Daily Market Update — 22 August 2026

U.S. stocks rebounded on Friday as strong services activity and resilient earnings supported sentiment, although Middle East tensions, higher oil prices and elevated bond yields kept investors cautious.

S&P 500: +0.43% to 7,674.37

Dow Jones: +0.98% to 53,277.01

Nasdaq: +0.44% to 26,180.46

U.S. 2Y Treasury: ~4.23%, up 1–2 bps

U.S. 10Y Treasury: ~4.74%, up 4 bps

1. Geopolitics & Trade

* Iran rejected U.S. economic pressure, while China opposed unilateral sanctions.

* Diplomatic channels remain open, but Hormuz-related risks are still a concern.

* U.S.-Canada trade talks are progressing, with lower tariff terms under discussion.

* Trump temporarily exempted selected ground beef imports from tariffs.

Impact: Oil and bond-yield risks could continue to pressure equities.

Positive: Diplomacy and tariff relief may help reduce inflation pressure.

2. U.S. PMI Hits a 4-Year High

* Composite PMI rose to 56.0.

* Services PMI climbed to 56.8.

* Manufacturing PMI eased to 53.2.

* Employment and business confidence improved.

* Q3 GDP growth is tracking close to 3%.

Impact: Strong growth could delay Fed easing and keep yields elevated.

Positive: The U.S. economy remains resilient, supporting the earnings outlook.

3. AI & Tech

* OpenAI open-sourced Codex Harness.

* ChatGPT is expanding deeper into apps and messaging.

* AI is shifting from simple chat toward agents that can operate across workflows.

Impact: Competition is increasingly moving toward control of platforms, data and workflows.

Positive: Broader AI adoption should support cloud, compute and enterprise software demand.

4. Corporate & Market

* Broadcom is reportedly exploring US$70–80bn of AI-related financing.

* Samsung plans shareholder returns of up to roughly US$79bn.

* Strong AI and memory demand are increasingly translating into cash flow.

Impact: Debt-funded AI infrastructure raises financing-cost concerns.

Positive: Capital is still flowing into AI, while stronger cash generation supports shareholder returns.

What to Watch Next Week

* U.S. PCE inflation

* GDP and durable goods orders

* Jackson Hole

* Nvidia earnings

* Salesforce, CrowdStrike, Intuit, Marvell and Workday earnings

Key watch: Nvidia earnings + PCE inflation + Jackson Hole.

If AI demand stays strong while inflation remains contained, the recent pressure on technology stocks could start to ease.