Top U.S. Stories

  • The Federal Reserve held interest rates steady. Two of the 12 voting FOMC members dissented, both wanting a quarter-point hike. Why it matters: The dissents underscore that tighter policy remains part of the debate even though the committee held rates steady.
  • Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said it would not necessarily be a mistake if the Fed hikes again. Why it matters: Even the administration is signaling it will tolerate higher rates, which lowers the odds of near-term relief for borrowers.
  • Alphabet missed third-quarter expectations on both earnings and revenue, its first double miss in nearly four years, and fell about 10% after hours. Microsoft rose about 4% after Azure revenue grew 48%. Why it matters: AI spending is no longer rewarded across the board; investors are sorting winners from losers.
  • Oracle jumped about 11% after laying out a fiscal 2030 revenue forecast of $225 billion.
  • The FEC’s campaign finance system went offline days before the midterms after hackers reportedly targeted the site.

Compass Insight

Today’s thread is sticky inflation. The Fed stood still, but the dissents leaned hawkish, and September consumer prices were up 3.7% from a year earlier. With oil above $100 a barrel, fuel and food costs keep pressing on households. Short term, watch the Bank of Japan meeting and how the big-tech earnings reaction carries into Asian trading. Over the medium term, two things matter for stocks, the dollar and mortgage rates: the Fed’s next decision and whether oil eases. This is analysis, not advice.

Markets

Stocks in Focus

  • Alphabet (down ~10% after hours): a first double miss in nearly four years, with higher 2027 capex guided.
  • Microsoft (up ~4% after hours): cloud strength drove the beat.
  • Stellantis (up ~13%): turnaround plan and cost cuts gaining traction.

This is not a recommendation to buy or sell any security.

Also Making Headlines

  • A high-speed train crash in Spain’s Toledo province has killed at least 68 people. Authorities said the security system failed and the central command instructed the train to proceed; the engineers were not blamed.
  • In Israel, projections with 88% of ballots counted put Netanyahu’s bloc on 53 of 120 seats, short of a majority.

Sources:

Auto-generated and AI-written. Not investment advice.