US Pre-Market: Brent Jumps 6.96% to US$89.94, Korea's KOSPI Falls 5.98% Before the Fed
Sentiment: mixed S&P 500 futures: -0.04%
Brent crude jumped 6.96% to US$89.94 a barrel overnight on tightening physical supply and Strait of Hormuz shipping disruption, lifting US oil producers before the open on 29 July 2026. Vertiv VRT.US fell 12.23% pre-market after second-quarter revenue of $3.274 billion missed consensus by roughly $137 million. S&P 500 futures sat at 7,462.50, down 0.04%, flat into a Federal Reserve decision due at 2:00pm ET.
Overnight drivers
- Crude: Brent +6.96% to US$89.94, WTI +6.59% to US$84.48. Oil producers led the pre-market bid: FANG.US +4.51%, OXY.US +2.91%, VLO.US +2.70%, COP.US +2.53%, XOM.US +2.36%, CVX.US +2.10%. Airlines fell: AAL.US -3.12%, DAL.US -2.32%, UAL.US -2.26%.
- Korea: KOSPI -5.98% to 5,663.24 from 6,023.66, triggering a circuit breaker for a second straight session and taking the two-day fall to about 16%. SK Hynix operating profit rose sixfold to a record 60.5 trillion won and still missed analyst forecasts.
- Fed: US 10-year yield 4.64%, up 0.76%, with the dollar index at 101.46. CME FedWatch put roughly 62% to 64% on a hold at 3.50% to 3.75%, and about 36% on a hike to 3.75% to 4.00%. No dot plot at this meeting.
- Gold: US$4,074.80, down 0.58%, falling while crude spiked. That combination fits an oil supply shock more than a defensive bid.
Overnight Wall Street (Tuesday 28 July close)
- S&P 500: 7,428.78 (+0.21%)
- Nasdaq Composite: 24,876.91 (-0.22%)
- Dow: 52,747.32 (+1.03%)
- VIX: 18.82 (+3.36%)
- Russell 2000: 2,953.80 (+0.20%)
The 1.25 percentage point gap between the Dow and the Nasdaq came from a rotation out of semiconductors. SNDK.US fell 14.25%, MU.US 8.85%, AMD.US 8.15%, ARM.US 8.11% and AMAT.US 7.82%, while IBM.US rose 5.21% and added Dow index points.
Overnight Asia and Europe
- KOSPI: 5,663.24 (-5.98%)
- Nikkei 225: 61,434.19 (-1.49%)
- Hang Seng: 25,807.92 (+1.96%)
- STOXX 600: 645.36 (-0.24%)
- DAX: 25,475.54 (+0.05%)
- FTSE 100: 10,880.35 (+0.09%)
Hong Kong closed 1.96% higher while Seoul and Tokyo fell. Europe opened near unchanged, with the STOXX 600 off 0.24% and the DAX up 0.05%.
Pre-market movers
| Ticker | Move | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| STX.US | +4.91% | Q4 revenue +48.5% to $3.63bn, Q1 guide 8.7% above consensus |
| FANG.US | +4.51% | Crude +6.96% |
| OXY.US | +2.91% | Crude +6.96% |
| WDC.US | +2.44% | AI storage demand, follows STX.US |
| VRT.US | -12.23% | Q2 revenue $3.274bn missed consensus by ~$137m |
| KLAC.US | -8.98% | Fell despite Q4 results and guidance topping estimates |
| LRCX.US | -3.12% | Semicap selling after KLAC.US |
| AAL.US | -3.12% | Fuel cost on crude +6.96% |
| AMAT.US | -3.05% | Semicap selling after KLAC.US |
| PG.US | -2.64% | Q4 EPS $1.48 beat the $1.42 consensus |
US economic calendar today (ET)
- 10:30am: EIA weekly petroleum status report, the first official inventory print since the crude move
- 2:00pm: Federal Reserve rate decision, no dot plot
- 2:30pm: Chair Warsh press conference
- After the close: MSFT.US and META.US report, with QCOM.US the same evening
- Thursday 8:30am: advance second-quarter GDP and the PCE price index
What to watch
- Storage separated from semicap overnight. STX.US +4.91% and WDC.US +2.44% moved against AMAT.US -3.05% and LRCX.US -3.12%, so the AI trade is splitting rather than unwinding as one.
- NVDA.US closed Tuesday +0.25% while SNDK.US fell 14.25% and MU.US 8.85%, leaving the largest semiconductor weight outside the selling.
- Brent at US$89.94 sits 6.96% above Tuesday's settle and follows a 16% three-session decline, so the spike recovers ground already lost.
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