $91.64 around 1445 GMT.
Wall Street opened lower after the Nasdaq hit an all-time high on Tuesday.
Most European and Asian stock indices also pulled back, while London was slightly higher.
Source note: AFP news report published on 23 September 2026 at 14:19:07 UTC.
Update
Brent North Sea crude was down 0.1% at $99.15 per barrel around 1015 GMT, while West Texas Intermediate was down 0.9% at $89.73.
The OECD said global growth had been resilient in many countries despite the war and slightly raised its 2026 output forecasts.
Alibaba said it would expand overseas data centres targeting Europe and the Middle East, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng closed down 1.0%.
Source note: AFP news report published on 23 September 2026 at 10:42:15 UTC.
Update
Brent crude was flat at $99.30 a barrel and West Texas Intermediate was down 0.7% at $89.93 around 0815 GMT.
Bloomberg reported Saudi Arabia had restarted operations on the East-West Pipeline and aimed to resume exports later in the week.
Bloomberg reported Aramco told Asian refiners they could soon pick up crude from Yanbu, while European counterparts would not receive October allocations.
Asian markets were mixed, Europe posted gains, and Alibaba announced plans to expand overseas data centres.
Source note: AFP news report published on 23 September 2026 at 08:37:48 UTC.
Update
Oil prices fell in early Asian trade after Trump described US-Iran talks at the UN as very good and productive.
West Texas Intermediate was down 0.7% at $89.93 a barrel and Brent crude was down 0.3% at $98.91 around 0215 GMT.
Bloomberg reported that Saudi Arabia had rebooted operations along its East-West Pipeline and aimed to resume exports later in the week.
Asian stock markets were mixed, with Taiwan's Taiex up 0.8% amid renewed confidence in artificial intelligence companies.
Source note: AFP news report published on 23 September 2026 at 02:52:36 UTC.
Update
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi took part in the meeting with Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner.
Iranian media reported that Araghchi gave conditions for reopening the Strait of Hormuz.
Witkoff said mediators shuttled between the two sides throughout the day and completed a round of discussions.
Trump later told Gulf leaders there was momentum for Iran to make a deal.
Source note: AFP news report published on 23 September 2026 at 00:16:45 UTC.
Update
Trump told the UN General Assembly he was deciding whether to make a deal with Iran or “annihilate” the Islamic Republic.
All but one member of the Iranian delegation walked out during Trump's speech.
Trump said the three-hour meeting included Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner.
Witkoff said he felt “very good” about the Iranian meeting but gave no further details.
Trump said he believed Iran would make a deal after November's midterm elections.
Source note: AFP news report published on 22 September 2026 at 19:26:24 UTC.
Update
Trump described the US-Iranian meeting as very good and productive.
Trump said the meeting lasted about three hours.
Trump said another meeting was scheduled in the near future.
The comments came hours after Trump threatened to annihilate Iran if it did not make a deal to end the war.
Source note: AFP news report published on 22 September 2026 at 18:09:13 UTC.
Uncertainty notes
The source material does not establish whether US-Iran talks will lead to an agreement.
Source
AFP news report published on .