Tuesday Afternoon Coffee - Markets Update - 16 Sep 2025 - Caution Grips Wall St Ahead of Fed; Dollar Hits Four-Year Low vs Euro

The Trade Academy Team
Sep 16
3 min read

Markets Update: Wall Street’s three major indexes slipped Tuesday in choppy trade as investors braced for a widely expected interest-rate cut from the Federal Reserve at the end of its two-day meeting on Wednesday. Despite stronger-than-forecast August retail sales, traders largely maintained bets on a 25 basis-point move to counter deterioration in the U.S. labor market.

Global Markets Roundup: 16 Sep 2025

Stocks Slip as Defensives Lag

Utilities (S5UTIL) and real estate (S5REAS) led sector declines, while the CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) climbed to its highest level in more than a week. Losses in UnitedHealth Group (UNH) and Nvidia (NVDA) weighed on the Dow, with Nvidia falling after reports of weak demand in China for its new AI chip.

According to preliminary data:

S&P 500 (SPX): −9.00 points (−0.14%) to 6,606.28
Nasdaq Composite (IXIC): −15.60 points (−0.07%) to 22,333.15
Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI): −121.96 points (−0.27%) to 45,761.49

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq notched all-time closing highs on Monday after multiple intraday records. All three indexes remain up so far in September—typically a tough month for U.S. equities.

Policy Watch: Fed, BoE, BoJ in Focus

Investors continued to price a 25-bp Fed cut on Wednesday, with rapidly softening labor data driving the shift in recent weeks. August retail sales rose 0.6%, topping the 0.2% estimate, but did little to sway easing expectations. The Senate confirmation of White House economic adviser Stephen Miran to the Fed Board and an appeals court’s rejection of President Donald Trump’s bid to fire Fed Governor Lisa Cook were largely shrugged off. Fed Chair Jerome Powell will speak after the 2 p.m. policy statement on Wednesday.

Currencies and Crypto: Dollar Slumps Broadly

The dollar DXY fell across the board, hitting a four-year low versus the euro as rate-cut bets firmed.

Euro EURUSD : $1.1867, +0.9%, highest since September 2021
U.S. Dollar Index (DXY): 96.636, −0.7%, lowest since July 1
Yen USDJPY 146.35, −0.7%, a one-month low ahead of Friday’s BoJ meeting
Sterling (GBPUSD): $1.366, +0.5%, a more than two-month high
Bitcoin: $116,511, +1%, snapping a three-session slide

Euro support came from euro zone industrial production inching higher in July and an unexpected rise in German investor morale in September. In the U.K., ONS data showed payrolls falling for a seventh straight month and private-sector basic wage growth easing to 4.7% (from 4.8% in the three months to June). The BoE is expected to hold rates this week after cutting in August. In Japan, the race to replace outgoing Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba intensified ahead of the BoJ decision on Friday.

Commodities: Oil Gains; Gold Marks Another Record

WTI crude: $64.52 a barrel, +1.9%
Brent crude: $68.47 a barrel, +1.5%
Front-month gold futures: $3,688.90/oz, +0.2%, a third straight all-time high settlement

Grains

Wheat (Dec): $5.33 3/4 a bushel, +1.6%
Corn (Dec): $4.29 a bushel, +1.4%
Soybeans (Nov): $10.49 1/2 a bushel, +0.6%

Corporate Movers

Oracle (ORCL) rose after President Trump said the U.S. and China have a deal to keep TikTok operating domestically, with reports citing Oracle as part of the investor group.
Webtoon Entertainment (WBTN) soared on a deal with Disney (DIS) to build a new digital comics platform featuring Marvel and Star Wars content.

Outlook

With the Fed decision looming, markets remain sensitive to any hint of a more hawkish tone from Chair Powell. But if resilient data persist, the risk is a firmer dollar and pressure on rate-sensitive equities—even as stocks enter the decision with recent record highs and September gains intact.

Looking forward refer to the economic calendar below to see the upcoming events scheduled for today and the rest of the week.

General news - Information source from multiple newswires.

The article and the data is for general information use only, not advice!

The Trade Academy Team