Markets
Follow financial markets through the mechanisms that move them. USA Standard covers US equities, bonds, interest rates, funds, capital markets, currencies and commodities, with reporting and explainers that focus on what moved and why.
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Markets
Oil Surge Above $100 Pushes 10-Year Treasury Yield to 5.18%
Higher oil prices from US-Iran tensions drive 10-year Treasury yields to 5.18%, raising mortgage rates and compressing stock valuations. What comes next.
Markets
Market-wide circuit breakers halt trading at S&P 500 drops of 7%, 13% and 20%
When the S&P 500 drops 7%, 13% or 20%, automatic halts pause trading to let investors absorb information instead of panicking. The thresholds recalculate every day.
Markets
SEC Approves Five-Year Exemption for Tokenized Stock Trading Venues
The SEC's September 2026 Innovation Exemption permits tokenized stock trading on permissioned venues for five years, creating price discovery and settlement risks.
Markets
Buybacks shrink share count and lift EPS, but SEC filings show if the price was right
When a company repurchases its own shares, it mechanically boosts earnings per share by shrinking the share count. Here's what that means for valuations and how to read buyback disclosures.
Markets
When the Fed talks, markets move before rates change
Markets price in Fed policy changes through the dot plot, FOMC statements and futures contracts—sometimes months before the actual decision.
Markets
Bond price swings reflect the yield on cash you'll receive later
When interest rates rise, existing bonds with lower fixed payments become less attractive. Duration measures how sharply each bond's price will fall.
Markets
Fed Raises Rates to 4%, Pushing Treasury Yields Above 5%
The Federal Reserve's first rate increase since 2023 lifted Treasury yields above 5% and signaled more tightening ahead, reshaping how investors value both bonds and growth stocks.
Markets
Bond yields carry Fed rate decisions into stock valuations
When the Federal Reserve adjusts interest rates, stock and bond prices shift as investors recalculate the discount rates used in valuation models.
Markets
Why Rising Interest Rates Lower Stock Values and Bond Prices
The Federal Reserve's September 16 rate hike to 3.75%-4% sets off predictable cascades through financial markets. Here's how Fed decisions ripple into discount rates, valuations, and yields.
Markets
How Treasury yields and stock valuations move together
As bond yields rise, the math underlying stock prices shifts.
Markets
How interest rate increases affect stock market valuations
When the Federal Reserve raises interest rates, stock valuations fall through the mathematics of present value—even if company earnings are strong.
Markets
How SEC Rule 10b5-1 Lets Executives Trade Their Own Stock Legally
A 2000 rule lets corporate insiders trade on a schedule set in advance. 2022 amendments added waiting periods and new disclosures after concerns about abuse.
Markets
How the CFTC's New Rule Raises the Odds of a Maximum Whistleblower Payout
A new CFTC rule presumes the maximum 30 percent award for whistleblower cases capped at $5 million, mirroring a 2020 SEC provision.
Markets
How the end of duty-free de minimis shipping is reshaping online imports
The rule that let packages worth $800 or less skip customs duty has been suspended, fought over in court twice, and is now set for permanent repeal in 2027.
Nadia Okonkwo
How the Bond Market Actually Sets the Price of Money
Yields are quoted like prices but behave like the market's collective forecast. Here is what moves them, and why the ten-year matters to almost everything else.
Nadia Okonkwo
What an ETF Actually Is, and How It Keeps Its Price Honest
Exchange-traded funds trade like shares but are built like funds. The mechanism that keeps the two in line is the part most explanations skip.
