What are today's top business/market headlines?

I'll pull today's top business and market headlines for you.

Today's top business / market headlines — Thursday, October 29, 2026:

1. Federal Reserve holds rates — markets mixed:

•US equities closed mixed on Wednesday after the Federal Reserve held interest rates steady at 3.75%–4% as expected. During its October FOMC meeting, the Fed decided to maintain the benchmark rate at 3.75% to 4.00%.

•At 20h32 SAST, the S&P edging up 0.23%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average added more than 150 points, or 0.30%. The Nasdaq ended broadly flat. Other wrap: Dow rose 97.53 points (0.19%) to 52,475.10, S&P 500 gained 21.38 points (0.28%) to 7,743.98, Nasdaq +72.04 points (0.27%) to 26,549.85.

•Fed Chair Kevin Warsh adopted a confident tone on inflation and provided no clear signal on December’s move, with CME FedWatch pricing ~85-90% chance of another 25bp hike in December. The 10-year US Treasury yield remained above 5%, rising to 5.03%.

2. Big Tech earnings split — Microsoft beats, Alphabet plunges:

•Microsoft rallied after hours as Azure growth reminded investors that the cloud engine still has plenty of torque. Microsoft exceeded expectations and rose 3-4% in after-hours trading.

•Alphabet went the other way, falling 10% in an after-hours faceplant. Alphabet missed Wall Street profit and revenue expectations and AI spending accelerated its cash burn, sending shares down more than 10% in extended trading.

•Alphabet reported total revenue $127.6 billion, short of $128.2 billion estimate, with adjusted EPS $2.67 missing Wall Street target of $3.02, and negative free cash flow of $9.07 billion compared with expectations near break-even. Google Cloud revenue more than doubled to $30.71 billion beating estimates but not enough to offset ad-side miss. Alphabet's core advertising revenue of $82.01 billion was about $1.41 billion short of expectations.

•Tech Mixed as Alphabet Misses, Microsoft Beats flagged as global market update

3. AI chip rally lifts Asia:

•Asian markets rallied on Wednesday as renewed optimism around AI and strong semiconductor earnings lifted tech shares: Japan’s Nikkei 225 climbed 1.08% to 63,954.19, China’s Shanghai Composite advanced 0.81% to 3,677.99, and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng edged up 0.28% to 23,104.91.

•Driven by South Korean chipmaker SK Hynix, whose shares surged nearly 11% after reporting a record third-quarter operating profit, also SK Hynix ADRs soaring 13.30% and Micron rising 5.86%, with Philadelphia Semiconductor Index +1.76% for 4th straight gain.

4. Europe mixed on bank earnings:

•European equity markets ended mixed, Euro Stoxx 50 closed marginally higher at 6,167.81, Stoxx 600 broadly unchanged at 644.14, Germany’s DAX +0.44% to 25,704.02.

•Deutsche Bank gained roughly 4% after delivering a stronger-than-expected rise in third-quarter profit, leading Euro Stoxx 50 with +3.6% after profit rose 2% to €1.59bn despite investment banking drop. Standard Chartered also advanced after raising targets.

5. Commodities — oil up, gold down:

•Oil prices rose by more than 1% after an attack on a refinery in Saudi Arabia renewed fears of disruption. WTI increased $2.88 (3.00%) to settle at $102.78, Brent rose to $115.32, with Brent at $111.64 (+2.04%) in Asia update.

•Gold slipped to around $4,030 per ounce close to 3-month low, trading at $4,054.34 (-0.32%).

6. India — blockbuster Jio debut:

•Jio Platforms made a big-bang stock market debut, listing at ₹1,358 a premium of over 21% on its ₹1,119 issue price and closing at ₹1,419, up 26.81%.

•Jio Platforms’ ₹30,213-crore IPO is India’s largest ever.

•BSE Sensex fell 352 points (0.48%) to 73,246, Nifty 50 ended below 22,700 at 22,698.

7. Other notable:

•Indonesia’s equity market has lost approximately 40% of its value in 2026, with more than 6 quadrillion rupiah—about US$330.77 billion—wiped from the Jakarta Composite Index, amid MSCI removal warning.

•Samsung Electronics scheduled Q3 earnings call for October 29, with focus on memory demand after SK Hynix results.

Citations (6)

1psg.co.zaNot yet classified
Fed holds rates steady as markets weigh outlook
Backs: “Today's top business / market headlines — Thursday, October 29, 2026: 1. Federal Reserve holds rates — markets mixed: US equities closed mixed on Wednesday after the Federal Reserve held interest rates steady at 3.75%–4% as expected.”
evidence, article. Claim: US equities closed mixed on Wednesday after the Federal Reserve held interest rates steady as expected.
2ajupress.comNot yet classified
Market Preview: Mixed Earnings from U.S. Big Tech; Focus on Samsung Conference Call
Backs: “US equities closed mixed on Wednesday after the Federal Reserve held interest rates steady at 3.75%–4% as expected. During its October FOMC meeting, the Fed decided to maintain the benchmark rate at 3.75% to 4.00%.”
statistic, article. Claim: Fed held rates at 3.75%–4% at its October FOMC meeting.
3substack.comBlogs and newsletters
Asia Open: The Fed Gives, Big Tech Takes as Alphabet FacePlants
Backs: “Big Tech earnings split — Microsoft beats, Alphabet plunges: Microsoft rallied after hours as Azure growth reminded investors that the cloud engine still has plenty of torque.”
evidence, article. Claim: Big Tech earnings split: Microsoft rallied after hours on Azure growth while Alphabet fell about 10%.
4thehindubusinessline.comNews and mediaquality 0.72
Alphabet misses earnings estimates as AI spending drives cash burn
Backs: “Alphabet went the other way, falling 10% in an after-hours faceplant. Alphabet missed Wall Street profit and revenue expectations and AI spending accelerated its cash burn, sending shares down more than 10% in extended trading.”
statistic, article. Claim: Alphabet missed profit and revenue expectations as AI spending accelerated cash burn, with shares down over 10% after hours.
5i3investor.comNot yet classified
Daily Market Update - 29 Oct 2026
Backs: “Alphabet's core advertising revenue of $82.01 billion was about $1.41 billion short of expectations. Tech Mixed as Alphabet Misses, Microsoft Beats flagged as global market update”
evidence, article. Claim: Tech mixed as Alphabet misses and Microsoft beats, flagged as a global market update.
6jagranjosh.comCommercial content
School Assembly News Headlines for October 29, 2026: Jio IPO Listing, UCCC Delhi Meet, Chakrawat and Top National & International Updates
Backs: “Gold slipped to around $4,030 per ounce close to 3-month low, trading at $4,054.34 (-0.32%). 6. India — blockbuster Jio debut: Jio Platforms made a big-bang stock market debut, listing at ₹1,358 a premium of over 21% on its ₹1,119 issue price and closing at ₹1,419, up 26.81%.”
evidence, article. Claim: Jio Platforms made a blockbuster stock market debut, listing at a premium of over 21% on its issue price.